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Post by antifrodis on Sept 29, 2013 11:41:30 GMT -5
I can't say anything about "Bring Home the Turkey." Apparently about six minutes of the film exist somewhere, and viewing that will have to go on a bucket list. What's odd is that Maltin and Bann act like the whole film is commonly available and give a reasonably detailed account of it. They may be going from cutting continuity, and in this case along with the other lost films it would be great if the complete cutting continuity were publicly available. Film historian Richard M. Roberts owns a complete print. He told me that he would make it available if Laughsmith ever got anything going with their set. He was not willing to share it with me.
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Post by RJH on Oct 6, 2013 23:40:44 GMT -5
The Buccaneers (1924) - Somehow the gang has built their own pirate ship. Andy, Joe, and Jackie (actually called Jack in this film) won't let Mary join because women and pirates don't mix, and women can't stand the sight of blood. However, when Ernie comes by on a bicycle-powered floating raft, he gets invitied to join - provided he goes through the initiation ceremony. This involves his walking the plank, blindfolded and with his arms tied loosely at his sides. Eventually he falls into two and a half feet of water, and is accepted. He and Farina don pirate outfits, and Mickey gets Mary to put on pirate clothes as well. She brings a bottle of "catchup" to christen the ship. Unfortunately my print is missing footage, because it cuts directly from the catchup bottle to the ship almost already completely sunk in the harbor. Mary gets blamed for this, and confides in a local old ship captain, who says the gang can play pirates on his ship.
After an extraneous scene where Joe carelessly drops lots of fish on the way home from the market, arriving with one fish out of about ten originally and attracting all the cats in the nieghborhood, the gang is involved when someone releases lots of watermelons from a truck. They attempt to take a few, but then are chassed by the police and take refure on the old captain's boat. Their dog then releases the line holding the boat to the dock, and they are off to sea. They don't get to play pirates for long when a navy ship captain spots their pirate flag, and sends a crew to investigate. The kids are made to to swab the decks, but soon break away into a side boat. The navy brings another boat with the gang's parents to take them home. However, after a few minutes on the run the gang is all seasick, and end the film leaning over the boat railings in obvious distress.
My copy is apparently missing one-fourth to one-third of the film, so it is tough to judge. It would have been interesting to watch their first ship sink. What would be an improvement would be some minutes of film with the gang in their pirate costumes coping with the ship and the sea on their own as pirates; maybe missing footage includes scenes like that.
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Post by ymymeatemup on Oct 7, 2013 0:43:50 GMT -5
BEDTIME WORRIES (1933)
Things I like: Spanky. He's the heart and soul of the entire short, being young enough that he's genuinely innocent throughout. He's also funny enough that standard gag material, like the roast-carving scene, is improved by his facial reactions. Emerson Treacy & Gay Seabrook. Not only do these two turn in decent performances as the hard-working, exasperated father, and the ditzy, over-coddling mother, but there's an authenticity to their relationship and to their interactions with their small child. Dad might routinely get fed up with his small boy's annoying questions and his wife's airheadedness, but there's never any doubt that he loves his little family and is happy with his lot in life. Harry Bernard. The entire 'Santy Claus' routine is the highlight of this short, partly because of the amusing dialogue, but also because Bernard so capably plays the part of the not-so-menacing criminal.
Things I don't like: Pretty Much Nothing. Aside from a bit of slow pacing and an occasional less-than-stellar gag, I can't find any serious fault with this episode. Of course, we don't see a whole lot of the other kids, but I've never considered this to be a factor in the film's quality. I like "Dr. Strangelove" just fine and that doesn't have any Our Gang kids in it at all.
Grade: A-
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Post by ymymeatemup on Oct 8, 2013 1:10:59 GMT -5
THE BUCCANEERS (1924)
Things I like: Lining Up For The Captain. While this film isn't necessarily on Mickey Daniels' greatest hits DVD, he does have that one great moment naively smiling at the captain, only to find out that the Navy is in the habit of hanging pirates. The Launching. The most elaborate sight gag in the whole short is the Gang's boat sinking right into the bay. Ernie's Bike. This one belongs in the Hall of Fame of Our Gang vehicles. And the way the film reveals its nautical properties is quite effective.
Things I don't like: The Gathering Gobs. I guess the filmmakers could rationalize that the characters played by the sailors were simply gathering around to watch the captain give the kids a hard time, but it looks a lot more like the filmmakers couldn't get them to clear out of the way during filming. Oh well. Pretty Much Nothing Else. This short doesn't strike me as one of the great Our Gang episodes, but it's pleasantly amusing the whole way through. It also puts the kids in a new setting (and one that they would return to every few years).
