Girl Shy (1924)

Review Written By Michael J. Ruhland












Michael's Movie Grade:A+

Review: Incredible silent romantic comedy, that shows perfectly why Harold Lloyd deserves his placing among such greats as Charlie Chaplin and Buster Keaton.

This film was the first movie Harold Lloyd produced himself after leaving the Hal Roach Studios. Despite this Harold still had most of the same crew that had worked with him on the Hal Roach films including directors Fred Newmeyer and Sam Taylor, writers Ted Wilde and Tim Whelan, and cinematographer Walter Lundin. This is a great start that stands up against his best films for Hal Roach.

This film is naturally very funny. Scenes like Harold and Mary (played by Jobyna Ralston) trying to hide a dog on board a train, Harold's fantastic (and ridiculous) romantic fantasies, and the long chase at the end are about as funny as anything Harold has ever done. Thomas J. Gray's intertitles are also as funny as they can be.

Harold Lloyd like to divide his movies between what he called gag pictures and character pictures. In gag pictures the story existed for no other reason than to propel the gags, but in character pictures along with the comedy there was some drama as well (though they were still mainly comedies). This was a character picture. The drama in this film is fantastic. You truly care about Harold. You feel sorry for him and hope things turn out well in the end. On top of this the romance between him and Mary is utterly believable. The actor and actress have perfect chemistry and the romance is very well written. You find even while you are laughing, you are still wanting them to get together. One scene where things look grim is very heartbreaking.

I was fortunate enough to see this in a theater with live musical accompaniment (by a very talented organist named Bill Field). If you ever get a chance to see this film this way do it. As much as I loved the many times I had seen this on DVD and TCM, this was a whole different experience and something that managed somehow to be much better, than what was already great.   

-Michael J. Ruhland

The Maltease Falcon (1941)

Review written by Michael J. Ruhland











Michael's Movie Grade:A+

Review: Incredible movie, fully deserving it's reputation as a classic. About as good as it gets.

Everything about this movie is as good as it can be. The casting is perfect. This movie played a huge part in Bogie becoming the huge star he became, and it is easy to see why. His performance here couldn't possibly be any better. Just as great here are Peter Lorre (in one of his best roles), Sidney Greenstreet, Mary Astor and simply the whole cast. On top of this the filmmaking itself is near perfect. It is especially hard to believe (but true) that this was the directorial debut of  John Houston, because it feels like it was directed by a old pro. The film keeps all the magic of the book, but is still completely cinematic. Arthur Edeson's cinematography, the amazing pacing, and great editing are a huge part of what makes this film so great. However they are so good, that you don't notice them at all the first few times you watch this film. On top of all this the story all this is working for is an excellent one.

Quite simply put, this is the type of movie dreams are made of.

-Michael J. Ruhland

Polly Tix in Washinton (1933)

Review Written By Michael J. Ruhland
















Michael's Movie Grade:C+

Review: Entertaining comedy short.

This film was directed and written by Charles Lamount, who also directed quite a few Keystone shorts. This becomes obvious at times as there are some very Keystone-y gags in this film, such as the senator eating a cake like a buzz saw. These jokes are fast and sometimes quite funny. On the downside, sometimes the writing seemed to rely too much on the kids being cute, and there were a few jokes that missed. Also the kids (with the exception of Shirley Temple) were definitely not the best actors (and certainly not on the level of let's say Our Gang).  However while this short never reached the level of Our Gang, it was still an entertaining film.

Also this holds interest to classic film buffs as it features a very early appearance by Shirley Temple. The role she plays here may surprise film fans as it is quite different from the roles she is known for. There is also quite a bit of risqué humor for a film with Shirley Temple in it (this was pre-code after all), and no singing or dancing.

-Michael J. Ruhland

Boos in the Nite (1950)

Review Written By Michael J. Ruhland








Michael's Movie Grade:B

Review: Very entertaining cartoon.

