Coco de Chicago

Just watched this Harold Lloyd short on a DVD that featured some of his shorts and features. In this one, he's the title character who saves the town and is fearless in doing so. Whatever laughs this short has is due to him and not the supporting cast so to tell the truth, I was partly underwhelmed watching this. And part of me also felt a little uncomfortable watching the Asian servant character on screen but since this is a silent, at least there wasn't any Pidgin English to make things even more embarrassing. The score conducted by Robert Israel for this edition was good so that was a plus. So on that note, Billy Blazes, Esq. is worth a look for any fan of Harold Lloyd.

I thought this film might have been made at the same time as Lloyd's The Eastern Westerner, but apparently the films were made a few years apart. This film is ultra-short, lasting a little over twelve minutes (although perhaps a section is missing). The sets for both films certainly look very similar. Lloyd also performs the same cigarette-rolling trick here (twice) that he used in the later film.

This is pretty frantic stuff. Bebe Daniels plays the daughter of an old boy threatened with eviction by his bullying landlord (although an intertitle suggests he owes eleven years in back rent which suggests he's actually one of the most patient landlords you're ever likely to meet). Daniels is a pretty girl with a saucy smile and sturdy knees, and it's no wonder Lloyd goes out of his way to rescue her. Compared to Lloyd's later output this is pretty primitive stuff, but it still manages to pack a good number of laughs into its brief running time.

It's the mining town of the ironically named Peaceful Vale. Sheriff 'Gun Shy' Gallagher is not that helpful. Crooked Charley is the true ruler of the town. He demands payment from the father and daughter who own the local saloon. He kidnaps the daughter Nell. Billy Blazes (Harold Lloyd) arrives in time to save the day.

It's a 12 minute short. I don't really buy Harold Lloyd for this character. He should be a bumbling peacenik who lucks into winning the fight. He still does some high stunts walking on the roofs. I can't tell if he's doing his own stunt riding. It's fine, but not what I want from Lloyd.

This one reel comedy is a pretty good parody of the westerns of its time. It's nothing fancy, but it takes a light, upbeat approach and has some funny gag ideas. Harold Lloyd and Bebe Daniels always seem to work together well, and Snub Pollard is also here, in a smaller role.

Lloyd plays the title character, who is a parody of the kinds of western heroes common both at the time and in many other eras. The character is probably based more than anything on the kinds of characters played by William S. Hart, but you wouldn't have to be familiar with Hart's movies to be able to enjoy most of "Billy Blazes".

The story squeezes quite an assortment of familiar western elements and themes into 13 minutes or so of film, and it does a good job with most of them. The big showdown between Billy and the villain is played strictly for laughs, and it features some clever turns.

This very old western satire short has Harry Lloyd as a hero cowboy named Billy Blazes who has to take on a bad guy named Crooked Charlie. It's about what you would expect, just a bunch of silly physical gags and a spoof of old western movie tropes, but it's good for what it is even though it is obviously very dated.