'Move On' is worth pausing for

Move On (1917)

Starring: Harold Lloyd, Bebe Daniels, William Blaisdell, and Sammy Brooks

Directors: Billy Gilbert and Gilbert Pratt

Rating: Six of Ten Stars

A patrol officer (Lloyd) and his sergeant (Blaisdell) both have romantic design on a wealthy family's nursemaid (Daniels).

I'm not entirely sure what to make of the version of "Move On" that I found on YouTube. Its content and cast bears only a passing resemblance to the description and cast list both at IMDB and at Wikipedia. Either there are two films from 1917 with the same title and the stars, or there is a chunk of the film that doesn't survive to the present day. It's impossible for me to figure out which (with the level of time I am willing to commit to research that is).

I do suspect that the version of "Move On" I watched (and have embedded below, so you can watch it too) is fairly intact, because its run-time matches the five minutes listed on IMDB. However, there way Harold Lloyd's character enters the first scene he shares with Bebe Daniels makes it seem like something is missing, because it appears that he may have been chasing someone but then decided to make time with the cute girl instead. (Perhaps that's where "Snub" Pollard appears, along with others of the listed cast members, because they are nowhere in this film, except maybe as faceless extras at the very beginning.)

Whether this is a complete film or not, what we have is a fast-moving bit of entertainment. One bit feels like it's missing a pay-off, but otherwise this feels like a complete story. What's better, it has a somewhat surprising ending when compared to other Lloyd/Daniels-led comedies from this period. All-in-all, if you've enjoyed other of their works, I think you'll enjoy this one, too. 

The Last Pairing of Chase & Todd

The Nickel Nurser (1932)
Starring: Charley Chase, Thelma Todd, Geraldine Dvorak, Estelle Etterre, Hazel Howell, and Billy Gilbert
Director: Warren Doane
Rating: Seven of Ten Stars

A socially awkward efficiency expert (Chase) is hired to teach a millionaire's daughters (Todd, Etterre and Howell) the importance of being frugal with money. The young women endeavor to make his time with the a living Hell, partly by one of them switching places with their Swedish maid to he thinks he has an ally among the servants.

While Thelma Todd and Charley Chase were absolute comedy gold on-screen, "The Nickel Nurser" was the last film in which they would appear together. Todd had already been assigned to headlining her own own comedy series at the Hal Roach Studio, and she was also being "lent out" by boss Roach to other studios for parts in feature films. But, thankfully, she was also "lent" to Chase's production unit, so we got to enjoy Todd and Chase together one last time.

While "The Nickel Nurser" isn't the best film in which they appeared together--or even close to it--the scenes they share once again clearly display how they brought out the best in each other when performing together, and they are among the funniest and most focused in this otherwise chaotic picture.

The scenes where Chase and Todd play off each other--both of which revolve around the "trading places" game that the spoiled rich girls are playing--earned a full star by themselves, bringing this picture from a Low Six to a Low Seven rating. The problem here is mostly that the characters and their actions feel mostly unmotivated by anything we learn about them, and that the gags are mostly disconnected from any logic or thought-processes that a human being might have.

For example, why does Charley assume that he going to the household to teach small children about financial matters--and, more importantly why didn't the girls' father tell him he was going to be dealing with young women? And why is the butler so rude to Charley when he first arrives? There are funny bits related to these, but they are badly motivated. And the film opens with a truly mindless and pointless bit that has Charley crash though a door because he sat on a mouse trap. This sloppiness  in story-telling and illogic is not typical of the Charley Chase-helmed comedies I've seen so far.

Fortunately, things get better in the second half of the film, which also contains the scenes where Todd and Chase treat the audience to their fabulous on-screen chemistry. Charley gets locked out of his room, but needs to talk to Todd. She refuses to see him, because he is wearing only a night shirt... so of course he puts on a suit of armor that's on display in the hall. This is the sort of "logic" that is working in many of Chase's comedies--it makes sense as a solution to a problem, even if it's not the most practical one. The suit of armor is also one-half of the fuel for the film's insane climax--the other being a shotgun-wielding butler--and the way the action and gags build on each other in a tightly planned way is more like other Chase films than the first half of this picture, and it brings "The Nickel Nurser" to a close on a high note. (The climactic minutes of "The Nickel Nurser" feel like complete, unbridled chaos to the viewer, but that's only because the sequences are so carefully constructed and choreographed. In fact, given that Chase had co-writing credit on this film, and he would soon also be directing himself in his Roach pictures, I wonder if he stepped in and took control of this film to save it?)

