'Mammals' is Polanski's tribute to by-gone era

Mammals (1962)
Starring: Henryk Kluba, Michal Zolnierkiewicza, and Voytek Frykowski
Director: Roman Polanski
Rating: Seven of Ten Stars

Two weirdos (Kluba and Zolnierkiewicza) take turns pulling each other on a sled across a frozen wasteland... until fatigue sets in and tempers start to flare.

"Mammals" was Roman Polanski's final short film before his career as a professional writer/director launched in earnest. Like all his shorts, it is a silent movie, as Polanski reportedly believed that dialogue would distract from important story points in a short film. Unlike the previous ones, this one is a straight-up homage to the comedy shorts of the 1910s and 1920s, with weird characters engaging in even weirder antics for inscrutable reasons.

There really isn't much of a plot here--the film is a string of loosely connected gags, some of which play amusingly with the white-out effect created by filming in black-and-white on a sunlit snowfield--but, like its main characters, the film is constantly in motion and there's not a dull second during its 10-minute running time. As a pastiche/homage to early film comedies, it's excellent... as a short film, I wish there had been a bit more of a through-line to tie the action together.

My desire for a little more story mixed in with the absurdity aside, "Mammals" is another clear demonstration of Polanski's raw talent for filmmaking, one which he would hone to unquestionable greatness as the decades progressed. (It's too bad he seems to be a terrible human being.)

Take a look at "Mammals" by clicking below. Feel free to let me and world know your take on it in the comments section.

'Forgotten Sweeties' should be visted

Forgotten Sweeties (1927)
Starring: Charley Chase, Anita Garvin, Shirley Palmer, Mitchell Lewis, and James Finlayson
Director: James Parrott
Rating: Six of Ten Stars

When an absent-minded office worker (Chase) and former lover (Palmer) end up living across the hall from each other, neither his wife (Garvin) nor the ex-lover's husband (Lewis) are happy about it.

"Forgotten Sweeties" is a comedy of errors where coincidences morph into misunderstandings that are piled onto mistakes until our hapless hero is about to lose his marriage if he's not murdered first. Like many Chase films, it's structured in such a way that the gags and situations feed naturally into each other, with their being a sort-of realism to the film that is not found in many silent comedies. Even better, the main character of the film is another one of Chase's Nice Guy heroes who is very literally just trying to get through the day and not looking for any trouble. You can actually feel sympathy for this guy, especially since there is almost nothing he could have done differently that would have not put him in the situations he ends up in.

This is one of those short films that will be ruined if I talk too much about what happens in it. However, I can assure you if you enjoy sit-coms and like silent comedies, you'll find plenty to entertain yourself here. Anita Garvin also gets to play a more sympathetic character than usual, so that's a nice change of pace.

Not every bit in "Forgotten Sweeties" works--and I suspect that part of that may be due to a social context that has been muted by the passage of time, but others are just a little too silly and drag on just a little too long--but the good outweighs that bad. The running gag with James Finlayson and a cat during the second half of the film is one of the highlights here.

"Forgotten Sweeties" is one of a handful of Charley Chase shorts included in the "Silent Comedy Classics" collection, all of which were digitized from the collection of film preservationist John Carpenter. It's a great DVD... at a price that's a steal. It's more than worth the price, I think.

Part homage, part spoof, all good

Miss Barton's Famous Cakes (2019)
Starring: Lauren LaVera, Michael Doherty, and Charlie McElveen
Directors: Jared Hirsch and Nelson Vicens

Rating: Eight of Ten Stars

On a rainy night, Miss Barton (LaVera) learns that a pair of homicidal maniacs are searching for her in order to sate their hunger for her award-winning cake.

"Miss Barton's Famous Cakes" captures the look and feel of 1950s film noir, slanted more in the direction of the British manifestation of the genre than the American one. It has fun with the style and conventions of the genre, but it's also obvious that the filmmakers have love and respect for the material they drew inspiration from. Viewers are treated to about 15 minutes of excellent cinematography and lighting (that takes full advantage of the black-and-white medium); tight dialogue and fine acting (that is equal parts dramatic and the delivery vehicle for several moments of hilarity you won't see coming); and nicely done period costumes and hair styles (which is where many films that this usually fail).

The only complaint I have is that Miss Barton's visitors are slightly miscast. Both actors (Charles Doherety and Michael McElveen) give fine performances, but they both seem a little young and/or fresh-faced for homicide squad detectives in a film noir bit. This might be an unfair and nitpicky complaint, but it's the only thing about the whole film that didn't quite work for me.

Take a few minutes to check out "Miss Barton's Famous Cakes" by clicking below. I'm sure you'll find it time well spent.

