Speed in the Gay Nineties

Speed in the Gay Nineties (1932)

* 1/2 (out of 4)

Rather forgettable short from producer Mack Sennett takes place in 1890 as inventor Ed Martin (Andy Clyde) believes that one day man will be able to fly. The only problem is that everyone in town thinks he's crazy and they want to have him locked up in a mental hospital. Martin gets a chance to prove his predictions as being real when he enters a "horseless carriage" race and claims his car can go fifteen miles-per-hour. SPEED IN THE GAY NINETIES is a pretty bad movie and it's rather clear that the Mack Sennett company was on its last legs because this picture is extremely cheap looking and appears to have no screenplay at all even though four people are credited with it. There are all sorts of problems here but you know you're in trouble when the great Andy Clyde can't add anything to the picture. I will admit that there were a couple funny moments including the first time we see Clyde when he's got some wings and a tail on trying to take off. Outside of this the majority of the laughs are just downright flat with nothing working. This includes the entire drive sequence at the end and an earlier scene where a big chase is going on. The movie runs a tad bit shorter than most two-reelers from this era but even if they had chopped ten-minutes out this thing would still have been flat.

In 1890 inventor Ed Martin (Andy Clyde) has dreams of flying. Everybody in his town thinks he's crazy so they want to have him committed. Ed plans to prove them wrong by winning a horseless carriage race. Not sure I followed the logic there, but okay. Interesting for fans of "The Real McCoys" to see George MacMichael as a younger man. Also people that are interested in early automobiles might want to check it out. Beyond that, it's a terribly dull and creaky early talkie short from Mack Sennett. A lot of the humor mocking the 1890s seems like "you had to be there" type stuff. Kind of like I would imagine future generations will feel about us mocking the 1970s.

In September 1890, aerodynamic Andy Clyde (as Ed Martin) thinks men will be able to fly in box kites. Apparently, he also believes men will be able to fly by donning a pair of wings and tail feathers. That doesn't look like a box kite he's wearing. Flying in his house doesn't get Mr. Clyde too far off the ground. He has trouble outside, also. A stronger wind might help. Clyde also states he will drive the first horseless carriage in a race, at 15 miles per hour. That's fast for the 1890s. The townspeople think Clyde is a nut who, "could become violent at any time." The mayor wants the "State Sanatorium" to take Clyde away. The mayor may lose his pants instead. This is a fairly routine Mack Sennett comedy, with Clyde in one of his typical roles. It looks cobbled together.

** Speed in the Gay Nineties (4/3/32) Del Lord ~ Andy Clyde, Marvin Loback, Roger Moore, Anna Dodge