Grade: B
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Post by RJH on Oct 13, 2013 0:35:51 GMT -5
Bedtime Worries (1933) - This begins with Spanky listening to a radio program where he hears what happens to bad little boys, and he promises to be good to his mother. After fiddling with the dial, Our Gang theme music is played in a cute touch. When the gang comes by to ask Spanky to hide Pete from a dogcatcher, Spanky refuses, apparently because he has to be good. His father comes home from work, excited that he's been promoted to head of shipping clerks. Spanky asks where he ships the clerks, and there follows a long and failed explanation by both parents. Spanky eventually concludes his dad is the head cluck, which does seem accurate. At dinner, Dad acts like he's never held a carving knife before as he fails utterly to cut a roast, with the meat bouncing all over the table and his lap.
Exasperated, the father insists that Spanky sleep in his own room tonight over the mother's objections. Spanky can't lie still for five seconds without shouting and asking for water or to make shadows go away. Finally Dad stops running to Spanky's room, and doesn't believe it when a real burglar enters and tells Spanky he's Santy Claus. There are two highly improbable things here - the main ground floor room in the house facing the street is the child's bedroom, and despite Spanky being scared, nobody bothers to lock the window from the inside. The burglar fills a bag with silverware, but instead of getting away while he can, fulfills Spanky's request for another glass of water. This gives the gang time to come by again trying to find a place to hide Pete. Now scared of sleeping alone, Spanky is agreeable. The gang then has to inform Spanky that the intruder is not Santa Claus but rather a burglar, and sic Pete on him. In the ensuing melee, Spanky's dad gets the worst of it, getting hit on the head a lot, including by Spanky with a vase. The burglar breaks loose to pull a gun on everyone, but by then a cop has been alerted by the commotion and gets the drop on the bad guy. Spanky promises to see him some time in jail, but I don't think that promise was kept.
Spanky and his parents act very well together, and the mother reminds me of Gracie Allen, particularly with the mangled shipping clerk explanation. However, calling this an Our Gang comedy is false advertising. It is actually a Spanky feature with the rest of the gang in cameo roles, appearing in about 5% of the film, a tiny bit at the begining and some more at the end. It could be called a Little Rascal feature as long as the word "Rascal" is singular. In my view, the majority of the gang should appear in at least half the film to be considered a true Our Gang feature.
Buried Treasure (1926) - The kids somehow have constucted another boat (two years after the one in The Buccaneers) that floats. They have sailor uniforms with different positions on their caps, including Captin, 2nd Captin, Captin's Mate, Bosn, and Seecook. Joe copies a supposed treasure map from a friendly ship captain while telling tales, and then the gang takes off in their boat. They appear to get seasick, but when they wake up the next morning they're at an island which they believe is the location of the treasure. In reality a movie is being filmed there, with actors dressed as jungle natives and animals. Most of the gang digs up the beach, but Farina is sent to dig elsewhere, where he gets scared by some actors in costume and then a real monkey who lassos him and drags him by his feet to him. After being scared, Farina realizes the chimp is friendly, and when the animal takes Farina's cap, Farina gives him his jacket and pants. Meanwhile, the gang, with the help of their dog, does uncover a treasure chest on the beach. After they open it to discover lots of jewels, the movie actors chase and scare them. Several Rascals gets captured, but Mary ignites fireworks that hit the captors, and they run away. My print suddenly ends with no real conclusion. I guess from the above description their parents find their way to the island, and the gang doesn't get to keep the buried treasure they uncovered.
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Post by RJH on Oct 14, 2013 23:32:26 GMT -5
Beginner's Luck (1935) I think the "cult following" is rather manufactured by a single poster who created six identities to agree with himself and try to convince everyone else this is more spectacular than it really is.
Spanky's mother forces him to recite Shakespeare in a kiddie amateur contest. Spanky hates this, and his grandmother also disapproves of all the stage mothering. Spanky enlists the gang to sabotage his act and to cheer all the others. In the show we see Alfalfa, whose singing is not annoying, and Harold Switzer in his biggest role. There follows a tedious Flora-Dora Dollies dance, and then the Five Cabin Kids who have genuine talent. One clever strategem by Spanky to respond "Peep, peep," when the master of ceremonies says Spanky will be out of the show if he hears one more peep out of him. Then the girl in the preceding act gets stagefright, so Spanky now wants to win the ten dollar prize so she can get a new dress. Spanky asks his mother to tell the gang that he now wants to win, but the gang thinks he's just making it look good and repeatedly pelt him with small objects that Spanky deflects with his shield. There is one error - Spanky should not have expected the first barrage since he believes at first that his message to the gang was delivered, but puts out his shield after his first line reciting before the first barrage can hit him.
