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Too often silent films were bogged down with inter-titles, slowing the action and frequently boring the audience to tears.

Harold Lloyd avoids that, especially in "Dr. Jack."

"Dr. Jack" the movie is a light story, perhaps even silly in spots, but it MOVES, and Dr. Jack the character is such a pleasant and kind and likable person that he overcomes any minor problem like that.

Turner Classic Movies presented this recently with a new score by Robert Israel, who captures the mood perfectly. He is quite the silent film composer, obviously a man of much talent.

For 1922, the acting was great to adequate, and Harold Lloyd is such a graceful and athletic performer that he could alone make this worthwhile; but he is accompanied by many other talented players, so many of whom, alas, don't even get screen credit (although Mickey Daniels, for example, is so recognizable, maybe he doesn't need to be named).

"Dr. Jack" is a lot of fun to watch, in part because you can just watch -- and laugh -- and not have to spend much effort reading.

This silent film is a real charmer. It relies almost exclusively on the talents of Harold Lloyd as the eponymous doctor, who sees the world as a funhouse and treats his patients accordingly. Written by Hal Roach and others, "Dr. Jack" feels like it was written with Lloyd's talents in mind. The physicality of the humor, and the sight gags, make this a perfect vehicle for Lloyd's abilities.

There is a basic story, but "Dr. Jack" is a series of vignettes which demonstrate the doctor's uncommon but "common sense" approach to healing. Best described as holistic, the doctor looks beyond the apparent malady, prescribing whatever a patient truly needs--from fresh air to a hug.

The overly-serious conventions of mainstream medicine are lampooned as is the image of the stuffy practitioner whose gravity only manages to drag down the spirits of those he treats. As we see, the levity of Lloyd is sometimes just what the doctor (should have) ordered.

By 1922 comic actor Harold Lloyd had embraced the longer feature film format, a departure from his earlier two-reel shorts. His November 1922's "Dr. Jack," though, was his first scripted movie intentionally designed from its original concept to fill an entire 60 minutes of plot, and more importantly, gags and stunts.

Lloyd's two earlier feature films, December 1921's 'A Sailor-Made Man,' and September 1922's 'Grandma's Boy,' both evolved from a script containing only 30 minutes of the actor's antics. The two screenplays were extended from their core plots to fill in another 15 to 30 minutes of action. "Dr. Jack," from its opening minutes follows a young doctor, Lloyd, as he administers understanding, a dose of fresh air with exercise and a healthy diet to his treatments. He stands in contrast to Dr. Ludwig, a firm believer in prescription drugs, closed windows and drapes-and especially no exercise.

Dr. Jack is brought in for a second opinion after The Sick-Little-Well-Girl, tenderly acted by Mildred Davis, has been Dr. Ludwig's patient for four long years. The two doctors are naturally at odds before circumstances give Lloyd an idea to break Davis out of her funk. The movie turned out to be a blockbuster hit, earning a top ten box office spot while earning over one million dollars.

Most of this Harold Lloyd feature consists of enjoyable low-key comedy, but it is capped off with a manic chase finale that is fun to watch. Aside from a handful of somewhat dated details, it holds up pretty well, and it has some good material. In "Doctor Jack", Lloyd gets to play the kind of energetic, well-meaning character that he performed almost effortlessly.

Most of the first half of the movie simply introduces the characters and presents a series of interactions between "Doctor Jack" and various persons in his hometown. It's pleasant and often pretty amusing, since there are a lot of subtle comic touches to go along with the rather broadly-played events. In the second half, the doctor takes on the 'invalid' played by Mildred Davis, and from there things build up towards the finale.

The conference between 'Jack' and the stuffy specialist is crafted nicely, and the climactic chase sequence is entertaining as long as you don't take it too seriously. In fact, by design it seems to get more and more ridiculous as it proceeds, until it is finally resolved in a clever way.

This doesn't have the memorable material or impressive set pieces of Lloyd's most celebrated movies, but it has a lot of amusing moments, and shows skill in a different way, by taking what is essentially one simple situation and using it for as much comedy as possible.