A great homage to silent comedies

Late to Lunch (1987, with general release in 2009)
Starring: John Carpenter, Donna Fox, and Michael Schwendamen
Director: John Carpenter
Rating: Eight of Ten Stars

Our hero (Carpenter) must overcome overzealous police officers, judgmental relatives, a romantic rival (Schendamen) and his own tendency to oversleep if he is to finally win the hand of the woman he loves (Fox).

"Late to Lunch" is film history lecturer and preservationist John Carpenter's love letter to the silent comedies of the 1920s--with those starring and/or written by Charley Chase being an especially large degree of affection.

Although Charley Chase doesn't have the name recognition of Charlie Chaplin or Buster Keaton, he should. Chase's comedies--whether they were silent films or talkies--were almost always tightly plotted and precisely executed affairs. A Chase comedy is a like a superbly engineered and well-oiled machine with gags feeding into other gags and if a story element appears somewhere in the film, it will be incorporated into either a joke or dramatic twist before the film's over. Chase's films are also very much front-runners to the modern-day sit-com, with a misunderstanding or minor cultural misstep that spirals into a big deal and expanding chaos. A Chase character is usually trying to solve problems and just get along with his everyday life rather than cause them, and his characters are almost always charming, Jazz Age Everymen. They may sometimes be upper class, but more often than not, they are just white collar workers... but they are always charming and goodhearted.

It's in this mold that John Carpenter created "Late to Lunch". He portrays an Everyman character who wants to have a happy life with his girlfriend, but circumstances are getting in the way. Hilariously so... at least for the viewers! Things keep going from bad to worse for our hero, as situations keep compounding each other, and it's all very enjoyable and logically within the film's world.

One great thing about this film is that Carpenter and his cast and crew avoid some of the most common pitfalls that often plague films that try to emulate works from the silent era. 

First, Carpenter puts as much emphasis on story as one would in a modern film, and just as the creators did Back in the Day. Nothing happens just because it's goofy and all characters behave in a fashion that makes sense within the context of what's going on. 

Second, while period costumes and vehicles are used, it's all consistent. Nothing is over-the-top ridiculous for its own sake, be it costumes, make-up, or performances. (Yes, there are times when actors are hamming it up, but when they do, it's either in dream sequences or in keeping with stylistic flourishes from the emulated period. In fact, everyone performing in this film both encourage viewers to buy into the illusion that they're actually performing in a 100-year-old movie, while at the same time projected the fun they're having while making it through the screen.) 

Finally, there's the music. Carpenter chose to score his film with vintage recordings that were actually used in theaters that didn't feature live musicians. While I have said in numerous reviews that I prefer the silent films with custom scores instead of stock music, but what Carpenter did here--using vintage stock music to score a modern silent film--made his homage feel quite authentic.

Speaking of authentic, Carpenter took steps to "age" "Late to Lunch", giving this 1987 film a feel similar to those surviving, beat-up movies from the 1920s. I'd even say that Carpenter did a better job at this than I recall seeing anywhere else--and those digital aging templates I've come across look downright pathetic to what was done with this film.

There are many other great touches in "Late to Lunch" that I am loathe to talk about, because I don't want to spoil the film for when you watch it, but I will say that some of my favorite parts of the film I were playfulness with the intertitles; the extended chase scene and the mugging talking place during it; the romantic scene by the reflecting pool; and the dream sequences and their gentle spoofing of silent era melodramas. All of these sequences are extremely well-done, with an execution that felt exactly like an old silent movie yet with a polish that showed it was made by someone who had the benefit of having studied them and who also had a talent for filmmaking.

There are one or two things I could complain about in "Late to Lunch", but they feel like I'd just be nitpicking. I'm just going to wrap up by stating that if you like silent comedies, you're going to appreciate John Carpenter's tribute to them. 

"Late to Lunch" is available on DVD in the "Silent Comedy Classics: 12 Classic Shorts" set from Alpha Video. It's a collection of some of the great movies Carpenter pays tribute to, half of them being Charley Chase vehicles. To say this collection is a bargain is an understatement... and I think it's a great purchase whether you've been watching old movies for a long time or if you've just discovered the joys they offer.

'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. 

An amusing flick with a botched ending

Hook, Line, and Sinker (1930)
Starring: Bert Wheeler, Robert Woolsey, Dorothy Lee, George Marion, Natalie Moorehead, Jobyna Howland, and Ralf Harolde, and Hugh Herbert
Director: Edward Cline
Rating: Six of Ten Stars

A pair of con artists (Wheeler and Woolsey) go straight to help a young heiress (Lee) to turn a rundown hotel into a successful destination for the rich and famous so she can gain independence and avoid an arranged marriage. Their efforts attract the attention of numerous gangsters who want rob the hotel's guests, including a gang operating out of the hotel's secret basement that just happens to be led by the heiress's would-be husband (Harolde).

