Whirl o' the West (1921)
A tenderfoot arrives in a western town and the inhabitants give him a rough time.
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That was an excellent one.
A Major Disappointment
Very interesting film. Was caught on the premise when seeing the trailer but unsure as to what the outcome would be for the showing. As it turns out, it was a very good film.
Good films always raise compelling questions, whether the format is fiction or documentary fact.
This film is included in the recently released "American Slapstick" DVD set. Many films previously thought to be lost to the ravages of time are included, though in several cases they are acknowledged to be incomplete films due to disintegrating nitrate stock--a problem common not just in the silent era but through the 1940s and 50s as well. While the film didn't seem to indicate that WHIRL O' THE WEST was a fragment, it certainly seemed like it was--especially since the film ended so abruptly.Snub Pollard stars as an Eastern dude who arrives in the Old West--much to the delight of the locals who haze him. Oddly, it's one of the few times I ever saw Snub in a film without his characteristic walrus-like mustache. Because of this, devotees of silent comedy might not recognize him at first. As for the film, apart from the hazing and a romance between Snub and a local girl that isn't adequately resolved, there's not much to this short film. It's very skipable except to nuts like me who adore silent comedy and MUST see every film they can!!!
After Harold Lloyd began to move into longer movies -- by 1921 he was doing 3-reelers and would soon be do solely features -- Hal Roach looked for a new comedian to star in his light comedies, a more realistic one. He tried Eddie Boland, who was a fine comedian, for a season, then eventually put Charley Chase back in front of the camera, for a long and successful series of shorts running through 1936.Although Snub Pollard is credited as appearing in this one, he doesn't show up, but his regular supports, Marie Mosquini and 'Sunshine' Sammy Morrison do. What survives is a pleasant one-reeler in which Eddie Boland arrives in a western town and the inhabitants give him a rough time, including a try at hanging him. The gags are pretty good, but there isn't much structure to this series yet.