Absolutely manic Larry Semon short. What I know about Larry Semon: he made a notoriously indulgent and bloated 'Wizard of Oz'. What I can surmise about Larry Semon fom this: for a while at least he must have been massively popular. It's not wholly apparent why that would be from watching 'The Sawmill'. An exceedingly ugly and charmless man (well that's how he seems here- I'm just saying what I see...) he seems to be a cross between Pee-Wee Herman and Harry Langdon, an excitable fool who wins through. And gets the girl.
A sawmill worker in this, he has long and wild encounters with the foreman and then with the mill owner, all the while getting off with the mill owner's daughter. Who has no taste whatsoever. It's dizzying stuff, and never even pauses for breath, but there are some very good visual gags in there, and some visual gags that must have taken a while to set up too. They tend to be gags you nod your head just slightly in appreciation of though, rather than actually laugh at. Damnit everyone's trying so hard. There are stunts and explosions everywhere you look, and everyone working at this mill seems to have a license to kill.
Hardy is the mill foreman, but gets up to nothing remarkable here. The dog's quite good.
As ever I'll just note that as I watch more Larry Semon films and gain more of an appreciation of the character he plays I may have to come back and watch this again. Unlikely though.
Showing posts with label *. Show all posts
Showing posts with label *. Show all posts
Saturday, 14 April 2012
Friday, 13 April 2012
A Muddy Romance (Normand 1913)
There's so much talking in some of these Keystone shorts- do lip-readers ever have a go at transcribing the dialogue? Whatever your thoughts about Mabel, this is pretty shoddy stuff. It has a certain reputation (in as much as any pre-1920 non-Chaplin film has any reputation at all these days) due to the spontaneous manner in which it was filmed and the advantageous use it made of the draining of a lake, but to be frank the lake scenes aren't any funnier than anything else in it.
And I don't like Sterling much. He over-acts and seems to be known for it, but I hate all the playing to the camera, the exaggerated protestations. He's a pantomime character, and this sort of schtick is almost unwatchable now- the look he had is a distinctive one but he's one of the most irritating silent comedians I've come across so far. Maybe he'll grow on me; it's not impossible.
Two rivals for Mabel's affections then, engaging in a tit-for-tat throwing contest, which somehow ends in an elopement to the lake with the Kops in attendance. There aren't really any saving graces to this one.
And I don't like Sterling much. He over-acts and seems to be known for it, but I hate all the playing to the camera, the exaggerated protestations. He's a pantomime character, and this sort of schtick is almost unwatchable now- the look he had is a distinctive one but he's one of the most irritating silent comedians I've come across so far. Maybe he'll grow on me; it's not impossible.
Two rivals for Mabel's affections then, engaging in a tit-for-tat throwing contest, which somehow ends in an elopement to the lake with the Kops in attendance. There aren't really any saving graces to this one.
Sunday, 25 March 2012
Ambrose's Fury (Swain 1915)
The prime concern of men in the first couple of decades in the last century was getting one over on their women. The documentary evidence for this is undeniable. Swain's on great form here- a much put-upon and bullied husband, he escapes for a day at the beach with the girl next door. It's like a one-reel Carry On film.
There's a- comparatively- huge cast to keep an eye on here, which can always be a bit bewildering when they're mostly new faces to you, and in all honesty I didn't have a clue what was going on after about the six minute mark. The whole thing turns into a farce with people swapping clothes and hiding under beds and running on and off screen. It would all be guesswork really if I tried to convey what was going on.
I like Mack Swain a lot, though there's always the sneaking suspicion that he feels he's slumming it a little, that this is all a bit beneath him. Well to be honest he'd be right here, but his expressions and general demeanour make him very watchable.
Conklin's part is small. As it were. And the film itself- I suspect I won't remember a single frame of it in a few weeks time.
There's a- comparatively- huge cast to keep an eye on here, which can always be a bit bewildering when they're mostly new faces to you, and in all honesty I didn't have a clue what was going on after about the six minute mark. The whole thing turns into a farce with people swapping clothes and hiding under beds and running on and off screen. It would all be guesswork really if I tried to convey what was going on.
I like Mack Swain a lot, though there's always the sneaking suspicion that he feels he's slumming it a little, that this is all a bit beneath him. Well to be honest he'd be right here, but his expressions and general demeanour make him very watchable.
Conklin's part is small. As it were. And the film itself- I suspect I won't remember a single frame of it in a few weeks time.
Ambrose's Lofty Perch (Swain 1915)
Well now this is all very interesting. A kind of fantasy piece with Swain playing his usual role but transported to a land of kings and outlaws. Is it a fantasy or a medieval period piece? Or a melodramatic pastiche? In all honesty you won't care: it is dire.