While "The Nickel Nurser" isn't the best of Chase's films, nor the best he made with Thelma Todd, it's always good to see them together, and it makes this a highlight among the 15 films included in the two-disc DVD set Charley Chase at Hal Roach: The Talkies Volume Two, 1932-1933.

'Sealskins' is greater than its parts

Sealskins (1932)
Starring: Thelma Todd, ZaSu Pitts, Bert Sprotte, Charlie Hall, Frank Austin, and Billy Gilbert
Directors: Morey Lightfoot and Gil Pratt
Rating: Eight of Ten Stars

The Royal Seal of Siberia has been stolen, and a secretary with dreams of being a newspaper reporter (Todd) thinks she has a lead on where the thieves are hiding it. With her reluctant friend (Pitts) in tow, she sets out to crack the case and get the scoop. Unfortunately, the trail leads them to a creepy boarding house full of even creepier characters...

"Sealskins" is a comedy of errors, a spoof of the 'old dark house genre' and a spoof of the 'newspaper reporter detective' B-movie genre, all wrapped into a single package. Individually, the jokes and bits in the film aren't all that great--some are outright duds--but the way they are blended together add up to a very cute and highly amusing film.

What makes this work, first and foremost, is the sense of warmth and friendship between the two main characters; it's fully believable that ZaSu Pitts' character would let herself be dragged along on what is at best a fool's errand and at worst truly dangerous, because of this sense of camaraderie between them. If this same story had been done with Thelma Todd and Patsy Kelly (who would replace Pitts as co-star in this series when Pitts' contract expired and producer Roach didn't want to meet her demand for more pay in order to re-up), it would have been an absolute disaster.

Another element that puts this film among the better Thelma Todd-starring shorts is the script. Unlike so many of these films, it's a complete story, with a begging, a middle, and an end. Also, it stays focused on Thelma and ZaSu, instead of letting them get crowded out of their own story by the wide array of interesting characters and subplots crammed in. (And there are plenty of interesting characters in this one--from the seal-nappes, to Thelma's rival at the newspaper, to any one of the residents of the spooky boarding house--that could easily been given more schtick to do.)

The only incidental character I wish had been given a little more screen-time is a circus sideshow Voodoo Doctor whom our heroines encounter while running around the house and inexplicably frightened by. I would have loved to see him out of costume and be somehow involved with the film's resolution to show that he was just a guy in a costume before. (But that could be my 21st century mindset shining through.)

"Sealskins" is one of 17 films that Thelma Todd and ZaSu Pitts starred in together, and they can all be had on in a single two-disc DVD collection. The print from which it was taken is a bit more worn than most (or maybe not as much effort was put into restoring it?), but the imperfections are no so bad so as to make the action hard to follow. I have three more films left to watch before I've seen every one in the set, but I already feel like I've gotten more than my money's worth out the collection.



Trivia: Toward the end of film, the newspaper editor calls Thelma Todd's character "Toddy". This was Todd's real-life nickname.

'The Bargain of the Century' is a high point for the Todd & Pitts Team

The Bargain of the Century (1933)
Starring: Thelma Todd, ZaSu Pitts, James Burtis, and Billy Gilbert
Director: Charley Chase
Rating: Nine of Ten Stars

After causing a traffic cop (Burtis) to be fired, Thelma and ZaSu (Todd and Pitts) take him in as a roommate while they try to find him a new job.

"The Bargain of the Century" was one of the last films that Thelma Todd and ZaSu Pitts made together. It is also the only installment in the Thelma Todd-headlined comedy series that was directed by the great Charley Chase. This is shame, because every moment of this film shows the influence of the master comedic craftsman that Chase was.

While the film has a relatively  thin plot, every element of it is motivated and ties in with every other element, each set-up pays off with a gag--including individual gags which sometimes are there to set up ones that are coming up later, and each cast member gets their turn on center stage while not crowding out any other performers. As in other films she made with Chase, Todd gives a great performance; he really had an ability to bring out the very best in her. In fact, everyone appearing in this film gives excellent performances.

The only serious complaint I can mount about "The Bargain of the Century" is that I wanted more of what's here. I think this film could easily have been a full-length feature, just based on the hints we get regarding the talents and interests of unfortunate police officer Buttersworth (James Burtis) when he decides to install home security systems in the apartment he shares with Thelma and ZaSu; his efforts to launch a career as an inventor or engineer in the wake of losing his police job could have easily been enough to extend this out to a full-length movie. Also, the reversal of sex roles on display is also could have led to expanded comedic bits, as we see in the scene where Thelma gets angry because Buttersworth doesn't have dinner ready when she comes home after a long day at work. The fact that I was left wanting more in the wake of the very satisfying ending to this picture is a testament to the artistry and skill that went into producing this film.

