User reviews

"Free Wheeling" is one of the best Little Rascals films. It's loaded with the sight gags and exaggerated sound effects that make films from Hal Roach Studios so funny. A whole variety of hilarious things happen in "Free Wheeling," from a mule that gets drunk to a traffic cop jumping 12 feet in the air. A must see for any Little Rascals fan!

The gang operate a donkey-powered taxi service in this fun Our Gang entry. The taxi itself is a marvel of ingenuity that has to be seen to be believed.

I recently bought a collection of Little Rascals shorts on DVD for my 3 year old daughter...needless to say she loves these pieces more than anything on TV today...she's memorized many of the lines in them and will quip off at will at any time around the house... This particular episode serves as a sterling example of the Little Rascals at their best...not only the kids but the adult team of McGowan, Roach, and Walker. Their direction and writing are fantastic, and create humor that is enjoyable and timeless... 70 years later we still find ourselves in stitches watching the gang's adventures.

This episode features Dickie Moore and Stymie Beard, along with Spanky, Kendall McComas (Brisbane), and Dorothy (DeBorba)... The premise of the sick rich kid wanting to "rough it up a bit" with the "street urchins" is refreshing to this day...color of skin was no barrier. The taxi contraption is ingenious and hilarious to watch in action. Spanky provides priceless comic relief going up against the poor little monkey. In the end, every issue is resolved and it even seems Dickie's (rich kid) parents view Stymie (street urchin) as a hero! Look for Stymie's real-life mother in a brief cameo...

Could you imagine how much fun it would be if we could watch one of these shorts in a theater before the main attraction (instead of all the commercial advertising)like the old days? Imagine what a treat people who've never heard of this series would be in for!

"Free Wheeling," a Hal Roach "Our Gang" entry from the 1932-33 release season, shows the Rascals at their peak. Dickie Moore plays the poor little rich boy who wants to play with his pal Stymie - but Dickie's doting mother insists he can't rough it up because of his stiff neck. Dickie wants some excitement in his life, and Stymie promises him excitement on his taxi made from cardboard, wood, and powered by a mule!

Dickie's dad and the doctor agree that all Dickie needs is to go outside and run and jump and play. Mother won't hear of it, however, and Dickie and Stymie sneak away on the taxi. Chaos ensues, however, as the mule gets away from the taxi - and Dickie, Stymie, Spanky and Jacquie Lyn "free wheel" it down a hill! Will Dickie's parents find them in time?

Truly a "Little Rascals" classic, "Free Wheeling" succeeds on many levels. First, the performances of the children are natural and playful. Second, the film is aided by blending comedy with the drama of the taxi "free wheeling". The only drawback to the film is the obvious backscreen as the children race downhill, but since this is 1932, one can forgive the antiquated special effects.

If you saw "Free Wheeling" on television when you were growing up, chances are you never forgot it. Funny and action-packed, the film deserves its ranking as one of the best "Our Gang" comedies from this period. 10 out of 10.

An OUR GANG Comedy Short. Rich kid Dickie has a stiff neck and his mother insists on treating him like an invalid. After his pal Stymie hears the doctor say that Dickie needs to get out & have some excitement in his life, Stymie takes him for a ride in the Gang's new taxi, which is operated by mule power. But the ornery critter breaks loose - leaving the vehicle without breaks. With a steep hill & dangerous curves ahead, it looks like little Dickie is in for plenty of excitement - now that they're FREE WHEELING.

This is a funny little film with a couple of very cute moments: Dickie & his nurse tricking each other into taking castor oil and Spanky's encounter with a monkey. The taxi itself is quite ingenious and should delight gadget-minded viewers.

There are those who complain about the supposed racism of the Our Gang/Little Rascals films. This one dispels a lot of that.

This is where rich kid Dickie is hampered by his overprotective mother, who despises Stymie, who she refers to as "That colored boy" and a "street urchin," but the two bond nonetheless and without spoiling it, let's just say that Stymie's actions in this film changes the snooty mother's mind.

Not only is this a nice and somewhat subtle message about friendship across lines of race and class, but the film is good and funny to boot. The gang's makeshift cab, their encounter with the drunken mule, Spanky playing with the monkey, the wild taxi chase, and the gag with the midgets and the car (you have to see this, although it's in pretty good taste). While there is no racism here, this is certainly RASCALism at its best!

Another of my personal favorites.Free Wheelin' makes you laugh.Stymie is the voices on the taxi-cab radio,as well as the floating power!Spanky shakes down an organ grinder's monkey for cab fare,and Dickie's stiff neck gets cured!All thanks to a wild down hill ride that provides plenty of excitement!Stymie and Spanky are exceptionally good in this one,as they often were.