After many such assaults, Spanky's mother tries to pull him off the stage with a long hook, and Grandma comes and gets mother's dress hooked to a curtain so that the dress is pulled off as the curtain rises. The crowd is in hysterics, ensuring that Spanky wins the prize. Spanky covers up his mother's embarrassment with a wooden prop with a bird's body painted on it. This may be going overboard in terms of the punishment exceeding the crime, and it doesn't seem realistic that grandma would do that.
The rest of the gang doesn't do a whole lot compared to Spnaky, but at least they are there in front seats at the show. What I dislike the most about this and the next film, Teacher's Beau, is the disgraceful treatment Stymie gets, one line in each. Surely some of the gang's line could have been given to him for his last two performances.
Cat, Dog & Co. (1929) - Farina, Joe, and Harry are driving dog-powered kiddie cars through town and end up chasing a cat up a tree. The president of the "Be Kind to Animals Society" scolds them, tells them animals have souls (Harry never had one), tells them to imagine being in the animals' positions, and gets them to change their ways. They convince Mary Ann and Jean to come to the light side, but have more trouble with Wheezer. Then comes a wonderful dream sequence where Wheezer is on trial for crimes against animals. Various animals appear on the witness stand and jury box, and an owl presides as judge. After convicting Wheezer, oversize animals chase and attack him until he wakes up, and now he has seen the error of his ways.
To atone for his sins, he and the gang free all sorts of animals, including dogs, rabbits, and mice. The creatures cause havoc all over town, and the gang gets ordered to round them all up. One of the mice has a circle around an eye like Pete. A flea tests Joe's patience for a long time, and when Farina can no longer convince Joe to spare it, Joe flicks the flea off and tries to step on it, but it dives safely into a crack in the sidewalk. Another flea ends up on Pete, and the film ends with the gang rounding up chickens released by Wheezer, who didn't get the message that these animals needed to be kept confined. Overall an entertaining film and definitely one of Wheezer's best.
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Post by ymymeatemup on Oct 15, 2013 23:35:18 GMT -5
BURIED TREASURE (1926)
Things I like: Cap Tuttle. Man, this guy's reallllly old. But that's a good thing in this series. The scene where the Gang copies his "treasure map" is more or less my favorite moment in the film. Pal. It looks potentially like animal cruelty, but I find it funny the way Pal gets dragged into the water, not to mention his luck at catching all those fish. It's also worth mentioning that he finds the treasure as well. The Cannibals. As racist as these characters are, they provide us with the most comical segment of the film.
Things I don't like: Chimps. Actually, I find chimpanzees to be somewhat fascinating in documentaries, but I've never gotten much entertainment value out of them in film comedies. Seasickness. It's inevitable that the Gang has to get seasick at some point (like they did a couple of years earlier in "The Buccaneers"), but I never find this kind of stuff funny.
Grade: C+
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Post by ymymeatemup on Oct 16, 2013 0:43:19 GMT -5
BEGINNER'S LUCK (1935)
Things I like: The Cabin Kids. These kids are so great that I wish I could find every movie they ever appeared in. I particularly like the way the little girl briefly puts her arm around her little brother's shoulder, and the way the little guy throws in the scat singing. The Switzers. A most outstanding debut for the brothers, firmly in their early hillbilly phase. It's not difficult to see why Alfalfa was immediately added to the Gang. Marianne Edwards. This is inevitably her big moment in the series, and she's entirely sympathetic. Particularly well-done is the shot of the crowd with all the freaky closeups, but Marianne herself does a very good job in the role. May Wallace. Just gotta love Grandma, who completely relates to Spanky's attitude about show-biz. James Morton. He provides some of the funniest sight-gags, especially when he's losing his toupee. Tom Herbert. And then there's the long-suffering master of ceremonies, expertly performed by Hugh's less famous brother. The Floradora Dollies. I don't know what I like the most about these little girls: how blissfully offkey the singer is, or how completely inept the dance routine is. But I do know that I prefer this kind of realistic performance over what we'd be seeing a few years later. The Gang. Just as an ensemble, the boys of the Gang are really appealing in this short, as they do their best to destroy Spanky's act. Most of the dialogue is between Jerry and Scotty, but Alvin throws in his usual spot-on one-liner, and they all genuinely seem like friends.