"Hook, Line, and Sinker" was a box office smash in 1930--it was the top-grossing film for RKO, and may have been the top-grossing film, period. Knowing that, and watching the film in 2021, is a reminder of how tastes change over the decades. I like old movies (as clearly demonstrated by the fact this blog even exists), but I still had a hard time seeing how this film could have been so popular. It's got strong points, and it's fairly funny, but I don't see how it could have set the box office on fire the way it did.

In its favor, it's got plenty of straight-up bawdy humor and even more double entendres. There isn't any one particular bit that sticks out, but the non-stop stream of banter and humorous situations keeps the film moving along at a fast pace. It also manages to make the two clownish heroes the center of all romantic subplots, completely eschewing the usual  "serious" couple that normally carries at least some of those; instead, true love seems to reform the scoundrels here, so they get to clown around and have a romantic happy ending. It's a nice change of pace that no time is wasted on a bland, uninteresting couple.

Unfortunately, this otherwise entertaining movie is dragged by an ending that goes on for entirely too long. Without spoiling too much, the final portion of the film is devoted to a shoot-out between the various gangs trying to rob the hotel safe, with our heroes and their lady friends caught in the middle and trying to fight back. It's the sort of chaotic free-for-all that's been the hallmark of action comedies for decades, but here it goes on for too long. The jokes are funny, but the action feels padded and a climax that was undoubtedly conceived to be equal parts exciting and funny, but it meanders instead of builds in intensity and ends up being tedious and should have ended well before a conclusion is forced with a splash of deus ex machina. (The film does give us the nicety of a little dénouement, but it doesn't make up for the flabby climax.)

Part of me almost excused the badly executed action of the climax, using the logic that in the 90+ years since "Hook, Like, and Sinker" the flow of action sequences have been worked and reworked and perfected over time... but then I remembered that Edward Cline was co-directing action films back when he was working with Buster Keaton. Films like "Cops" (1922) and "Convict 13" (1920) shows that Cline should have had a better understanding of how to execute comedic and chaotic action climaxes. Therefore, I can only conclude the the ending was just straight--up botched.

"Hook, Line, and Sinker" is one of nine Wheeler & Woolsey vehicles included in the RKO Comedy Classics, Volume One set. While this film has its flaws, other films in the sex more than make up for those in value.

I didn't love 'Love Happy'

Love Happy (1949)
Starring: Harpo Marx, Vera Ellen, Chico Marx, Ilona Massey, Groucho Marx, Paul Valentine, Melville Cooper, Raymond Burr, and Marilyn Monroe

Director: David Miller

Rating: Five of Ten Stars 

A struggling Broadway play gets drawn into the game of cat-and-mouse of a psychopathic jewel thief (Massey) and an oddball private detective (Groucho Marx) when the theater's gopher (Harpo Marx) happens to take diamonds she was smuggling in a sardine can while on a shoplifting spree.

There are two historically noteworthy things about "Love Happy". First, it was the last time that the three-man center of the Marx Bros. comedy team appeared together in a film. Second, it was the first film appearance for future star Marilyn Monroe. Beyond that, there really isn't to recommend this film for anyone but the most entertainment-starved viewers--even huge Marx Bros. fans will be saddened by how the passage of time appears to have dulled their comedic edges. The frenetic pace and escalating insanity that was present in their great films from the 1930s is almost completely absent here, with just some faint echoes of it hovering around Harpo's character.)

Reportedly, the film was originally conceived to revolve entirely around Harpo Marx, and he also came up with the the story--which could be why the strongest echoes of what the Marx Brothers had once delivered is found around his character. While Chico is here, his character serves no purpose (other than to make references and a couple musical performances that remind us of much better Marx Brothers vehicles). Similarly, Groucho's role in the film is entirely incidental to the main action, and, although his character serves a purpose in the story, nothing would be lost--other than a few mildly amusing jokes--if it wasn't present at all. Although there's a widespread belief that both Groucho and Chico were added late in the development process, the only character that feels completely irrelevant is Chico. In fact, if most of his lines had been given to the Vera Ellen character, the film would have been much stronger for it. It would have put a greater emphasis on the relationship between Vera Ellen and Harpo Marx's characters, which would have made the film feel more coherent, as well as giving the two best performers and characters in the film more screen-time together.