Very, very sloppily put together, even by the standard of these things- pretty much the whole of the first four of five minutes is filmed from a single, awkward camera angle, and the actors- dancing girls mostly (and one thing in the film's favour is the surplus of cavorting females)- are herded in front of it and then led off again. Now if the material was ok this wouldn't matter but... it's not. The odd thing is that there aren't really any attempts at laughs. Ambrose has an arrow shot at his bottom. Seriously, that's it. That's your gag quota. Oh ok, there's some comedy stuff with a bomb. But whatever amusement you are going to find here will come from Swain's business, his expressions, but there's nothing in the material at all, nothing.
Swain is a king who wants a maiden to become his wife. The maiden's admiring fellah (who seems to be Robin Hood) comes along to rescue her. They had some costumes left over from another production you know, there's no other reason for any of this.
Really, really bad, but I feel it's going to haunt me like a dream.
Very, very sloppily put together, even by the standard of these things- pretty much the whole of the first four of five minutes is filmed from a single, awkward camera angle, and the actors- dancing girls mostly (and one thing in the film's favour is the surplus of cavorting females)- are herded in front of it and then led off again. Now if the material was ok this wouldn't matter but... it's not. The odd thing is that there aren't really any attempts at laughs. Ambrose has an arrow shot at his bottom. Seriously, that's it. That's your gag quota. Oh ok, there's some comedy stuff with a bomb. But whatever amusement you are going to find here will come from Swain's business, his expressions, but there's nothing in the material at all, nothing.
Swain is a king who wants a maiden to become his wife. The maiden's admiring fellah (who seems to be Robin Hood) comes along to rescue her. They had some costumes left over from another production you know, there's no other reason for any of this.
Really, really bad, but I feel it's going to haunt me like a dream.
Friday, 16 March 2012
Ambrose's Nasty Temper (Swain 1915)
Quite liking Mack Swain- he's an overgrown bear of a man, but also an ordinary joe wih a put-upon kind of face. Ultimately he's a grotesque and you can't quite understand how his career ever took off, while being quite pleased it did. No-one else in this quirky short is particularly distinguished, though I guess the harsh 'mother' fulflls her job description successfully.
Ambrose is fired from some sweatshop kind of place after flirting with the boss's daughter and becoming physically entangled with his disagreeable wife- outraged he hires a couple of first-rate toughs to get his revenge and wreak some vengeance. And here we're on dodgy ground- there's something seedy about this revenge episode, especially as it's the innocent daughter who ends up suggestively tied and mannacled and then left to drown. But this is a good mix of low farce and honest to goodness Perils of Pauline stuff as Ambrose rescue the pretty girl from drowning. Very enjoyable if low on humour.
Ambrose is fired from some sweatshop kind of place after flirting with the boss's daughter and becoming physically entangled with his disagreeable wife- outraged he hires a couple of first-rate toughs to get his revenge and wreak some vengeance. And here we're on dodgy ground- there's something seedy about this revenge episode, especially as it's the innocent daughter who ends up suggestively tied and mannacled and then left to drown. But this is a good mix of low farce and honest to goodness Perils of Pauline stuff as Ambrose rescue the pretty girl from drowning. Very enjoyable if low on humour.
Fatty's Suitless Day (Fatty's Magic Pants) (Arbuckle 1914)
Having just noticed on IMDB that that's Charley Chase- Charley Chase!- playing Fatty's romantic rival here, there's a temptation, I've got to be honest with you, to go back and watch it again. I never would have known- passed me by completely. I'm going to have to start studying these cast lists before I watch the films, because I'm obviously still out of my depth here.
This is also the first truly silent film I've seen- whether the DVD had no sound to start with or I've just ended up with a dodgy copy I couldn't say, but I had to hum to myself to keep my ears busy. The lack of music makes a huge difference actually, especially as my bulging CD collection doesn't really throw up anything that would fit the piece.
Fatty wants to take his girl to a charity ball- it's an evening dress affair though, and evening dress he does not have. Fortunately his rival for the girl's affections- Charley Chase!- is over-endowed in the evening dress department, and so Fatty hatches his plan. The upshot of it all is that Fatty ends up mid-ball sans trousers, and what's interesting is that Fatty well and truly gets his comeuppance here- this surely isn't what we, the discriminating viewer, want though is it? Of the two lovers he's the one with wit and grace- he's the chap we want to see come out on top. Admittedly no-one involved really had an honest idea how to end this though, because the whole conclusion is the work of a tired, harrassed hack.
