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Most people familiar with silent comedy are not familiar with Charley Chase. They recognize the face but not the name. Chase is probably best known as the obnoxious conventioneer in Laurel & Hardy’s SONS OF THE DESERT. He was a hard working, driven individual who died in 1940 at the age of 46. His realContinue reading “CHARLEY CHASE: Rediscovered”

Norville Hardy (he added the Oliver later in honor of his father) began his film career in 1914 in Jacksonville, Florida where he appeared in literally hundreds of films. He was known as Babe Hardy because of his babyish face (the famous toothbrush moustache would come later). By 1920 he had come to Hollywood asContinue reading “OLIVER HARDY: A Pre-Laurel Showcase”

…(with apologies to Reginald Perrin). There has been a lot of interest in Harry Langdon of late. Thanks to last year’s HARRY LANGDON: LOST AND FOUND it was possible to finally see the early comedy shorts that brought Langdon to prominence. Now with this Kino International release (one of three new SLAPSTICK SYMPOSIUM offerings) youContinue reading “HARRY LANGDON: The Fall And Rise Of…”

This new 2 DVD set from Kino from their SLAPSTICK SYMPOSIUM series showcases the talents of a pre-Oliver Hardy Stan Laurel and it’s definitely a mixed bag. Laurel (born Arthur Stanley Jefferson) began as an English Music Hall comedian who was Chaplin’s understudy when they came to America. While Chaplin quickly went on to fameContinue reading “THE STAN LAUREL COLLECTION Is Definitely A Mixed Bag”

Kino’s new 2 disc set of Stan Laurel comedies in their ongoing SLAPSTICK SYMPOSIUM series is better than the earlier set which was released in 2004. Whereas that set concentrated on the mid 1920s comedies, this one features a broader overview of Stan’s career starting in 1918 and chronologically going up to 1926 just beforeContinue reading “THE STAN LAUREL COLLECTION 2: Better Than The First Set”

I will always have a special place reserved for Harold Lloyd for it was he who first introduced me to silent movies with his 1962 compilation HAROLD LLOYD’S WORLD OF COMEDY. But it has been very difficult to see his films since then as he and later his family have kept them under lock andContinue reading “HAROLD LLOYD: Collection #1”

It has taken quite a while for THE EXTRA GIRL to make it to commercial DVD and now that it’s finally here, we should all be grateful. But with that gratitude there should be some sadness as well for this 1923 film was the beginning of the end for one of the silent era’s mostContinue reading “THE EXTRA GIRL: One Of Mabel Normand’s Best”

Carl Theodor Dreyer’s VAMPYR has long been one of my favorite early horror films but until just a few years ago it was impossible to see it in a decent print. The old Image DVD had the best picture quality but was marred by black box subtitles in Gothic script. Still it was the bestContinue reading “VAMPYR (1932): Atmospheric Horror At Its Best”

ET MOURIR DE PLAISIR (And Die Of Pleasure) known in England and America as BLOOD AND ROSES is a remarkable little film from director Roger Vadim that was released in 1960. It is Vadim’s take on the classic female vampire novella CARMILLA by Sheridan Le Fanu which has been filmed many times most notably asContinue reading “BLOOD & ROSES (1960): The “Plaisir” Is All Mine”

TERROR IN THE CRYPT, which is what it is called here, is the same film that I first saw on TV back in 1965. It, not BLACK SUNDAY, was my very first exposure to the film genre known as Italian Gothic Cinema. Atmospheric music, moody black & white photography, 18th or 19th century settings, andContinue reading “TERROR IN THE CRYPT: This Version of CARMILLA Was My Introduction To Italian Gothic Cinema”