Stupid, But Brave

The perfect title for this comedy short, not to mention for Al St. John's overall comedic "style." Take any and all opportunity to watch Al St. John's work, especially during this period. The man was impressively, remarkably original. I think what amazed me even more was how contemporary he seemed, as if he were some distant Carradine cousin, or a fore-runner to Jim Carrey. At this point in his career, he resembles a blonde, 1960s surfer dude, and being a lanky 5' 8", he looks a lot taller. Having trained with the Sennett gang in support to Fatty Arbuckle (it says he was a nephew), the physical comedy is peerless and expertly athletic. Fully capable as an actor, I've seen him play bits and small roles in many different genres, including the rare part-talkie SHE GOES TO WAR, where even though I cared little for the character he was playing, I had to admit he did a fearless job and gave it all he had. Thank God for westerns, for not long after Talkies came in St. John moved over to this genre and pretty much stayed there until the Fifties, often using other professional names. Check out the IMDb list of those names, then look down that long list of film credits and watch out for the comedy shorts of the early 20s, you will not be disappointed.

Wild banana ranch? afraid of being beaten up--gets EVERYTHING need man with strong nerve to head to cnetral america race/chain gang some clever gags very slapsticky--shooting premarture ending on alpha

"Stupid, But Brave" is a silent comedy you can find on the Alpha Video DVD entitled "Forgotten Funnymen: Al St. John", which consists of four of St. John's short films. "Bridge Wives" is the best of them but "Stupid, But Brave" is still pretty good. Unfortunately, it could have been better as the film ends abruptly...as if the ending has been truncated.

The story finds St. John out of work and living outdoors. When he learns about a job, however, he cannot go on the interview because he looks terrible and needs a shave and a haircut. Unfortunately, he chooses to go to a place that makes it a habit of beating up folks who cannot afford to pay! Once he's somehow negotiated this, the film gets much better when a series of slapstick events take place...and poor Al is being chased by cops, robbers and pretty much everyone else! What's next? See the film.

Many of the laughs are good ones and the chase sequence near the end is the best portion of the film. The only problem is the ending....as the intertitle card saying 'the end' seems to randomly pop up out of no where!