The best parts of the film are all the scenes involving Vera Ellen; she's a bubbly, cute, and talented dancer playing a bubbly, cute, and talented dancer. Her song-and-dance production number at roughly the halfway point through the film is a definite highlight. Her scenes with Harpo are also great, even if a little sad since it's clear that he loves her, but she's got him squarely in the "Friend Zone." The plot elements advanced in those scenes are also among the most engaging in the film, both when they cross-over with the jewel thief plot, or are just there to advance mushy romance. Sadly, the film is so poorly scripted that neither Vera Ellen's character's relationship with Harpo, nor the main romantic subplot with Paul Valentine are given a proper resolution. Instead, after a wanna-be madcap chase around the theatre and across the rooftop involving the Marx Bros., the film's villains, the diamond necklace and some costume jewelry being passed back and forth, the film ends on the character portrayed by Groucho Marx. Some take this as evidence to the theory that he and Chico were forced into the film late in the process, but production notes and correspondence implies that Groucho was intended to be part of the project from the outset. He has some funny lines, but the fact the film ends on him--and in a way that is completely nonsensical and disconnected from just about everything that's been established previously in the film--is the final and most obvious sign of how poorly written this film is.

The low quality of the script also manifests itself in the fact that even otherwise funny gags are allowed to drag on to the point they become dull--like Harpo shoplifting; the bad guys (one of which is played hilariously by future Perry Mason Raymond Burr) pulling an impossible amount of items from Harpo's jacket; and the climactic rooftop chase where multiple antics on the part of Harpo and other characters start funny and end up tedious. The continuity issues and the attempt to augment comedic performances hampered by bad writing with dumb sound effects (which pretty much ruins some of Ilona Massey's scenes) only make the experience of watching this film more miserable.

I thought Vera Ellen and Harpo were so charming in this film, and their scenes together so enjoyable that I couldn't bring myself to give it the Four Rating that "Love Happy" probably deserves. I wish everything else around them had been better (and that their characters had gotten the proper story wrap-up they deserved.)

Harold and Bebe grapple with 'Spring Fever'

Spring Fever (1919)

Starring: Harold Lloyd, Bebe Daniels, Snub Pollard, Noah Young, Fred C. Newmeyer, Marie Mosquini, Gus Leonard, and Raye Hampton

Director: Hal Roach

Rating: Six of Ten Stars

Stricken with Spring Fever, a bookkeeper (Lloyd) leaves work early. He proceeds to cause chaos in the park and find love in the arms of a young lady (Daniels).

"Spring Fever" is a few minutes of fast-paced fun. It hasn't aged as well as some of the other Harold Lloyd/Bebe Daniels team-ups--Lloyd plays a trickster character who is just a tad too obnoxious to be likeable and Daniels plays far more interesting characters in some of their other films together--but director Hal Roach doesn't waste a second of the film's eight minutes of run-time: If characters aren't being established, plot isn't being forwarded, and gags aren't being executed, then gags are being set up.

If you like silent comedies, I think you'll find this one entertaining. It's even more fun to watch if you've seen other of Lloyds and Daniels' vehicles, as you'll recognize some of the locations from other films. Why don't you kick back and take a few minutes to watch it right now?

'Hard Work' is easy to watch

Hard Work (1928)
Starring: Wallace Lupino, Betty Boyd, and Jackie Levine

Director: Jules White

Rating: Eight of Ten Stars

A couple (Lupino and Boyd) and their young son (Levine) move into a fixer-upper... which they try to fix up with mostly disastrous results.

"Hard Work" features a small cast of actors who were either unseasoned (Betty Boyd) or who had never been expected to carry a film in starring roles (Wallace Lupino and Jackie Levine), but all three rise spectacularly to the task. It also features a simple plot (which is basically a streamlined version of what you'll find in Buster Keaton's "One Week" from 1920) that sets up disaster after disaster that are used to their fullest. Unless you are completely lacking in a sense of humor, you will find yourself laughing or smiling throughout most of this picture--even as you may be cringing at some of what unfolds. (I have had enough injuries and broken bones in my life that I could almost feel some of the punishment that Lupino's character is subjected to.)

This would be a Nine-star film if not for the weak gag that opens the film (the weakest in the entire picture, actually) and for the way it closes. The ending isn't bad exactly... it just feels a little flat.

I recommend you take a few minutes out of your day to sit back and enjoy this rare comedy gem by clicking on the embedded video below.

'Mabel's Strange Predicament' is worth witnessing

Mabel's Strange Predicament (1914)

Starring: Mabel Normand, Charlie Chaplin, Chester Conklin, Harry McCoy, and Alice Davenport

Director: Mabel Normand

Rating: Seven of Ten Stars

A drunk (Chaplin) causes chaos in an hotel and generates romantic strife between couples staying there by making it appear as though a young woman (Normand) is having an affair with a married man (Conklin).

In addition to just being lots of fun, and therefore worth seeing for everybody, "Mabel's Strange Predicament" is a historical artifact that film history buffs need to see for a number of different reasons.