Some good bits in here- there's a good comical fight scene between the suitors, and Fatty has a jaunty trick of throwing a top hat onto his head that is worth pausing the DVD and re-viewing. He makes a first rate toff as well does Fatty- he is always so watchable, and as much of a ballet dancer as Chaplin ever was.
This is also the first truly silent film I've seen- whether the DVD had no sound to start with or I've just ended up with a dodgy copy I couldn't say, but I had to hum to myself to keep my ears busy. The lack of music makes a huge difference actually, especially as my bulging CD collection doesn't really throw up anything that would fit the piece.
Fatty wants to take his girl to a charity ball- it's an evening dress affair though, and evening dress he does not have. Fortunately his rival for the girl's affections- Charley Chase!- is over-endowed in the evening dress department, and so Fatty hatches his plan. The upshot of it all is that Fatty ends up mid-ball sans trousers, and what's interesting is that Fatty well and truly gets his comeuppance here- this surely isn't what we, the discriminating viewer, want though is it? Of the two lovers he's the one with wit and grace- he's the chap we want to see come out on top. Admittedly no-one involved really had an honest idea how to end this though, because the whole conclusion is the work of a tired, harrassed hack.
Some good bits in here- there's a good comical fight scene between the suitors, and Fatty has a jaunty trick of throwing a top hat onto his head that is worth pausing the DVD and re-viewing. He makes a first rate toff as well does Fatty- he is always so watchable, and as much of a ballet dancer as Chaplin ever was.
Wednesday, 14 March 2012
When Ambrose Dared The Walrus (Mack Swain / Chester Conklin 1915)
I couldn't keep my eyes off the tight acrobat's costume Vivian Edwards was wearing- seriously, this is unexpectedly risqué, and is to be counted in the film's credit column.
Swain is Ambrose, a big man with a wee stuck-on moustache, Conklin is the Walrus, a skinny chap with a big stuck-on moustache. Such is my daisy-like freshness in this field, I don't think I've seen either of them before. Hopefully I'll look back on that statement with incredulity over the next few months as I discover the high and lows of their respective filmographies. Neither of them seem exactly hilarious individually, but together on screen they are watchable- the last few minutes of the film have a particular resonance as they engage in a bittersweet sort of fight, the Walrus' hotel burning down behind them.
The DVD I've got of this is very dark and the intertitles at times are unreadable- this doesn't help an already confusing film become more coherent. At no times is 'When Ambrose Dared The Walrus' a drag though- once the story settles down and you grab the gist of what's happening, the time passes quickly, and if there are no moments of outright hilarity here, there are eyecatching ideas. As it were.
The Walrus runs a hotel, Ambrose and his perky acrobatic assstant are paying guests. The narrative concerns a fire insurance on the property, and the last chunk of the film is taken up with the Walrus trying to make his last payment before the hotel burns down. They certainly did things differently back then, especially at Keystone- the pace is remarkable, bewilderingly so watching now when you're left floundering trying to work out who is who, and who the girls are, and what their relationships are etc. Best not to worry. It really doesn't drag at all, and I'd be happy to watch the two of them in another film. I get the feeling that the more you see of them, the more appealing they are going to be. Especially if Vivian Edwards is in there somewhere as well.
Swain is Ambrose, a big man with a wee stuck-on moustache, Conklin is the Walrus, a skinny chap with a big stuck-on moustache. Such is my daisy-like freshness in this field, I don't think I've seen either of them before. Hopefully I'll look back on that statement with incredulity over the next few months as I discover the high and lows of their respective filmographies. Neither of them seem exactly hilarious individually, but together on screen they are watchable- the last few minutes of the film have a particular resonance as they engage in a bittersweet sort of fight, the Walrus' hotel burning down behind them.
The DVD I've got of this is very dark and the intertitles at times are unreadable- this doesn't help an already confusing film become more coherent. At no times is 'When Ambrose Dared The Walrus' a drag though- once the story settles down and you grab the gist of what's happening, the time passes quickly, and if there are no moments of outright hilarity here, there are eyecatching ideas. As it were.
The Walrus runs a hotel, Ambrose and his perky acrobatic assstant are paying guests. The narrative concerns a fire insurance on the property, and the last chunk of the film is taken up with the Walrus trying to make his last payment before the hotel burns down. They certainly did things differently back then, especially at Keystone- the pace is remarkable, bewilderingly so watching now when you're left floundering trying to work out who is who, and who the girls are, and what their relationships are etc. Best not to worry. It really doesn't drag at all, and I'd be happy to watch the two of them in another film. I get the feeling that the more you see of them, the more appealing they are going to be. Especially if Vivian Edwards is in there somewhere as well.
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