Lloyd's romances

I'll say it right out: I am not a fan of Chaplin.

Go ahead and scream, then turn on your favorite of his movies; I can watch his work, but I don't view him as a genius. Keaton, yes. Chaplin, no.

However, this post is about Harold Lloyd. I just had to get the Chaplin talk out of the way.

I do like Lloyd, very much; he is second to the great Buster in silent comedy. I like his romantic comedies the best, since he is rather abrasive in some of his earlier films. The movies with Jobyna Ralston are my favorites, not only because of their perfect screen chemistry, but also because of the sweet-natured storylines. Girl Shy is, in my opinion, the best film Lloyd ever made, and it was a wonder to me to discover that it influenced The Graduate, more than forty years later.

When Lloyd isn't being the brash young man, he is very effective and believable in a romantic film. Girl Shy works in large part because the character of Harold Meadows is very shy, withdrawn, and due to a stutter, largely unable to communicate with women - not that he would know what to say to most women anyway, as we see in the film. His meeting with Mary on the train, at first stuttering madly, then talking to such an extent that they don't notice their train has arrived and that they are the only passengers still on it, is one of the best scenes in the film. Lloyd also has Ralston making the first move; as Harold stands outside her taxi, trying to look reserved and studly, Mary leans out and kisses him on the mouth.

Girl Shy and The Freshman have a similar scene concerning the character of Harold and his beloved. In Girl Shy, Harold views Mary's reflection in the water and sighs longingly; in The Freshman, he wipes the soap off the mirror in his room only to see, not himself, but Peggy, standing in the doorway behind him. It works, both times.

In the earlier films I've seen, with Bebe Daniels, there is more of a sexual element to the proceedings; that image of Lloyd and Daniels eating ice-cream cones and eyeing each other, is a prime example. In his films with his soon-to-be-wife, Mildred Davis, this element is toned down somewhat, though Lloyd's characters still tend to grate on the nerves. It's with Jobyna Ralston that he shows a softer, vulnerable side, as when Harold breaks down and cries in Peggy's lap in The Freshman. In The Kid Brother, he is so eager to keep Mary in sight that he climbs ever higher in a tree, then falls out of it. In For Heaven's Sake, after Mary tells him off in public, he smiles in wonderment and gladly tours the mission with her, remarking "Very pretty," as he looks at her, not at the surroundings.

Lloyd could, in my opinion, have been a leading man in dramatic roles, too; he had the talent, and he certainly had the looks! He was very effective at glamming down for his films, hiding his beautiful face under makeup and behind glasses (and when the glasses were removed, people didn't recognize him). On the other hand, had he done so, we might not have this wonderful set of films to view.