Although admittedly it has a great deal of charm, by Lloyd's high standards Dr Jack could be reckoned as a weak, sentimental and even overloaded comedy. The characters are strictly pasteboard figures: the ever-smiling Dr Jack, all goodhearted (albeit often ingenious and innovative) helpfulness; the one-dimensionally villainous specialist, all thoroughly self-centered pomposity; the heroine, a Sleeping Beauty of repressed energy and vivacity; her dad, a well-and-truly stupid thickhead; and a supporting gallery of minor bumpkins and rustics. And all of them dancing to a frenetic, rather familiar tune (though, as mentioned, it does have its deft moments and clever touches), culminating in a self-chasing climax which clearly out-stays its welcome.

In its favor, however, the movie does provide Mildred Davis with one of her best roles. Miss Davis rarely received a chance to display any histrionic ability. Her supine heroines were mostly purely decorative. Here, however, she has an opportunity to play a character not a cipher, and she rises to the bait magnificently.

Harold Lloyd's third feature-length film can be divided into three loosely-related sections: a) episodes in the life of a country doctor (presenting several typical gags while taking swipes at then-fashionable exclusive sanitariums and the nascent psycho-therapy at the same time); b) the poker game sequence (which has no real purpose in the film but is also its comic highlight!), and c) the 'escaped lunatic' routine (I don't know if there were actually any 'old dark house'-type films around this time - other than D.W. Griffith's solitary venture into the subgenre ONE EXCITING NIGHT [1922] - but this was already making fun of them!). While enjoyable and undeniably inventive on occasion, DR. JACK displays a definite drop in quality from its immediate predecessor, GRANDMA'S BOY (1922); Lloyd's next film, then, SAFETY LAST! (1923), not only would see him back on form but actually heralded his greatest period.

Young DR. JACK tries to save a pretty invalid from the machinations of an unscrupulous medical quack.

Silent comedian Harold Lloyd had another success in this wildly funny movie. Healthy servings of sentimental nostalgia mixed into the plot only add to the fun. Playing a doctor whose good humor & common sense make him the most popular fellow in rural Magnolia Meadows, Harold makes full use of his tremendous athletic abilities to propel the storyline, piling one gag on top of another. Whether exiting his moving jalopy to shoo cows from his path, saving a naughty tyke from a spanking or breaking up a poker game in a most unique fashion, Harold is never less than hilarious. Finally, he leads one of his wild trademark chases, this time through a spooky house, a sequence that includes both a wonderful Lon Chaney spoof and one of the funniest enraged dogs to ever appear on film.

Mildred Davis has an unusually good role, showing off her acting skills as the spunky invalid. Eric Mayne is appropriately hissable as the bearded villain. Movie mavens will recognize OUR GANG's mischievous Mickey Daniels as Harold's freckle-faced patient and darling old Anna Townsend as the lonely mother of Harold's lawyer friend - both uncredited.

Robert Israel has composed an excellent film score which perfectly complements Harold's antics on the screen.

The Sick-Little-Well-Girl (Mildred Davis) is being treated by Doctor von Saulsbourg who forces her to stay in bed and trapped in her own home. Then he decides to sent her to his private sanitarium. Dr. 'Jack' Jackson (Harold Lloyd) is a simple country doctor who cares for his poor patients whether they are a little girl with a sick dolly or a little boy trying to skip school or an old lady who misses her busy lawyer son. Doctor von Saulsbourg and The Sick-Little-Well-Girl make a stop where they encounter Dr. Jack.

I really like the sweet doctoring from Dr. Jack until they do the accidental kiss. I get the idea of a Sleeping Beauty kiss. It would fit the story much more if she gets so excited that she's the one who kisses him. There is a lot of chasing around the rooms comedy. This is all good fun. I would really make that change with the kiss.

DOCTOR JACK is one of Lloyd's weaker silent features, yet it's still quite funny. It does not have a tight structure, and focuses more on physical slapstick(which Lloyd is brilliant ), mixed with sentimental tales of how Dr. Jack `cures' patients with common sense and fun. This gives the film a curious mood inconsistency, maybe because melodrama and farce just don't melt together. However we get to see Lloyd performing some elegant acrobatic skills when he has to beat himself to create thrills for Mildred. The gag of the rug and the dog is very funny, too. Unfortunately, like many films at that time, this film contains some few inappropriate, slightly racist gags.