First, this is one of the early incarnations of what we now recognize at the sit-com. We've got characters of markedly different types and circumstances interacting  in a single space, and we have a situation that escalates due to misunderstandings and lack of communication between the characters. (This story structure and configuration has older roots--in French farces, for example--but every element of a sit-com is so clearly present here that it's worth checking out. (Personally, I also found the changes in social standards that have happened in the past 100 years fascinating. Much of the comedy here hinges on Mabel being locked out of her hotel room in pajamas--any time after 1950, I imagine a young lady dressed like that would be embarrassed about having to go to the lobby and ask for help, but she would have to be wearing a sexy negligee or less for the level of mortification that Mabel displays here.)

Second, this was the first film that featured Charlie Chaplin in his "Little Tramp" get-up. According to some sources, the character was conceived in collaboration between Chaplin and director/co-star Mabel Normand in order to give the drunk that Chaplin plays in in this film a unique flair while also emphasizing Chaplin's strengths as a performer. It was a move that saved Chaplin's film career, as Mack Sennett was getting ready to fire Chaplin because he was not adapting well to the differences between performing on stage and performing for cameras. Normand, who had spent most of her working life in front of or behind film cameras, convinced Sennett to give Chaplin some leeway, and over the several films they made together, she taught Chaplin everything she knew... and, eventually, the student became the master! In a quirk of fate that probably went a long way to helping Chaplin perfect the first, more obnoxious incarnation of the Little Tramp character, he ended up starring as the character in a mostly ad-libbed, last minute production. When work on "Mabel's Strange Predicament" was halted due to bad weather, Chaplin and a couple camera crews were dispatched by producer Sennett  to create a film in front of  a crowd attending a soapbox race who had no idea what was going on with Chaplin engaging in antics. (Click here to check out that very funny short film.) 

Of course, "Mabel's Strange Predicament" is also worth seeing for anyone who just wants a few minutes of fun. And you can do so, right here from this post by clicking on the embedded video below!

Kids today will never know how tough it was...

... what with dial-up modems, and VHS cassettes that could be eaten by the players, only three or four channels on television--and if you missed a show, you would have to wait MONTHS before there was even a slim chance of it being broadcast again. And that's if you were lucky. And we didn't have these fancy cellphones... oh no. We had to go inside if we wanted to make phone calls!

But speaking of kids not knowing how good they have it, here's something to brighten your day, as you spend a few moments with some folks who had it even worse that you did: It's a classic television comedy sketch from "At Last: The 1948 Show" featuring future members of the Monte Python comedy troupe and the great Marty Feldman.

'Her Boy Friend' falters at the end

Her Boy Friend (1924)
Starring: Larry Semon, Oliver Hardy, Dorothy Dwan, Frank Alexander, Alma Bennett, and Fred Spencer
Directors: Larry Semon and Noel M. Smith
Rating: Seven of Ten Stars

After one of their colleagues (Dwan) is kidnapped by the dangerous gang of bootleggers run by Slim Chance (Hardy), a pair of plain-clothes police officers (Semon and Spencer) set out to save her by busting it and the speakeasy it operates through.

"Her Boy Friend" is a fun action/comedy that presages and boils down all the elements of the buddy cop genre into a fun, fast-moving 12-minute film. There's a fight scene that's very amusing and an extended back-and-forth escape-and-chase scene aboard a ship that serves as the film's climax that's got even more laughs, as well as some impressive stunts. Along the way there are some prop gags and other routines that work to varying degrees, but the action scenes are where this film is at its best.

This film would have gotten an Eight-star rating if not for it completely falling apart at the end. I think they were going to a meta-gag that breaks the fourth wall and pokes fun at the way so many of the short comedies from a few years earlier ended, but I also think they failed. An actual resolution to the story we just watched would have been preferable to the out-of-left-field twist to the character relationships and the clumsily and lamely executed pratfall.

But why don't you take a few minutes out of your day to check the film out yourself, since it's embedded below via YouTube? I'm pretty sure you'll find it to be time well spent (since you're here, reading posts on this blog).

A modern attempt at silent comedy style

"Charlie's Chase" is a student film I came across when it showed up when I did a search for "Charley Chase". I've posted a number of student films to this blog over the years that tried to capture the feel and spirit of silent movies, but few been as successful as this one.

Check it out. It's short--just one minute long--and it's quite amusing. (One gag doesn't come off quite right, but I think the rest are excellent when one considers what this is.)

Charlie's Chase (2018)

Starring: Anonymous Actors

Director: Tuatea Schmidt

Rating: Seven of Ten Stars

Click here to check out what the maker of this film has been up to recently.