"The Bargain of the Century" is one of 17 films that Thelma Todd and ZaSu Pitts starred in together, and they can all be had on in a single two-disc DVD collection. Not every one of these is a winner, but there are some real gems among that that make the set well worth the purchase price if you like classic short comedies.

'Maids ala Mode' is fun but flawed

Maids a la Mode (1933)
Starring: Thelma Todd, ZaSu Pitts, Billy Gilbert, Leo White, Cissy Fitzgerald, and Billy Engle
Director: Gus Meins
Rating: Six of Ten Stars

After a particularly grueling day at work, Thelma (Todd) and ZaSu (Pitts), respectively a runway model and seamstress for a high-end fashion designer (Gilbert), "borrow" two dresses to attend a party hosted by an acquaintance (White). Unfortunately for them, their boss was also invited...

"Maids ala Mode" is another entry in the Thelma Todd/ZaSu Pitts series of short comedies that's a mixed bag, quality-wise.

On the plus side, it's got some really charming and funny performances from the two leads, as well as supporting cast members Billy Gilbert (as the girls' excitable German boss) and Leo White (as a flamboyant artist and high-socity gadfly for whom Thelma had once modeled). Gilbert and White also get some of the funniest lines, although they're enhanced because they're bouncing off Thelma Todd acting as the closest thing this short has to a straight-man. Certain viewers will also appreciate that the bits with the scantily clad women are all frontloaded in the film, during the fashion show that opens the film, including the nearly obligatory scene of Thelma Todd in her underwear. Finally, and this is a big plus, our heroines aren't crowded out of their own story as has happened in other films in the series.

On the downside, despite some really clever lines delivered during some really charming performances, the film is dragged down by the fact that almost every bit of physical comedy is either not very funny, or is dragged out to the point where the bit becomes tedious. This trend of not-knowing-when-to-quit, or not being willing to edit a bit into a more amusing length and shape, has been a flaw I've found with several of the short films Todd headlined either with ZaSu Pitts or Patsy Kelly. I really think this was an attempt to cover for a lack of effort when it came to creating the stories for these films--a belief that I think is underscored by the fact that this is another film that doesn't so much end as just stop. On the other hand, the resolution-free ending does come shortly after one of the film's funnier moments generated by a slight twist on the standard rule of three comedic structure... but an actual ending would have been nice.

Ultimately, "Maids a la Mode" is a flawed but entertaining little movie. The good outweighs the bad, and, while it's not one of the best of the 17 films Thelma Todd and ZaSu Pitts made together, it's far from the worst.

2019

'Asleep in the Feet' is the Todd/Pitts Team at its Best

Asleep in the Feet (1933)
Starring: ZaSu Pitts, Thelma Todd, Anita Garvin, Eddie Dunn, Billy Gilbert, and Nelson McDowell
Director: Gus Meins
Rating: Eight of Ten Stars

Thelma and ZaSu (Todd and Pitts) moonlight as taxi dancers to raise money for a neighbor's back rent.

"Asleep in the Feet" ranks among the films that Thelma Todd and ZaSu Pitts made together. It's a tightly plotted, smoothly directed film where the humor grows organically out of the story and its characters, and each joke and gag is carefully set up and each and every set-up has a satisfying payoff. The supporting actors are also perfectly cast, with Eddie Dunn as an obnoxious sailor and Nelson McDowell as a moral crusader being particularly good in their parts.

More recently, I've been watching the films that paired Todd with Patsy Kelly, and I reminded of the on-screen chemistry that Todd and Pitts shared. It's something that is lacking between Todd and Kelly, and it's led me to wonder why their characters are even friends. That is never something that one wonders about with the Todd and Pitts characters; they seem like they are good, kindhearted people, and utterly loyal to each other. There's a warmth and affection here that's mostly lacking in the ones that team Todd with Kelly. From what I've seen of those so far, I also find it hard to believe that those characters would take on extra work to prevent a neighbor from being evicted, where it seems completely in keeping with the main characters in the Todd/Pitts films. The laugh and the hug the characters share at the end of the film is also one of the most heartwarming moments I think I've ever seen in a Hal Roach-produced comedy.

Another interesting aspect of this film is the window it gives us into the past. We get to see what life was like for independent, working-class, single women during the Depression Era, and it's interesting how much things have (and haven't) changed since then.