mixed feelings about this one. it's a harold lloyd,so you have to respect the accomplishments, but the story is really no big deal. silent films had only been around about six or eight years, so what he does is pretty cool, but the story plot itself is no ground-breaking thing. His co-star in this one is Mildred Davis (who he married in 1923) and it's the usual antics, running around, surprising each other, showing surprised face and running off into another room, or falling down the stairs. Lloyd is a genius, of course, but this was one of his "later" bits. Hal Roach is listed as producer, so of course it did well at the theaters. Directed by Fred Newmeyer, who was hit or miss when the talkies came about. check out actor mickey daniels who appeared in the Our Gang series way back when.. here he's in an un-credited role, but he goes on to be a pretty big shot,

Dr. Jack is a bit more sentimental than most Harold Lloyd films and suffers as a result. It holds interest, nonetheless, especially for the finale, a rambunctious segment that foreshadows the 'Old Dark House' genre that was about to achieve popularity with films like The Cat and the Canary and The Bat. Lloyd also assumes the character of a lank-haired hunchback with vampire-like fangs, a character not a million miles in appearance from Lon Chaney's in London After Midnight. Did Lloyd have an influence on the development of American horror cinema? This is an interesting area for future research.

Dr. Jack (1922)

**** (out of 4)

Dr. Jack (Harold Lloyd) is the nicest doctor in town who gets a kick out of helping people in his own strange ways. His latest client is a woman who seems to be healthy but a mean German doctor is making her appeal ill so he can keep collecting from her rich father. This is certainly the best film I've seen from Lloyd. I wouldn't say any of the jokes are hysterical but all of them are very fast paced and come non-stop. The highlight includes one scene where a girl calls Lloyd because "Mary" is dying but when he shows up "Mary" turns out to be her baby doll. Another highlight is the ending, which is a madcap of fast jokes as Lloyd dresses up as a vampire to show the girl isn't sick.

Dr. Jack (1922) : Brief Review -

Doctor Harold Lloyd's medicine is STRONGLY RECOMMENDED for your heart, brain, stomach, and cheeks. Perhaps the best doctor-comedy ever made. Harold Lloyd and Fred C. Newmayer's duo has done it again. You can see all their films and enjoy them. But you will come back home calling "Dr. Jack" extremely underrated. I may sound a little harsh while saying this, but I got to say that Dr. Jack has made me laugh more than at least 50 films from that AFI's 100 Years 100 Laughs list. To hell with the juries for not having this film there. It's their loss, not the film's, I believe. Dr. Jack lasts for 59 minutes, and almost 50 minutes of it have some creatively iconic laughter. 50 minutes, 50 outstanding gags, so if I have to mention all 50 gags and their features, then I'll have to write a 3x longer review (poor my brief review). Therefore, I won't talk about the gags and how iconic and organically funny they are, because then you'll have no fun watching them as fresh bangers. We are done with the likes of Patch Adams and Munnabhai MBBS, but believe me, Lloyd's Dr. Jack is far superior to them. It's comedy CARNAGE! You will not find such gags in many Charles Chaplin or Buster Keaton movies from that era, or even in Harold Lloyd's own movies. This time, he did not climb a clock tower but stayed on the ground and threw back-to-back punches at you with all natural force. It's not a mindless comedy, but a sensible one and a very meaningful film. The doctor's profession has two sides, and this film shows you that. You will fall in love with Dr. Jack's unorthodox ways of treating his patients. Harold Lloyd makes the character memorable. What a joy ride it is, and what hysteria he created. If I had one of his hats, I would have pulled one 'hats off' for him. Mildred Davis is cute, and so is the whole movie. Fred C. Newmeyer's intelligence and Lloyd's skills are unbeatable when they get a terrific script. Dr. Jack is among their individual best works ever. Now you know.

RATING - 8/10*

By - #samthebestest.

There is nothing really amazing in the comedy here, but the sweetness between Harold Lloyd and Mildred Davis make up for at least some of it, and it's an amusing enough way to spend an hour. As an aside, the couple would marry in real life less than three months later. The story is ridiculous but there is humanism in Dr. Jack's methods, and the chase sequence featured a cute dog who, among other things, turned the tables on Lloyd by pulling the rug out from under him. I liked how mirrors were used in various places as well, like when Lloyd sees Davis blowing him a secret kiss, or how she's pretending to be the lunatic. By the way, why was the lunatic named Humpy? Overall, though, it's a mixed bag and certainly a lesser work from Lloyd, so I could see rounding down, and would only recommend it with reservations. And like a lot of films from the era, unfortunately there is also the old racist trope of the black man who is more frightened of a lunatic than the others.