It's the End of the Road for Grampy

Zula Hula (1937)
Starring: Jack Mercer (as the voice of Grampy) and Mae Questel (as the voice of Betty Boop)

Directors: Dave Fleischer

Rating: Seven of Ten Stars

A plane crash leaves Grampy and Betty stranded on a tropical island. Grampy puts his genius for jury-rigging to work, recreating all the comforts of civilization and even turning a hostile native tribe friendly.

"Zula Hula" first appeared in movie theaters on December 24, 1937. It was the final cartoon released by the Fleischer Studios that year. It was also the final appearance of Grampy, an occassional guest star in the Betty Boop series of cartoons, but who almost always got top billing and took the lead in most episodes in which he appeared.

Watching "Zula Hula", it doesn't feel like Grampy is done at this point. Not only is Betty once again reduced to a supporting role in her own series, but it was an improvement quality-wise over "Service With a Smile" (released in November of 1937), which was already lots of fun. In fact, it almost seemed like Grampy was getting a second wind, as the two final cartoons out of his ten appearances were as amusing and cute as the very first one. This one also benefits greatly from the fact that Gramy's inventions are fun and creative. (I found the anti-crash device on his private plane, his automated fishing device, and his turning an airplane engine into a musical device particularly amusing. His failed attempt to create a water clock, and Betty's comment about it, is also a funny moment.)

A big negative in "Zula Hula", however, is Grampy behaving completely out of character from how he's been portrayed in two of the best previous entries in the series. In "A Song a Day" and "Be Human", Grampy was concerned with the health, well-being, and ethical treatment of animals to the point where I jokingly said he'd make a great mascot for PETA. I feel that the Grampy we have in this film would be targeted for an ass-kicking by the Grampy in the two above-mentioned cartoons due to the way he abuses animals here, especially the way he turns a monkey into the motor powering a gyrocopter.

I suppose the cartoon natives on the island can also be considered a negative since their design will undoubtedly cause palpitations among those with a tendency to see racism everywhere. From a 21st century perspective, the design of the natives characters does appear to be racist, although if they artists were going for full-on racism would they, yet again, have portrayed the native culture as a weird mix of African and Polynesian flavors? Personally, that annoyed me more than the physical design of the characters--but since this is the second time I've encountered this in a "Betty Boop" cartoon, I suppose this is just how jungle-dwelling natives are in her world. 

I am further willing to overlook any perceived racism in the design of the native characters, because the song and dance number that closes out "Zula Hula" is one of the best to be featured in the Grampy cartoons, with a perfect mix of weird visual gags, silly cartoon dancing, and catchy music.

Take a few minutes to enjoy Grampy's final adventure right now. And feel free to leave a comment if you agree or disagree with any of my takes on it.

Tom & Jerry flame out as firemen

Hook & Ladder Hokum (1933)
Starring: Anonymous Voice Actors
Directors: George Stallings and Frank Tashlin
Rating: Four of Ten Stars

Tom and Jerry are firemen trying to rescue top floor residents of a building that's burning down.

The Tom & Jerry series was erratic in quality level and apparent target audience from, literally, the very beginning of the series, but few feel as uninspired as "Hook and Ladder Hokum". The gags are tepid and repeative; the jazzy wall-to-wall music, which is often the saving grace of the weaker entries, serves its purpose but is mostly unremarkable; and the whole affair feels derivative of previous Tom & Jerry adventures, as if no one involved with the series was even trying anymore. 

Perhaps "Hook and Ladder Hokum" was more entertaining to 1930s audiences than it is the modern viewer, because of some of its relevance by the passage of time? Much of the material here is poking fun at silent comedies and dramas about firemen (like "The Garage" from 1920), and there's one bit that feels like a reference to a public figure that movie goers in 1933 was assumed to know: A portrait comes to life and mocks Jerry for losing to Tom in a game of checkers, and it's animated in a different style than all other characters in the film, and the voice sounds like it's intended to be a spoof of someone, but this 21st century viewer has no idea who that someone was. (If some of you out there better versed in 1930s pop culture can identify the mystery target of spoofing, please fill me in down below, in the comments sections... after watching the cartoon embedded right here in this post.)

Given the inconsistent nature of the Tom & Jerry series, it's impossible for me to tell whether the lackluster nature of "Hook and Ladder Hokum" was there from the beginning or is the result of eighty years of pop culture evolution. On the one hand, there is some fine animation here--Tom & Jerry have rarely looked better--but on the other hand, there's the recycled gags. Whatever the reasons, this fourth-from-final entry in the series is among the weakest. 

The Trouble with Beauty

A Very Fine Lady (1908)

Starring: Renée Carl 

Directors: Louis Feuillade and Romeo Bosetti

Rating: Six of Ten Stars

A lady (Carl) walks through town, unaware that her beauty and all the distracted men are causing chaos in her wake.

