Young Mr. Jazz

Harold Lloyd had been working at finding the right vehicles for himself. He had abandoned the bizarre costumes worn by most movie clowns in the 1910s in favor of of his glasses character. However, his comedy construction was still bone-breaking slapstick and his stories were little more than frames to hang the gags on.

It was in 1919, when he slowed down production a trifle that he began to catch his breath and to allow his natural charm to begin to shine through. In this one, he and Bebe are running away from her father, played by Bud Jamison and their car breaks down in front of a low dance hall where Snub Pollard is a waiter. And it is that dance hall that we finally begin to see the Harold Lloyd of the 1920s as he and Bebe are given medium close up reaction shots when things happen and as they step out on the dance floor -- apparently the two of them would go out dancing after production wrapped. There's a charm in the way they react to each other, instead of to the treatment-dictated script; and the way they suddenly break loose in defense of Bud Jamison makes perfect sense.

It's not a classic Harold Lloyd picture, but the sudden revelation of the elements that will make classic Lloyd pictures makes it very important.

"Young Mr. Jazz" is a Harold Lloyd film made just before he became an international sensation. So, the familiar and wonderful sort of character he played in the 1920s isn't exactly what you see in this one...though it is quite enjoyable. And, like these Lloyd films before his uber-fame, this one co-stars Snub Pollard...in a most peculiar sort of role.

It begins on the beach. Harold and a lady see each other and become infatuated. However, her father just as quickly takes a strong dislike for Harold and does his best to dissuade him. However, soon Harold and the lady (Bebe Daniels) run away and the father is close behind. The pair dodge into a clip joint (a bar that specializes in robbing its patrons) and soon they cannot escape...and Daddy arrives as well.

The film has a mildly interesting plot...not as deep as the later and better Harold Lloyd shorts but still worth seeing because there are a few clever gags here and there. Nothing that would speak of Lloyd's later genius, but pleasant and enjoyable...and it holds up very well today.

Young Mr. Jazz (1919)

** 1/2 (out of 4)

A boy (Harold Lloyd) falls for a girl (Bebe Daniels) on the beach but her father (Bud Jamison) hates him. The two kids decide to meet at a dance hall but they must avoid her father as well as a couple crooked people at the club. Fans of Lloyd are certainly going to eat this one up as there are several funny moments that makes it worth watching. There are some rather creative scenes here even with the ones that don't have laughs. One involves the girl and her father sitting on the beach and the boy swimming up to her under the sand. Another gag that uses some nice imagination is when Lloyd uses a waiter ('Snub' Pollard) to have the girl's father kicked out of the club. Once we get inside the dance hall we get a couple cute dances between Lloyd and Daniels but the real highlight comes when the two of them must avoid not only the father but a waiter who is wanting money for some drinks. I think overall this here falls a tad bit short of a "classic" Lloyd picture but there's just no question that the actor had a comic gift that comes across here and Daniels also just had something magical about her. Jamison is also very good in his role.

A Harold Lloyd short that's worth it to see a glimpse of the beachwear of the period and the toughs in the Bowery Café, a place "so rough even the sandpaper has to sand in line." The periscope snorkeling bit under the sand was clever, the dancing, pickpocketing, and fighting in the Bowery were entertaining, and Bebe Daniels was pretty cute too. It's not the greatest thing ever but there were no lame bits and it's a good short for the period.

Standard boy meets girl and elopes slapstick. Harold and Bebe's ballroom skills, for which they won awards, is used to good effect. The most interesting thing about this silent short was that the version I saw had Czech intertitles!