"Asleep in the Feet" is included on a two-disc set that contains all of the short films that Thelma Todd and ZaSu Pitts made together

'One Track Minds' is off the tracks

One Track Minds (1933)
Starring: ZaSu Pitts, Thelma Todd, Lucien Prival, George McFarland, Billy Gilbert, and Jack Rube
Director: Gus Meins
Rating: Four of Ten Stars


While traveling by train to California for a screen test, Thelma (Todd) finds herself in the same train car as the pompous film director (Prival) who will decide her future movie career.

"One Track Minds" was the last film that Thelma Todd and ZaSu Pitts made together, and I wish I could say their team-up ended on a high note. It did not. Pitts' contract with the Hal Roach Studio was up, and she was ready to move onto other things... and I think that maybe this film was a casualty of a desire to get one last contribution from the Todd/Pitts team as ZaSu was on her way out the door.

I say this because this is not so much a film as a series of gags thrown together with train travel as a kinda-sorta uniting theme. Not a whole lot of effort appears to have been put into developing any sort of coherent storyline, nor even many of the jokes themselves.

The though-line of the film is mockery of Hollywood's celebrity culture, with ambitions, dream-filled starlets and arrogant, self-absorbed movie directors, but the film meanders through several rail-traveling "slice-of-life" scenes involving Pitt's child or little brother--it's never established what their relationship is--and Pitt and Todd's interaction with various other kooky people in the train. The end result is that this feels more like a collection of vaguely related sketches than a coherent movie, a feeling that's underscored by the fact the film doesn't have an ending; it just ends, with none of its plot threads resolved, or even developed, to any degree whatsoever.

It's a shame the film isn't more coherent and the jokes aren't better developed, because the cast are all doing their absolute best with what they have to work with. The greatest shame, though, might be that because the film is so unfocused, Pitts and Todd are almost crowded out of their own movie. Lucien Prival (as the stuck-on-himself, flamboyant film director), Billy Gilbert (as the conductor who has to deal with the nuts on his train) and Jack Rube (as a deaf beekeeper who is traveling in the passenger car with his bees) all have more interesting parts than the two stars. In fact, Todd has virtually nothing to do in the picture.

While this was the last film Todd and Pitts made together, it won't be the last of their pairings I'll be covering as the Year of the Hot Toddy continues. I jumped to the end of the cycle, because I've been somewhat disappointed in their quality. Thelma Todd made some excellent shorts with Charley Chase, but only one where she was teamed with Pitts was even close to as good. I hoped that by the end whatever wasn't clicking had clicked... but "One Track Minds" has bigger problems than any of the previous Todd/Pitts films (Although I also felt they were crowded out of their own picture in their first official teaming in "Catch-As-Catch-Can", so maybe this was a common thing?

Thelma is a Bombshell for the Defense

Sneak Easily (1932)
Starring: ZaSu Pitts, Thelma Todd, James C. Morton, Bobby Burns, and Billy Gilbert
Director: Gus Meins
Rating: Six of Ten Stars

Attorney Thelma Tood (Todd) is defending a mad scientist (Burns) who has been accused of murdering is wife when juror ZaSu (Pitts) accidentally swallows a piece of evidence--which just happens to be a sample of the time-released high explosive of the madman's creation. Will ZaSu develop a case of terminal indigestion, or will the Thelma and the rest of the officers of the court find a way to save her before it's too late?

When I read a logline for this film--"Juror Zasu accidentally swallows a piece of evidence which just happens to be a time bomb."--it moved to the top of the list of things to watch. However, while amusing, this outing for these great comediennes is deeply flawed in several ways, almost all of them originating with the script.

The problems start almost immediately. Three minutes in, I felt like I had missed the beginning of the film, because so many questions are raised by the way Thelma Todd's attorney character is introduced. She is clearly an inexperienced attorney trying to inflate her image, but why? And how did she end up defending the mad scientist? Perhaps her apparent inexperience with court procedures is an indication that she isn't an attorney at all but is some sort of fraud? The sense of having missed out on a chunk of the story only deepened when an exchange between ZaSu makes comments to Thelma that not only establishes that they are closely acquainted but that they may even be roommates like they are in other entries in the series; how could ZaSu be on the jury in a murder trial if she has close ties to the defense attorney? It makes sense if Thelma is some sort of fraud and somehow managed to get ZaSu on the jury as a "ringer"... but, again, that means there's a chunk of story missing. I don't mind joining a story in progress when it comes to short films like these, but I do mind when it feels like I came in late.

