The First Seven Years

This Hal Roach comedy short, The First Seven Years, is the ninety-sixth in the "Our Gang/Little Rascals" series and the eighth talkie. Jackie is in love with Mary Ann and seeks advice from the neighborhood cop, Edgar Kennedy. This policeman suggests he grab her like a caveman, which doesn't work out. When he then suggests he dress nicely, he does but finds Speck taking her for a ride in his toy car. Mary suggests a challenge to a duel since she's been reading a story of one such thing. Jackie procrastinates but eventually agrees which results in quite a mess of laundry hanging around! This was perhaps the first real good talkie of an Our Gang short and also Jackie Cooper's initial real showcase which was real good for him. Many funny lines and gags abounded with Jackie's grandma a real hoot here. So on that note, I highly recommend The First Seven Years. P.S. Jackie Cooper later revealed he really had a big crush on Mary Ann Jackson when they were kids. When Ms. Jackson herself was told this by Leonard Maltin and Richard W. Bann in 1990, she laughed and was flattered especially since their families socialized away off the studio during that time.

THE FIRST SEVEN YEARS wouldn't have worked as well with a musical score. Though the background silence is probably a sound equipment problem fluke rather than an artistic decision, it gives the illusion the onscreen events are actually happening. This might not have worked with most Rascal pictures, but it complements FIRST's natural, leisurely tone, with Jackie and his friends seeming more than ever like everyday kids. The story is interesting though, unlike certain OUR GANG sequences where it seems they probably did film whatever might be happening at the moment (and then forgot to edit it). I wish they'd tried this kind of thing more often.

This is the eighth Little Rascals sound film, and it is superb. This time we are back in the closed world of the children themselves, which is where all the humour comes from. The theme of this film is that all the kids think they should be 'married'. So we have the boys asking the girls to marry them, especially Mary Ann, but she frowns and pushes them away and even whacks them. Jackie Cooper makes his first appearance as a Rascal in this film, playing the boy named Jack. He 'falls in love with' Mary Ann. Today's world is a decadent one, obsessed by sexuality, but naturally sexuality is nowhere on the horizon in these Little Rascal films, as such things in connection with children were unthinkable in the far more innocent world of 1930. Therefore all the talk of 'marriage' and 'love' with the little kiddies is intended entirely humorously, and is very funny indeed. For instance, Farina says: 'I've been married seven times now, but I'm finished with women.' The entire basis of the humour of the Little Rascals films was concerned with tiny children pretending to be adults, but getting it hopelessly wrong. Officer Kennedy, the local cop who is the kids' friend (played as usual by Edgar Kennedy) tries to give helpful advice to the children about 'marriage', saying that to win the love of a gal, a fellow needs to 'be a caveman', but this is of course misdirected and misunderstood. However, all the male attention from the boys eventually goes to Mary Ann's head, and she indulges her fantasy of two knights in the Middle Ages fighting with swords for the hand of a maiden. She decides she wants two of the boys to fight a duel for her 'hand'. So she produces two very sharp and dangerous swords, and a duel takes place which descends into chaos, with everyone getting stabbed slightly in the bottom and saying 'ouch!' Much of this takes place in a yard where sheets are hung up to dry, so there are many sight gags of people stabbing each other through the sheets because they see a shadowy figure through the sheet, but it is the wrong person, and so on. The edges of the swords are so sharp that as the swords slash around, they easily slice the sheets in half. It is total pandemonium, and a miracle that no one got hurt (as far as we know). This is a pretty wild Little Rascals film, where 'letting it rip' is taken literally. But this is certainly the best one in the series so far.

First Seven Years, The (1930)

** 1/2 (out of 4)

Jackie gets a crush on Mary Ann but just as he's about to win her another guy comes along wanting to take her out. Mary Ann recommends that the two have a duel and the winner can have her. This is a step up from some of the previous shorts but I'd say this here is more cute than anything else. Jackie Cooper does a very good job in his role and really sells his character with some funny sequences including the advice he gets from Edgar Kennedy. Mary Ann also comes off quite cute here with Chubby and Farina getting some nice scenes as well. The actual duel when the kids are tearing up everything in the yard is handled quite well and manges to get quite a few laughs. Pete the dog might have the best sequence and that happens after being hit with a sword he must walk backwards to sit in some water. It's easy to see how this effect is done but it still works fine.

With this film, Jackie Cooper emerges as the leader of the Gang. He is in love with Mary Ann, but is challenged by Donald Haines for her affections. Mary Ann suggests a duel. The two boys don armor made of assorted tin scraps and birdcages. Ultimately they end up stabbing everyone in the Gang with their swords!

"The First Seven Years" establishes the story line that would permeate the series for the next year. Jackie is the leader, he loves Mary Ann, and has to put up with his brother, Wheezer.

An early talkie bright spot in the series. 8 out of 10.