This film may be typical of the average Famous Studio's Screen Song cartoon, but it is still very entertaining. While few of the jokes are laugh out loud hilarious, all of them are quite amusing. On top of that they are carried out with a great sense of comic energy. The whole film just has a great sense of energy. The animation, while far from Disney level is quite good as well.

Importantly though the sing along portion really comes to life, if you are able to see this in a theater, the way I was fortunate enough to. When watching with an audience all singing along, this cartoon, becomes much more entertaining then it does watching it by yourself. This is just so much fun, and you can see why these cartoons were so popular.

Overall this is an entertaining if by the numbers toon, that is a joy to watch with an audience.

-Michael J. Ruhland

The Phantom of the Opera (1925)

Review Written By Michael J. Ruhland















Michael's Movie Grade:A+


Review: Incredible film, still scary and exciting today.

This film is amazing, down to every little detail. The acting is great (Lon Chaney is especially amazing), the cinematography (by Milton Bridenbicker, Virgil Miller and Charles Van Enger) is excellent, the pacing is fantastic, and the whole film just has an incredible atmosphere.

Unlike too many films today, this film takes it's time at the beginning. The fact that it lets itself build atmosphere at first, makes the later scenes all the more exciting. While the whole film is great two sequences stand out. The unmasking scene is still scary today, and this is because of a brilliant set up and Lon Chaney's performance. The other is scene is the lone scene in color in this movie. While some other films of this era used color for a brief scene such as Buster Keaton's Seven Chances and Cecil B. Demille's King of Kings, none of the other films used color as effectively as here. In fact out of all the films I can think of, other than the Disney films of the 1930's and 40's, I can't think of many other films from other eras that use color this good. Though this is just a brief scene and the rest of the movie is in black and white, this scene leaves an incredible impact.

I am fortunate enough to have just seen this film in a theater, with excellent live musical accompaniment (a very talented organist named Bill Field). While I have seen this movie on DVD and on Turner Classic Movies before, this was a whole new experience. Feeling the vibrations of the organ, sharing this with people who I never meet before but felt like I was one with, and the joy of hearing live music period, made this great film, even better. If anyone reading this gets the chance to see the movie in a similar way, take it. It was not just watching a movie, it was an incredible experience.

-Michael J. Ruhland

Shivering Spooks (1926)

Review Written By Michael J. Ruhland















Michael's Short Film Grade:A-

Review: Fantastically entertaining, silent Our Gang short.

This short was just great. The Our Gang kids were just as great as ever, and prove that they are Just as talented as many great adult comedians. This film is laugh out loud funny. If you don't find the opening scene of this film funny, I'd be surprised. As well as this the kids being scared antics are extremely well done. Farina and Skooter are especially good at this. While a standard movie gag, Joe's reaction to keeping losing his pants thanks to Scooter, is made very funny by all the kids reactions. On top of this how the our gang kids accidently scare the group of people seeing the psychic is equally funny.  As with nearly all silent films on which H.M. Walker worked, the intertitles are extremely clever and funny.

What really makes this and most Our Gang films work is the fact that the kids so talented. Finding child actors this talented is extremely hard to do. Those who are much more familiar with the later Our Gang shorts of the talkie era, will notice these aren't the same kids they are familiar with. This is because the eventually grew too old to be in Our Gang shorts (though some would appear grown up in a series of shorts called The Boyfriends, which stared Mickey Daniels one of the members of Our Gang in the silent era, made by the Hal Roach studios, which also made Our Gang films). These kids however are just as talented as the ones those viewers are more familiar with. This makes the Our Gang films even more incredible because the studio was able to do this more than once.

Overall a fantastic short film.

By the way if you ever get the chance to see one of these films in a theater with live musical accompaniment, do it is an incredible experience.

-Michael J. Ruhland

Abbott and Costello Meet Frankenstein (1948)

Review Written By Michael J. Ruhland














Michael's Movie Grade:A+

Review: One of the greatest Horror comedies ever made.