I'm not quite at the level of film geek status, but I have seen a large quantity of movies, old and new, and I'm just now hearing of Harold Lloyd. I'd always heard of Charlie Chaplin as being the man in silent films and no one else. Harold Lloyd deserves an honorable mention at least.

This is the second Harold Lloyd starred film I've watched and in this he plays Dr. Jack, an unconventional doctor who could be considered Patch Adams before there was a Patch Adams (and a lot better too).

Dr. Jack treated various ailments with fun and entertainment--exactly what we'd see the Robin William's character, Patch Adams, do in the self-titled movie. Dr. Jack was summoned by the lawyer (C. Norman Hammond) of the family of The Sick-Little-Well-Girl (Mildred Davis) to possibly cure her. She was being treated by Dr. Ludwig von Saulsbourg (Eric Mayne), a stuffy establishment doctor who was keeping her in bed and shoveling medicine down her throat. The Lawyer saw Dr. Jack's methods and thought he could help The Sick-Little-Well-Girl.

As you could imagine, Dr. Jack was not welcomed by Dr. Ludwig. Dr. Jack was young, unconventional, and smitten with the patient--three things that got under Dr. Ludwig's skin.

Harold hammed it up in this short movie. He was acrobatic enough to execute all kinds of physical comedy feats. Harold Lloyd deserves a lot more recognition.

This movie wastes no time, coming right out of the gate with a quip about healthcare in the United States that includes a then-current reference and which sadly continues to be very relevant. From there we're treated to plentiful, lighthearted situational comedy and abundant sight gags to gently keep the film moving along. 'Dr. Jack' is a title where warm, big-hearted amusement is more important than slight narrative, so even as there's a concrete story, these sixty minutes are more than anything a patchwork quilt of small scenes filled with such levity. And that, truly, is all it needs to be, because this is a joy!

Harold Lloyd was unquestionably one of the great comedic stars of early cinema, and his sweet, innocent "Glasses" character in particular could very dexterously be adapted to fit most any scenario. While some of his other films relied more immediately on energetic physical comedy, we still get our fill here. Furthermore, the broad pleasant feel-good vibes of 'Dr. Jack' nonetheless illustrate once again why Lloyd's name gets mentioned in the same breath as those of Buster Keaton and Charlie Chaplin. Moreover, those that share the screen with him very ably complement the style, and as this title finds Lloyd working with several regular collaborators on both sides of the camera, the viewer can rest assured that the entertainment is as solid as it has been elsewhere in his career.

Exemplary, thoughtful writing and capable performances are matched with sharp editing, keen direction, and terrific production design and art direction. Yes, pictures of the 1920s are a far cry from what audiences are accustomed to in 2022, but the excellence of the craft well exceeds those limitations we recognize in retrospect. More to the point, older films like 'Dr. Jack' boast immense heart and earnestness that it too often seems has been forgotten in subsequent decades. The end result of it all is a viewing experience that is brilliant and funny from start to finish, but which also never forgets the good-natured soulfulness that lies at its core.

I know some viewers struggle with silent films for one reason or another, and there was a time when I did, too. With that said - to be honest, 'Dr. Jack' is such a tremendously fun, uplifting movie that I think it earns a blanket recommendation. Even those who don't generally watch older features may nevertheless find this to their liking, and for cinephiles who already appreciate all that the medium has to offer, this is basically flawless. Relatively few are those productions that can truly be enjoyed by all ages, and the cleverness and intelligence bursting through this one mark it as a must-see classic that even hard-boiled cynics could surely admire. No matter how you need to go about it, 'Dr. Jack' is well worth seeking out, and this is one of the best hours you could spend watching a movie.

Such a fun movie! This is the first time we liked his co-star Mildred Davis; maybe she gets more screen time in this film. Lots of wackiness right from the start, and as another reviewer notes, there are almost no title cards to get in the way of the fun. Harold Lloyd is always great, but this time his character has charm and confidence, and he smiles. The pace picks up as the movie goes along, and the supporting cast is mostly above average for silent films. Don't read too many reviews because you don't want to find out what's coming. Just be glad that you have another chance to spend time with Harold Lloyd.

This sickly sweet and laboriously paced 5-reeler is definitely not among Harold Lloyd's better films. Gags are sparse and mostly uninspired. Saccharine melodrama is abundant. The setup takes forever, as Lloyd, the unconventional, but impossibly kindly, country doctor makes his rounds, bringing a little sunshine into the lives of children, the elderly, and puppies. It's like a 1922 version of Patch Adams. Ugh. 4/10.