Another problem is a bizarre repeat of footage during a high-speed driving sequence when ZaSu is being rushed to hopeful salvation in an ambulence. I thought maybe the DVD had skipped, but, no. For whatever reason, the filmmakers decided to insert the same few seconds of external footage of cars on a road twice in the same sequence, with only a short scene of the actors mugging it up in the ambulance in between. It's unncessarily distracting and looks sloppy and cheap. If it was done for comedy, I'm missing the joke.

Despite the flawed beginning, once ZaSu swallows the trial evidence, the film is utterly hilarious and top-notch. While Todd doesn't get to show off her flair for physical comedy, Pitts gets to do plenty of pratfalls. In fact, it many ways, Todd serves as the eye of a storm of craziness, as she is the only actor who isn't hamming it up... at least not until the explosive prelude to the film's twist ending.
"Sneak Easily" is one of 17 short films included on the two-DVD set containing

It's a pain for the butler, but you'll laugh while he suffers

Just a Pain the Parlor (1932)
Starring: Harry Sweet, Monte Collins, Cecil Cunningham, Billy Gilbert, and James Donlan
Director: George Marshall
Rating: Six of Ten Stars

A butler (Collins) must try to make an Olympic athlete, who is the very definition of a dumb jock (Sweet), presentable for a high society party.

"Just a Pain in the Parlor" is a silly little movie that runs 20 very fast minutes. It consists mostly of slapstick humor revolving around servants attempting to clean up a simple-minded houseguest so he be shown off at a can party being hosted by the snooty lady of the house (Cecil Cunningham). If you're a fan of Laurel & Hardy shorts, I think you'll like this one. As it was unfolding, I was put in mind of Hardy playing the beleagured butler and Laurel the dimwitted athlete. The only part that of this that didn't feel like a Laurel & Hardy film was the ending.

Since this isn't a Laurel & Hardy film, how did the actual performers do? Everyone did a fine job, and although the story and situation put me in mind of a Laurel & Hardy film, none of the performances did... well, almost none. Harry Sweet does a bit where he jumps up and gloms onto people who touch his tie that really put me in mind of Stan Laurel due to the rest of the film. One thing I particularly appreciated was the understated way Monte Collins behaved throughout the picture. He was mostly calm and steady and in control of himself (if not the situation he'd been thrust into), just like you'd expect a butler to be. Collins isn't the usual type of actor who played butlers in these kinds of comedies, but I think that made him even more effective as the film's only straight man.

The only negative with this movie is that the gags get repetative. I know comedy can be about repetion, but with "Just a Pain in the Parlor", they don't only milk some of the gags until dry, they salt them and smoke them and turn them into joke jerky. This problem is not severe enough to ruin the film, but it did keep me from giving it a Seven Rating.

You might want to avoid 'Chinatown After Dark'

Chinatown After Dark (1931)
Starring: Rex Lease, Billy Gilbert, Carmel Myers, Barbara Kent, and Frank Mayo
Director: Stuart Paytom
Rating: Three of Ten Stars

Jim Bonner (Lease) tries to unravel the mystery of his brother's disappearance, while being hounded by an incompetent police detective (Gilbert) and a sinister Chinese criminal mastermind (Myers).

There a scraps of interesting story elements scattered throughout this poorly written, unevenly paced, wretchedly acted,, and badly staged Yellow Peril-style thriller. Most fascinating to me was the casual yet nasty racism on display when the chief homicide detective assigns the investigation of the murder of a well-to-do Chinese man to an officer he states won't be able to solve the case.

Although I reference a mystery in my summary above, there are actually three different mysteries in the film, none of which are handled very well. First, the reason why the villain wants the Chinese dagger is the film's first focus is revealed way too early. Second, the disappearance of the hero's brother (and the hero subsequently coming under suspicion of murder) would easily have been resolved by the hero doing to the police--something which he never really did not have a reason to do, other than there wouldn't be a movie. Third, the question of "how will the hero clear his nane?" was never really a question, because of the ineptitude with which the two previous questions have been handled.

Watching this film, I repeatedly found myself saying, "that would make an interesting story" as some plot nugget or off-hand reference came and went on the screen. Unfortunately, that interesting story is not found in "Chinatown After Dark."

What is also not really found, since this film headlines Carmel Myers, was the elaborate costumes that I imagine some of the audience went looking for. Although little known today, Myers was a huge star during the Silent Ere who was known for wearing spectacular and exotic outfits in her films. Here, while she is midly exotic in her look, there is nothing particularly amazing about her costume; I suppose, in some ways, that can be taken as a reflection of how her star steadily faded after she made her transition to talkies.

I think this film is probably only of interest to hardcore lovers of old films... and even then, you probably don't need to rush to see it. But, if you have nothing better to do, you can watch it right here, right now by clicking below.