Monthly Archives: February 2024

The Student Prince in Old Heidelberg (1927)

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The Student Prince in Old Heidelberg
Directed by Ernst Lubitsch and John M. Stahl
Written by Marian Angle and Ruth Cummings from the book by Karl Heinrich
1927/US
Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer
IMDb Page
First viewing/YouTube

Dr. Jüttner: Boy, do you know what it means to go to Heidelberg?

I had never seen an Ernst Lubitsch silent movie before and now I want to see all of them.

The story is basically a fairy tale.  Prince Karl Heinrich is the nephew and heir to the throne of the King of Karlsburg.  A nanny has raised him until maybe age 8 and then he is shipped off to the court where he is kept behind palace walls until he graduates from secondary school and grows up to be Ramon Navarro.  Uncle is cold and very formal as are all of his retainers.  Karl’s loneliness is relieved by the arrival of Dr. Juttner (Jean Hersholt), possibly the most lovable and warm tutor ever.  It is feared that he will return to his lonely existence when he passes his exams.  Instead, it is decided he will go to university in Heidelberg accompanied by Dr. Juttner.

Upon arrival, Karl decides to live in a simple inn after first glimpsing the owner’s lovely, charming daughter Kathi (Norma Shearer).  He is accepted immediately into the company of his school comrades and falls deeply in love with Kathi. He is able to live a normal life at last. He vows never to leave Kathi. What will happen when he is called back to the palace to take over from the dying king?

The best word to describe this film is “delightful”.  It is loaded with the Lubitsch touch and full of subtle innuendo.  I don’t think I have ever seen Norma Shearer this feminine and enchanting.  I always like Jean Herscholt and this was no exception.  Ramon Navarro was perfect.   The production values were pure MGM and the print on YouTube is stellar.  I was engaged enough to be yelling at my screen during the last ten minutes.  Warmly recommended.

None of the clips was in a print worth watching so here is a tribute to Ramon Navarro

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I’m going to Costa Rica tomorrow to look at birds.  Hope to be back March 12.  I think I’m on a movie watching roll.

Speedy (1928)

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Speedy
Directed by Ted Wilde
Written by John Grey, Lex Neal, and Howard Emmet Rogers
1928/US
The Harold Lloyd Corporatio (Distributed by Paramount)
IMDb page
First viewing/Criterion Channel

Harold “Speedy” Swift: Aw, Jane – why worry about losing a job on Saturday, when we can go to Coney Island on Sunday?

Yet another 1929 Oscar-eligible film with a segment at Coney Island!  And an excellent one at that.

Harold “Speedy” Swift (Harold Lloyd) is an earnest young man who is prone to mishaps and unintentionally causes chaos everywhere he goes.  He is in love with Jane Dillon (Ann Christy), the granddaughter of “Pops” Dillon who is the owner/operator of the last horse-drawn street car in New York City.  Pops is allowed to keep his route as long as his car is run once every 24 hours.

After Harold is fired from one in a series of very short jobs, he takes Ann for a fun-filled day at Coney Island.

A syndicate is trying to put together a merger of the streetcar business and must buy up the small operators if it is to succeed.  After Pops is unwilling to sell out except at a high price, a gang of thugs is hired to board the car and do away with the old man.  Harold, who can’t get married until Pops is settled, determines to run the car and save the day.

Harold also gets a job as a taxi driver who is forced for one reason or another to drive at a breakneck speed through the streets of New York.  Both goals result in some spectacular  chases.

This was Harold Lloyd’s last silent film and it’s a dandy.  If you don’t smile at one gag you have only a few seconds before you are laughing at another. The high-speed chases are truly incredible and ahead of their time.  Lloyd is constantly making a fool of himself while also being a real hero.  I think the only other Lloyd film I have seen is The Freshman.  I will have to remedy that some day.

The film has been beautifully restored.

Lonesome (1928)

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Lonesome
Directed by Paul Fejos
Written by Edward T. Lowe and Tom Read from a story by Mann Read
1928/US
Universal Pictures
IMDb page
First viewing/YouTube

Jim: I’m only an ordinary working stiff. And I’m so tired of being alone that I can’t even stand my own company.

Dipping my toe into watching movies again with this sweet and well-made romance.

You are never more alone than when you are living alone in a big city.  Telephone operator Mary (Barbara Kent) and machinist Jim (Glenn Tyron) are both lonesome and their friends are all paired up.  Separately, they hear the music of a truck advertising a July 3 day of fun on Coney Island and decide to give it a shot.  Of course they meet and fall in love in just a few hours.  But fate seems to work against them.

I liked this a lot.  The direction includes some nice modernist cinematography to emphasize that crowded feeling. I found similarities to both The Crowd (1928) and Sunrise (1927) in the shots perhaps because they both feature days in a carnival atmosphere.  The lead actors are appealing and the love story is touching.

The film has been beautifully restored with tinted scenes and a bit of spoken dialogue.  To see the restoration on YouTube pick the version with Spanish subtitles.  All the English intertitles are preserved.  The other one has dubious “music” and an inferior print.