The teaser summary above pretty much sums up the entirety of "A Very Fine Lady", aside from a little bit of business at the end when the cops step into restore order in an amusing way. 

This straight-forward film has withstood the passage of time exceptionally well, with all of its jokes working as well now, more than 110 years later, than they did when the film was made. Take a few minutes to brighten your day by checking it out. 

(Heck, this film could even do with a remake--it's been a while since Benny Hill remade it on a near-weekly basis!)

Extra Musical Monday with the Merkins... Because This is the Way Now!

It's early November 2020, and we haven't yet had time to watch the new episodes of "The Mandalorian"--there's just too much stuff to watch, including all the old things we want to cover for this blog!--but we are looking forward to the day when we can find the time.

(For the non-Star Wars fans out there, "The Mandalorian" is a series airing on Disney+ that details the adventures of the Mandalorian of the title and the baby alien he decides to protect. It's sort of like "Lone Wolf and Cub Meet Star Wars While Everyone is Brainstorming Spaghetti Western and Heist Movie Plots"... and the first batch of episodes were fantastic!)

And after coming across this hilarious musical tribute to the Mandalorian and the Child (whom we forever will refer to as Baby Yoda) via a Guns 'n Roses parody cover, we are looking forward to sitting down and watching that show even more!

The Merkins is a comedy group that specializes in spoof covers, more often than not revolving around the various masked characters from horror films. You can check out their YouTube channel here, and you can click here to see a selection of their songs that have been featured at our sister blog, Terror Titans.


UPDATE (11.9.2020)
It appears that Guns N Roses has nuked the "Green Child of Mine" parody with a copyright claim. What a bunch of useless, feckless bastards.


UPDATE (11.11.2020)
"Green Child of Mine" was reuploaded on someone's individual page. We'll see how long it sticks around! Watch it while you can!


UPDATE (11.16.2020)
The cunts of Guns N Roses have nuked "Green Child of Mine" again. Oh well. This post will stay here, in memory of a very funny parody. I'm sorry if you missed it. BUT! We're going to start a salty post where we will chronicle the ups-and-downs of Baby Yoda vs. the Cunts of Guns N Roses! Stay tuned!

Torchy Blane gets a fluffy send-off

Torchy Blane... Playing With Dynamite (1939)

Starring: Jane Wyman, Allen Jenkin, Tom Kennedy, Sheila Bromley, Eddie Marr, and Joe Cunningham

Director: Noel Smith

Rating: Six of Ten Stars

Torchy (Wyman) gets herself sent to jail in the pursit of an exclusive article about notorious bank robber Denver Eddie (Marr) via his incarcerated girlfriend (Bromley). Meanwhile, her fiancé, police Lt. Steve McBride (Jenkins), and his assistant Gahagan (Kennedy) decide to moonlight as bounty hunters and team up with Torchy in an effort to catch the robber and collect a $5,000 reward.

With a title like "Torchy Blane... Playing with Dynamite", I had hoped there'd be a mad bomber somewhere in the mix here.. but no. There wasn't even a time bomb in this, the final outing for Torchy Blane. This isn't the first time where the title of a Torchy Blane film has been a little off-the-mark

There's nothing particularly bad about this film, except perhaps the shaky logic that motivates the characters Lt. McBride and Gahagan to fly across the country in pursuit of the bank robber.., and perhaps Torchy's running around committing actual crimes to get herself put in jail, on the off-chance that she'll make friends with the bank robber's girlfriend and thus get not only a scoop but also the chance to arrest him. However, if you try to put yourself in the mindset of a 10- or 12-year-old, then the logic makes perfect sense.

The best thing about "Torchy Blane... Playing With Dynamite" is that it's constantly moving and almost every moment is devoted to somehow advancing the film's story or providing some tidbit of character development. It's only an hour long, but it flies by so fast it feels even shorter.

Another strong point of the film is that Gahagan got to do a little more than just be a moron who gets in the way. In fact, he is key to the film's climactic sequence revolving around a professional wrestling match

This was the final entry in the Torchy Blane series, but it saw two of the three lead characters portrayed recast with Jane Wyman wearing Torchy's hats and Allen Jenkins carrying Steve's badge. While Jenkins is a good replacement for Barton MacLane (who previously played the character), Jane Wyman is less effective in taking over from Glenda Farrell. Wyman has plenty of screen presence and energy, but she lacks the aggressive edge that made Farrell's Torchy believable as someone who over and over would outshine her male colleagues on the crime beat, but also take their ribbing and throw it right back at them. Wyman's a good Torchy, but she's not a great one.

All in all, Torchy's swan song is a solid B-movie. It's better than some in the series, but it's no "Smart Blonde" or "Blonde at Work".