Made by Harold Lloyd just as he was coming into his own as silent cinema's most popular clown, "Dr. Jack" failed so consistently to engage or entertain that it left me feeling not just perplexed but a bit crestfallen.

Dr. Jackson (Lloyd) is the kind of doctor who gets paid in smiles and old pocket knives while helping those who think they are sick but really just need friendly attention. This includes the Sick- Little-Well-Girl (Mildred Davis), suffering not from any malady but the heavy-handed ministrations of Dr. von Saulsbourg (Eric Mayne), who is less interested in his patient than his paycheck. Does Dr. Jack have the cure for what ails her?

Lloyd and his frequent collaborator, director Fred C. Newmeyer, enjoyed success with their prior two features, which mixed solid stories, involving sentiment, and clever gags. Perhaps the pair thought they simply needed to re-use the same ingredients without worrying too much about the proportions. That's my theory, anyway.

The story kicks off by introducing the benevolent Dr. J and then running him through his paces, which include performing CPR on a dolly with a rolling pin, riding a cow backwards, and helping a boy escape punishment for feigning sickness. Lloyd has a solidly amusing introductory sequence, trying to crank his car and eat his breakfast simultaneously. After that, and some fun stuntwork involving cows and his car, the usual elegant leanness one gets from early Lloyd becomes sorely missed.

Dr. Jack's ministrations include handing out sheet music to a horn- playing invalid and boxing another frail fellow into robust health. People grin like maniacs as he passes by, just so you know he's a swell guy. He fools a businessman into paying a visit to his aged mother, apparently by convincing him the woman's at death's door. As she jumps into his arms and kisses him, Jack grins and sticks out his chin: "You're the medicine – It's you that she needs!"

Even more heavy-handed is the handling of the Sick-Little-Well-Girl story. Dr. von Saulsbourg bans sunlight, flowers, and music from the girl's bedside. At one point, we watch the doctor make a point by pounding his fist on a table, crushing a flower in the process. An iris effect closes in on the crushed flower. We also get many close- ups of a teary Davis. An actress best known for marrying Lloyd, Davis had her moments in the shorts she made with him. Here she never connects as a character, swinging from gravely depressed to hyper-happy.

Calling out any actor for giving less than their best work is unfair here. The gags are thin, repetitive, and labored. The girl meets Dr. Jack at a restaurant ("Chicken Dinner – 30 cents" reads a sign on the wall) where Jack upsets her evil doctor by feeding a dog under the table. A protracted sequence involving an illicit poker game takes us out of the main story before it develops, where the gag involves Jack feeding various players aces in order to break up the game and save one of the players from losing his house. This has nothing to do with the main story, and it's not funny on its own, but it fills time.

It's true that Lloyd frequently employed sentiment, and quite well; better than Chaplin, I think. Usually he knew when to pull back, to employ comedy when things got too emotionally sticky, or conversely, introduce an element of pathos when things got too silly. Perhaps that's one way to look at "Dr. Jack," as Lloyd testing the boundaries of this approach.

It may have worked, too. Even though "Dr. Jack" was a major box- office success, it seemed he never did get as carried away again in his silent period as he did here. Maybe he understood better than his audience what worked; this might account for why so many of his films have stood the test of time far better than "Dr. Jack."

but that's about it. Mostly blah comedy from Harold Lloyd, but it has its moments. A big hit in 1922 when Lloyd was a major box office star, this comedy about a kindly doctor helping the sick little well girl (Mildred Davis) lumbers along with a few good bits until the frantic ending when a lunatic escapes from an asylum, throwing the house into an uproar. Certainly not among the great Lloyd's best--Safety Last, The Kid Brother, Girl Shy--but still worth the 60 minutes. Anna Townsend (the star of Grandma'a Boy with Lloyd) is the old lady, C. Norman Hammond is the lawyer, Florence Mayon is the hotel girl, Mickey Daniels is the homely boy, and Eric Mayne is the fake doctor. Funny ending, but it comes after too much so-so material. Lloyd is always sweet and gracious, Davis is better than in her other Lloyd films (yes they were married in 1923), and the monkey and dog are quite funny. After his string of early 20s box office hits, Harold Lloyd would make his masterpiece, Safety Last, in 1923, right after finishing Dr. Jack.