Things I don't like: Spanky's Shakespearian Routine. Not that I have a big problem with it, but the climactic scene in this short strikes me as notably less interesting than the wall-to-wall excellent material that precedes it. It's essentially a one-gag comedy routine. Otherwise, Spanky is very good in this short. The Final Gag. I've always wondered if I somehow just don't get the gag with Mom's head propped onto the cut-out of a lion's body. I brought this up on the message board a few years ago, but none of the responses provided the kind of insight that would lead me to thinking it went over my head. I guess I just don't find it funny. I also don't find Spanky's mother to be appealing, though maybe we're not supposed to.
Grade: A-
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Post by myhomeo on Oct 16, 2013 15:46:40 GMT -5
Beginner's Luck- Incidentally, our particular peculiar friend turned up on another board awhile back. Looking up Rascals stuff on the Internet, I ran across a discussion on a dodgy board about possible nudity in Rascals shorts. (The OP claimed he'd made a bar bet.) Our chum immediately chimed in with this thing and tried to shanghai the discussion in his/her typical fashion. (They eventually figured out on their own the guy at the bar was probably referring to 'For Pete's Sake.') One thing that always amuses me about the short is that it never occurs to Spanky for a moment he might NOT win the contest. He's completely convinced it's a done deal the audience will be automatically wowed by his brilliance. It's so perfectly in character.
Bedtime Worries- Actually, I kinda suspect Gus Meins (He's the one who directed these, right?) might have been recycling ideas and material from his earlier 'Newlyweds And Their Baby' short. He also seemed to be in the process of changing the Gang from the former lump of largely interchangable kids with one or two standouts into a group where each kid had a specific role, character, and reason for being there.
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Post by mtw12055 on Oct 16, 2013 15:49:51 GMT -5
Bedtime Worries- Actually, I kinda suspect Gus Meins (He's the one who directed these, right?) might have been recycling ideas and material from his earlier 'Newlyweds And Their Baby' short. He also seemed to be in the process of changing the Gang from the former lump of largely interchangable kids with one or two standouts into a group where each kid had a specific role, character, and reason for being there. McGowan directed this one. Perhaps Meins an assistant director on the series at this point?
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Post by myhomeo on Oct 16, 2013 17:09:33 GMT -5
Nah, I just made a mistake remembering when it was made. I should've checked. Sorry.
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Post by ymymeatemup on Oct 18, 2013 22:41:58 GMT -5
CAT, DOG & CO. (1929)
Things I like: Wheezer's Dream. Every once in a while, this series would venture into Fantasyland, and they hardly ever disappointed. Pretty cool special effects for the 1920s. The Pedestrians. These late silents often have this gag showing a quick succession of close-up facial expressions, but this might be the funniest example. Harry The Atheist. "Don't you know that little animals have souls?" "I never had one." The Soundtrack. I quite like the organ accompaniment used for the last two silent episodes.
Things I don't like: Pretty Much Nothing. This is one of the strongest episodes made during the silent era, and has virtually nothing going against it. So much for Anthony Mack's alleged lack of talent.
Grade: A+
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Post by ymymeatemup on Oct 19, 2013 1:08:01 GMT -5
THE CHAMPEEN! (1923)
Things I like: Mickey & Jack. There seems to be a perception regarding the early silents (no doubt from people who have seen very few of them) that Jack was the bully of the Gang in much the same way Butch was years later. However, this is one of the rare occasions when he really fit the bill, and he does an exemplary job of it. Mickey, as usual, holds up his end of the deal as well, and is more than tough enough to allow these two to avoid the contrast later seen with Alfalfa and Butch. Ernie Morrison. This is just about the best episode to watch if one wishes to see what Ernie could do. The entire early sequence, in which he's caught by the cop and has to use his wiles to organize the boxing match, reveals him to be just as experienced at film comedy as his long tenure at the Roach studio would suggest. Mary Kornman. As usual, she's quite understandably the object of affection for the two rivals. This was her first really big moment in the series. Charles Stevenson. Considering how much trouble he goes through to catch Ernie, it's surprising that he's so good-natured by the end of the chase. This role seems to be a reprise of the one he played in "A Quiet Street."
Things I don't like: Pretty Much Nothing. Aside from my distaste for Crying Farinas, I can't find much to fault with this short. It sports one of the strongest stories of the era (which was copied almost verbatim for "Boxing Gloves"), and most of the kids are integral to the outcome. The whole thing just has a sense of fun that must have been very appealing to audiences of the period. This film happened just as the first cast of regulars was stabilizing, so it's a good one for seeing the foundation on which the series was built.
