Olympic Games

This Hal Roach comedy short, Olympic Games, is the sixty-third in the "Our Gang/Little Rascals" series. This entry is basically a series of spot gags about the various members of the gang competing in Olympic Game-like activities: Farina doing shot put, Jay R. or "Spec" trying the broad jump, Jackie on hurdles, etc. Nearly all of them end in disaster. All this is tied to a running gag of Weezer and his dog Minnie (actually Pete the Pup) constantly sticking their tongue out with the "Bronx cheer" noise distracting the gang to the point of their beating anyone they think is doing it before finding out at the end...Many very funny moments concerning the various games played by members of the gang that meanders a bit toward the middle before the satisfying finish. H.M. "Beanie" Walker's inter-titles also provide some wit like this one on Farina: "(His) muscles bulged out like bird seed." Anthony Mack's direction is perhaps uneven here. Still, Olympic Games was another enjoyable "Our Gang" short.

The kids decide to hold their own 'Olympic' competition and they have a wide variety of events for the kids in the neighborhood....and Wheezer constantly gives each competitor the raspberry. But repeatedly the Gang thinks OTHER kids are doing this...resulting in a lot of fights. After a while, this joke DOES wear a bit thin. And considering it's the big joke in the short, well you can guess that it's not among he better Our Gang shorts. The same can be said of the other gag, the big mud puddle.

By the way, the I. O. C. Would NEVER allow a film of this title today, as they are very litigious about the Olympic rings and even the term 'Olympic'.

Olympic Games (1927)

** (out of 4)

While the real Olympic games are going on the Our Gang kids decide to make their own games and perform them. This includes all the major sports including track, fighting and of course hurdles. Considering this film tries to get comedy from the kids not being able to do the games right I guess it goes without saying that Joe gets the majority of the jokes pulled on him. He takes quite a beating here from not only a fighter but as well as getting pushed around by just about every sport. There's an ongoing joke dealing with the gang, all seven of them, teaming up and beating up on boy. Seven on one just isn't all that funny to me and it really makes the kids come off as jerks. The final gag about the kids running the track was pretty funny as the tape at the finish line is actually a tire tube or something to that nature and when the kids try to run through it it just throws them back. This Our Gang short really doesn't have too many good things going for it but it at least has a fast pace and isn't too bad. No one is going to mistake it for a classic but if you're new to the series then you might want to start with a better entry.