'Bonnie Scotland' is a bit of a mess

Bonnie Scotland (aka "Heroes of the Regiment") (1935)
Starring: Stan Laurel, Oliver Hardy, William Janney, June Lang, James Finlayson, Anne Grey, Vernon Steele, David Torrence, and Mary Gordon

Director: James Horne

Rating: Six of Ten Stars

Stan and Ollie (Laurel & Hardy) accidentally join a Scottish regiment in the British military and are sent to India where they are assigned to a dangerous mission.

Although "Bonnie Scotland" is, in theory, a feature film, it feels more like two unrelated scripts for short films that were cobbled together with a romance plot but no one could be bothered to tie it together with a proper ending.

"Bonnie Scotland" starts with Laurel & Hardy arriving in Scotland to claim Stan's inheritance from his wealthy grandfather--which turns out to be far less than they were hoping for. Mishaps follow, and the pair end up joining the army, which leads to the second half of the film where they're in India for an adventure that mixes broad military humor with sinister local intrigues. 

The plot line that the two halves together involves Stan's half-sister, Lorna (June Lang), who's inherited the bulk of the estate, her romance with a law clerk (William Janney), and the scheming aunt (Anne Grey) who is trying to trick her into marrying her ward, Colonel MacGregor (Vernon Steele). As these romantic plots go, this one is well put together, with all the characters actually being interesting and ones the viewer cares about. They're even different from the stock figures you might expect, especially the two romantic male leads, with the main boyfriend not being the usual pretty face with no character, and the secondary one being a surprisingly decent and honorable man. Unfortunately, we don't get to see how it all ultimately turns out, because the film ends without this plot line even being close to a resolution.

"Bonnie Scotland" ends on an elaborate sequence and series of jokes and gags where Stan and Ollie narrowly avoiding execution at the hands of a local warlord. Literally. As the sequence is at its wildest, the film just ends. Not only is the romantic plot and the characters involved not brought to a conclusion, but we're even left in the dark about the fate of the characters who were taken prisoner with Stan and Ollie (one of whom is Lorna's love interest). If there ever was a film that needed another five or ten minutes of running-time--and a production team that cared about telling a coherent story--then this is it. (It's a doubly regretful that such a mess was made of the film's story, because all the characters in the romance story line are interesting.)

For fans of Oliver Hardy and Stan Laurel, this film delivers. They play the characters we know and love, and they do the gags we're familiar with. They even work in a goofy dance routine. If you like films that poke fun at the military, you will also find something to like here. If you want a film that delivers a satisfying story, you might want to take a pass on this one, and instead turn to some of Laurel & Hardy's short films. They have all the humor but they typically deliver a more solid story. 

That said, I need to mention that "Bonnie Scotland" was a huge success when it was released in 1935; it was Laurel & Hardy's highest grossing picture. So, clearly, not everyone is annoyed by the sloppy story constructon... perhaps not anyone but me.

And speaking of 1935, I am posting this review on August 23, 2020, 85 years to the day after "Bonnie Scotland" debuted in theaters.

You'll have fun with 'Young Mr. Jazz'

Young Mr. Jazz (1919)

Starring: Harold Lloyd, Bebe Daniels, Bud Jamison, Harry Pollard, Marie Mosquini, and Noah Young

Director: Hal Roach

Rating: Seven of Ten Stars

An overly protective father (Jamison) and the young couple he is trying to keep apart (Daniels and Lloyd) all end up in a seedy dance club and become the target of muggers and pickpockets.

"Young Mr. Jazz" is a swift-moving comedy populated by amusing characters played by charismatic actors. (In fact, it's so swift-moving that I think the version I watched might be missing an intertitle, just like it was missing its opening title and credits.)

Made toward the end of Bebe Daniels' four-year tenure at the Hal Roach Studios, and her fruitful onscreen partnership with Harold Lloyd, this is about average for their output. There aren't any belly-busting gags, but there aren't any that fall flat either; what viewers get is a solid ten minutes of non-stop entertainment... and that's really all we can ask and expect when it comes right down to it.

Highlights of the film include the way Lloyd performs more like an animated character (as in one that exists in cartoons than in a live-action film) during the beach scenes, the pickpocketing sequences in the dance club, and the massive brawl that breaks out at the end when Lloyd and Daniels come to the rescue of her endangered father. An added nice touch is the openly lecherous attitudes of the father character, leering at women on the beach and later accepting the attentions of a random woman at the  club, even while trying to chase away his daughter's boyfriend. It's a nice bit of characterization that gives Daniels' character every moral right to be "rebellious." (Also, the differences in how Americans dressed at the beach 100 years ago, and how we do it now, are fascinating... at least to me.)

I invite you to take a few minutes to check out "Young Mr. Jazz" right here from this post. Let me know if you liked this film as such as I did.