This Hal Roach comedy short, Free Wheeling, is the one hundred seventeenth in the "Our Gang/Little Rascals" series and the twenty-ninth talkie. This is also the first short to only have "Our Gang" as the series title with no "Hal Roach presents His Rascals" heading. It would remain this way for the rest of the series' theatrical run. (On television, however, the Hal Roach-produced talkie entries will be renamed "The Little Rascals" since only M-G-M owns the "Our Gang" title.) Dickie has been wearing a neck brace since, well, forever. The latest doctor says take it off and let him play with the rest of the gang but his over protective mother won't hear of it. When Stymie comes into Dickie's room, he lets him pay for a ride in the gang's mule-pushed taxi. He's not the only passenger on it, however-little Spanky and Jacquie also come along for the ride...This was another funny Our Gang comedy which climaxes with quite a thrilling ride though it's not too convincing since an obvious rear projection screen is used for the climax. No matter as there's enough humorous lines and scenes to keep one entertained throughout. So on that note, Free Wheeling is recommended.

I can't speak for other reviewers, but when I first saw this episode as a kid, my first reaction was: "My friends and I need to build a car like this." And hey, it's light years before anyone was serious about sustainable energy vehicles! I wanted to build that same taxi in our driveway. Of course, it didn't take me long to realize that I didn't have the building materials, the donkey, or the know how, to create anything this exceptionally wonderful! Those lucky kids!

It's films like this that define The Little Rascals as kids who got along very well, and race or gender had very little meaning (especially to the children). Child labor laws hadn't quite gone into effect yet. And it would be several more years before PETA stepped in to help protect the rights of the animal actors. But the film stands as it is, representing that particular period of time and should not be taken too seriously.

No spoilers necessary. The film speaks for itself. Although I will reveal that some of the scenes on Mulholland Drive will bring back quite a lot of memories to those of us that grew up in southern California in the 50s and 60s.

In 'Free Wheeling,' Dickie is one sick little boy. Or at least his mother thinks so. Turns out, though, that the cure is some time out with the gang. So Stymie and Breezy take him for a ride in their cab which ends up sailing down the road, out of control. Most of 'Free Wheeling' is build up to the final downhill chase, which ends up being only mildly amusing. Spanky, of course, has some great lines and a wonderful scene with a monkey. 'Free Wheeling' will leave you with a smile on your face, but the gang has been much funnier than they are here.

I recorded this episode in its entirety on VHS in the 1980's. Many moons and neighborhoods have seen it pass.

As the clock of progress takes us beyond, theatre, broadcast, VHS, DVD, internet, etc.; this masterpiece of comic genius is becoming more scarce than ever.

There was a brief time that you could view it on YouTube Movies in a few chapters. They're gone now and most of what's out there now online are missing the funniest parts. The mule gets drunk drinking rubbing alcohol and his tail points straight up.

Whatever it takes to get this, pursue it passionately. Even if it means buying it on VHS and having it professionally digitized. It's that good!!!!

A salute to writer H. M. Walker, who wrote so many classic Our Gang/Little Rascals short films. He passed suddenly a few years after this film, but never forgotten.

All us kids LOVED this story. It had everything, including the full cast; Dickie Moore, Stymie, Breezy, Dorothy, little Spanky and Jackie (known for PACK UP YOUR TROUBLES). It's all about Dickie, playing a rich kid with health problems, stuck with a stubborn stiff neck, requiring a brace. In the meanwhile, his pal Stymie, has built a makeshift taxi -- without an engine? So he gets a donkey to push the darn thing, and that's when the adventure begins.

In the end, Dickie is miraculously cured due to the WILD ride -- which takes the gang FREEEEE WHEEEELING across the city, up and down hills, running into all sorts of insane situations. Totally outrageous episode you have to see, and exceptionally (if not breathtakingly) directed by Robert F. McGowan, behind this series for years. This episode rocks and rolls, no kidding.

Some notes; Creighton Hale plays Dickie's father, who also played Miss Crabtree's brother in other episodes. Silent film star Lillian Rich plays Dickie's mom. Yes, in the 70s, censors cut out the scene in which Stymie's mom (played by his real mother, Johnnie Beard), asks him to take the laundry basket to Dickie's house. It was thought to be racially insensitive at the time, as to the way she was dressed, but today has been remastered and added to the original print. Stymie's mom appeared in one other Our Gang film.

See this comedy if you haven't, BECAUSE you will want to see it again. A little masterpeice. Thank you so much to METV Plus for running these golden oldies with lots of fond memories.

Generally, the Our Gang comedies are very watchable today--especially those from the early 1930s. However, "Free Wheeling" manages to be a rare misfire--and is pretty bad in parts. Too bad--and the film started off well enough. It seems that Dickie's mother is VERY over-protective. She's convinced he needs to be in a neck brace and has been for some time. However, the doctor insists that the boy is fine and he just needs to go out and have some fun. However, he makes the mistake of trying out Stymie's new cab service. The cab is an old wreck of a car pushed by a mule. But, when the mule gets loose, the cab goes careening out of control--and the children could be killed.

While the idea doesn't sound bad, the film became bad once the cab supposedly broke loose. Such a stun was VERY difficult to film realistically back in 1932. Now I am NOT suggesting that the studio should have really pushed the kids down the hill!! But, it looks so incredibly fake even by the standards of the day. As a result, there is no excitement at all. Even part of you knows the kids are fine because it's so unreal. As a result, the film is all downhill from there...so to speak.