Grade: A
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Post by ymymeatemup on Oct 20, 2013 11:55:44 GMT -5
BENJAMIN FRANKLIN, JR. (1943)
Things I like: Pretty much nothing. Well actually, I do find the crescent moon on the seat of Froggy's pants to be mildly amusing, but that's about it. Otherwise, this short is a textbook example of how NOT to make an Our Gang film. In fact, it's so embarrassingly awful, that I actually kind of enjoy it. It has that commodity known as 'trainwreck appeal' - you want to look away, but you can't. With that in mind, let's move on to....
Things I don't like (or DON'T I?): The Dialogue. I'm not sure which is worse: the utterly horrid writing or the ridiculously contrived way the various kids deliver it. I keep trying to figure out which kid has the worst-delivered line, and I just can't do it. It's like trying to pick the worst song on "Ringo The 4th." Janet Burston. Among the regular Our Gang kids, she's easily the most obnoxious. It's her exchange with Boxcar that really brings out her multiple personalities. The way she's holding that axe behind her back is pretty intimidating, too. Ba-a-a-a-a-a-a-a!!! The neighborhood multitude makes the Our Gang kids "the guys in charge of figurin' out what to do." Then, as the Gang's little play finishes its first act, the kids are understandably upset. After all, it's hard not to take the word 'sluggards' personally, even when it's the first time you've ever heard it. But then the second act begins with pretty much the same type of content. But now, for some reason, everybody's vacantly nodding their heads. Did I miss the part with the cosmic ray machine that brainwashes children into being compliant mushheads? "The Our Gang." Isn't it supposed to be us, the audience, that calls them "The Our Gang?" Why do the neighborhood kids within the film call them this? They're all part of the same club, and yet, they have this small group of elite kids. Again, actually showing the cosmic ray machine would make things much clearer. Wartime Morale. Okay, I'm not knocking the fact that any country in the middle of a war is going to promote patriotism and good citizenship. The problem is that the entertainment becomes permeated with these sentiments, and in the case of Our Gang MGM-style, it makes me wanna be a Nazi.
Grade: F
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Post by RJH on Oct 20, 2013 22:58:37 GMT -5
Benjamin Franklin, Jr. (1943) - There isn't much more to say about this short that is utterly devoid of entertainment value. The whole thing is terribly phony. Mickey is excited about Poor Richard's Almanack, and then tries to convince the other kids that they shouldn't be complaining of inconveniences during the war. The gang's answer is to put on a play in which the characters use language no real kids would use and many wouldn't understand. And then all of a sudden all the neighborhood kids are transformed into seeing the error of their ways, while real kids would never be convinced by that performance.
The Champeen! (1923) - Quite a contrast, this is everything an Our Gang comedy is supposed to be. Sammy (the fight occurs in Sammy's barn, so Ernie is ''Sammy" in this short) is caught stealing apples, and after a nice chase sequence with a couple stunts, a cop tells him he has to repay the grocer a dollar. Failing that, Sammy gets a nice vision of himself in chains breaking rocks with a sledgehammer in a prison yard under close guard. While pondering what to do, he comes across a boxer (with a perfect 0-11 record) and a promoter. The boxer tells Sammy that the way to get rich is to become a boxing promoter. Sammy enlists the aid of the two nearest possiblilities, Farina and Dorothy Morrison, but there fight is awful, and the spectators insist on a real fight.
Meanwhile, Jack (Tuffy) and Mickey are at each other's throats, and are vying for Mary's attention. When she says she's thirsty, they race to buy her a soda, and after some back and forth when they have trouble opening the bottles, they crash into each other and break them. At each other's throats again, Sammy sees them and convinces them to take part in a boxing match, where they all should earn lots of money. When the time comes, Mickey gets hesitant upon seeing Tuffy's warmup, so Sammy tells Mickey that Tuffy will lie down in the second round, and then tells Tuffy the same about Mickey. The fight is chaotic, spilling out of the ring where spectators get knocked over. Two of Mickey's wild punches result in his boxing gloves flying off and knocking Farina and Dorothy off the top row of some stands. in the ring, referee Sammy gets hit several times, more often in the second round when they find out no one is taking a dive. In distress, Sammy has to call timekeeper Jackie to ring the bell to get the fighters off him.
In the third round, a well-dressed kid enters, sees Mary, and asks to take her out for a soda. When they try to leave, he is brought into the ring and beaten up by both boxers. Once outside, they report the match to the cop, and when he makes his presence known everyone scatters.
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