'Just Neighbors' is just a lot of fun

Just Neighbors (aka "Neighbors") (1919)
Starring: Harold Lloyd, Harry Pollard, Bebe Daniels, and Margaret Joslin
Directors: Harold Lloyd and Frank Terry
Rating: Seven of Ten Stars

Fighting breaks out between once-friendly neighbor couples (Lloyd & Daniels and Pollard & Joslin) after escalating damage happens to both homes following a failed attempt at one husband to help the other with a backyard construction project.

If one wanted a cinematic illustration of what "that escalated quickly" means, "Just Neighbors" fits that purpose exactly. From the point where the two husbands (Harold Lloyd and Harry Pollard) run into each other on their way home from work in the city through Lloyd's misbegotten attempt to show off his handyman skills, through to the property destruction and literal slap-fight across the backyard fence, this film is a string of small situations that get out of hand--and hilariously so.

While none of the gags in this film are going to surprise anyone--what we have here is sit-com territory that's been well-trod in the past 100 years--but they're economically delivered by a cast with perfect comedic timing, so the action is constantly moving and not a second of screen-time is wasted.

The only complaint I can mount about the film is that I would have liked to see some more situations where the wives fight with each other was well. Any movie where Bebe Daniels has more to do is a better movie!  (I think the film might have been more interesting if perhaps it had played up and on the class differences between the two couples... but that would have probably resulted in a different and much longer movie.)

But, thanks to YouTube, you can check out "Just Neighbors" right now and see if you agree or disagree with my take on it.