What makes this film so great is on top of the comedy, the scary parts are played pretty straight, and are extremely well done. It of course does not hurt that Bela Lugosi (the only time he played Dracula after the 1931 classic) and Lon Chaney Jr. reprise their roles as Dracula and the wolf man. These scenes are so well done from the acting to the lighting and Charles Van Enger's cinematography. Not to give anything away but one scene involving Dracula (Bela Lugosi) and Sandra (Lenore Auebert) is particularly amazing. Heck even without the comedy the film would still be great, of course it is made even better with the comedy. This is because it never spoofs horror movies but just adds comedy to it.

This film also features Abbott and Costello at their funniest. Horror comedies were almost always some of Abbott and Costello's best work, and here they got to work with Charles Barton, one of the duo's best directors. Lou Costello's scared reactions are very funny, and rather than just being the straight man Bud Abbott is given some funny material here and shines at doing it. This is easily some of the funniest material the team has ever done.

Overall this film is a great movie and even those who don't usaully like Abbott and Costello may still like this movie. A must see.

-Michael J. Ruhland

Our Gang Follies of 1938 (1937)

Review Written By Michael J. Ruhalnd
















Michael's Movie Grade:A+

Review: One of the best Our Gang films.

This short is extremely entertaining. Many of the musical numbers are very catchy and well performed, the humor is quite funny, and as we all know the Our Gang kids were fantastic actors.
Adding to just the Our Gang kids was Henry Brandon, playing a very similar role he did in the Laurel and Hardy film Babes in Toyland. He plays this role very over the top which is just perfect and very funny here. The silly overdramatic way he takes over Alflfa's life is absolutely hilarious. Speaking of Alflfa his singing scenes are always very funny, and this features those scenes at their best. On the more serious singing side Darla had a really good voice and her performance of The Love Bug'll Get You is fantastic (she is also very funny talking about how much money the performers make). As a Cab Calloway and an Our Gang fan, I love seeing Buckwheat as Cab Buckwheat.

Our Gang made many musical shorts around this time, and I think this is the best one. This is because it is never too sappy or trying to be too sentimental, but rather it is just pure fun at it's best.

One woman in the same theater as I was watching this film said that it felt like an adult production and this is completely true. The Our Gang kids were great professionals and easily as talented as many of the adult stars that appeared in movies.

-Michael J. Ruhland

Steamboat Bill Jr. (1928)

Review Written By Michael J. Ruhland












Michael's Movie Grade:A+

Review: Incredible movie.

This was Buster Keaton's last film as an independent filmmaker. His films were getting too expensive and he was losing money. It seemed like the way to continue making films was to go to a big studio. After this film he went to MGM, which did not allow him as much creative control as he wanted. Many film buffs accuse MGM of ruining Buster Keaton's career, Steamboat Bill Jr. was an incredible way of ending his amazing career as an independent film maker, because it is an such an amazing movie.

Naturally with this being a Buster Keaton film one of the best things about it is the humor. This film features many laugh out loud moments. The scene with the dad trying to find his son at the train stop, the trying on hats sequence and the jail sequence are just a few of the bits from this movie that are pure comedy gold.

However there is even more to recommend here. The relationship between the father and son is handled fantastically. It is very charming and even somewhat touching. The father really cares about his son, but is still very disappointed that his son is what he considers a weakling. None of his disappointment of his son, ever makes us think even for a second that he doesn't care about him. The son while being very different from his father in way looks up to and admires him. Because of this the scene in which the father breaks the ukulele is surprisingly sad.

What most people talk about when it comes to this film is the climax with the wind storm. This is very understandable as this scene is absolutely incredible. With all that can be done with special effects, this sequence has probably never been topped. It is breathtaking to just look at this scene. It seems real (in fact the methods for the scene were the house falls down were so real the cameraman didn't even look), but it is still funny. This is the type of sequence that reminds you just why we have movies.

By the way if you can ever see this movie in a theater with live musical accompaniment, like I did (childish bragging, neener neener neener), you have to, it is an incredible experience.

-Michael J. Ruhland