Blu-ray Review It's The Old Army Game Blu-ray Review (1 Viewer)

[Josh Steinberg]

Josh Steinberg

It's The Old Army Game Blu-ray Review

W.C. Fields headlines in this 1926 silent comedy classic, essentially a collection of some of Fields’ best routines stitched together with the thinnest of plots.

[review]

 

[bujaki]

Well done! This one has escaped me in the past, so I'll have to get it. It has the added incentive of the ever eternal Lulu, Louise Brooks! My records indicate that I've seen Running Wild but so long ago that I have no memory of it. Time to revisit, plus it's La Cava.
BTW, a sp. correction: it's dire "straits."

 

[Josh Steinberg]

Well done! This one has escaped me in the past, so I'll have to get it. It has the added incentive of the ever eternal Lulu, Louise Brooks! My records indicate that I've seen Running Wild but so long ago that I have no memory of it. Time to revisit, plus it's La Cava.

As a big Fields fan, I went into these reviews fully expecting to enjoy It's The Old Army Game more - it's the one I was more familiar with of the two, having seen it on various VHS copies and 16mm/35mm repertory showings. Running Wild I think I had only seen on VHS, but my memory of it was extremely vague. It was a pleasant surprise to discover that while It's The Old Army Game was the same film that I've always enjoyed, looking better than ever, that Running Wild was actually even more enjoyable to me. I did not see that coming. You can't go wrong with either or both.

BTW, a sp. correction: it's dire "straits."

Thanks for catching. These reviews go through so many different steps on the way to posting (first writing them in a word processor, then copying each section into the form, etc.) that this seems like an example of something that was once spelled properly, but where spell check or autocorrect on one of the different apps or forms decided to take over. You spend a day proofing, and then the computer just does what it wants to do anyway!

 

[Bert Greene]

The sharp, clear print sure allowed us the ability to read the signage in the street scenes, seemingly indicating the Florida location-work was in Ocala. Always wondered about that. My previous viewings of the film (over 25 years ago) were from a pretty blurry print, which kept such clues rather hidden. It was great that they went down there, capturing the more realistic and flavorful backdrop for some key scenes. I usually assume Paramount's Astoria studio productions are more apt to be stagebound than their Hollywood offerings, based on a number of examples I've seen, from the early-talkie era. Maybe I'm all wet, though. Especially in regards to those earlier, pre-talkie productions that Paramount made on the East Coast. Makes me curious about the frequency of other field-trips back then.

 

[Josh Steinberg]

It never occurred to me before viewing the film this time that any of it had been shot on location, or that it had even been shot in Astoria (mere blocks from where I live and reviewed the disc). But I discovered that from listening to the commentary and started looking at the movie a little differently, trying to find signs of familiar places in Florida, or sets that looked familiar from other Paramount Astoria productions. It's funny that the plot has the real estate guy trying to sell New York land to Florida residents rather than the other way around.

Amazing to think that guys like Fields and the Marx brothers were at different points working on the Astoria stages by day, and then heading out at night to perform for live audiences.

 

[Arthur Powell]

Thanks for your great review. I'm currently waiting on Amazon to ship me my pre-orders of this film and "Running Wild." I saw a version of "It's the Old Army Game" that was transferred way too slowly, and I'm looking forward to seeing the film at a faster and more appropriate speed. These films are probably best regarded like a pilot for what will eventually become a very successful sitcom - most of the elements are there but they're not quite fully realized. Look at the two silents and then view their sound analogues - "It's a Gift" and "The Man on the Flying Trapeze" - and you'll see how Fields would rework and at times even improve his material to make it feel forever fresh. We do have one advantage over the original audiences of these films in that we can read the title cards and think of Field's voice and delivery. What I think will surprise those who remember Fields mostly from "The Bank Dick" and "Never Give a Sucker an Even Break" is just how trim Fields was and how adept he was at physical humor. I hope that Kino will at some point try to license "So's Your Old Man" (the other surviving Paramount Fields silent). However, I wouldn't be surprised to learn that the film is mired in literary rights issues. The sound remake "You're Telling Me" was unavailable for many years before Universal resolved the issue. I would imagine that Paramount or any licensee would likely have to do the same for the silent version to be made available (for those who are interested - the sound remake follows the silent predecessor very closely - much more so than how "It's a Gift" and "The Man on the Flying Trapeze" follow their silent analogues).

Concerning the score, I've always found that Ben Model provides very serviceable, competent scores, but I've never heard a truly great score from him. Sitting here typing this post, I can effortlessly recall themes from the likes of Gaylord Carter, William Perry, Carl Davis, Jon Mirsalis, Mont Alto, Philip Carli, Chaplin, etc., but I would be hard pressed to recall anything from Model's work. To be fair, this is not a slight against his musicianship but more of a recognition that I do not prefer his style. The man was mentored by the organist Lee Erwin, and Mr. Erwin accompanied silents with a very subdued manner that I find rather dull (in fact, two of the worst silent film scores that I have ever heard were Erwin's accompaniment for "The Thief of Bagdad" and "The General"). So, since I'm not that enamored of Lee Erwin it shouldn't be surprising that I'm not a particular fan of Model. However, Model is much better than Erwin, and to be clear, I've never heard a bad score from him. It's just that I have not experienced an exceptional score from him (at least yet). Still, the man has his fans, and I would rather see Model listed as the one who is providing a score than some other individuals and groups that come to my mind.

 

[Josh Steinberg]

Arthur, I'm sorry for the delayed response, but thank you so much for your kind words about the review, and for sharing your insights on the film and Ben Model.

I would absolutely love to see So's Your Old Man out on Blu-ray, along with Sally Of The Sawdust... who knows, maybe one of these days. I'll definitely be at the front of the line if and when that ever happens.

I think you'll absolutely love both this disc and the one for Running Wild. I'm curious to hear if you find that the Donald Sosin score on that title is as much of an improvement over the Model score on this title as it was for me.

 

[Arthur Powell]

Arthur, I'm sorry for the delayed response, but thank you so much for your kind words about the review, and for sharing your insights on the film and Ben Model.

I would absolutely love to see So's Your Old Man out on Blu-ray, along with Sally Of The Sawdust... who knows, maybe one of these days. I'll definitely be at the front of the line if and when that ever happens.

I think you'll absolutely love both this disc and the one for Running Wild. I'm curious to hear if you find that the Donald Sosin score on that title is as much of an improvement over the Model score on this title as it was for me.

Thanks for taking the time to respond. I am definitely looking forward to revisiting the two films (which Amazon is taking its sweet time in shipping to me - me and my cheap "free shipping" ways - well, it's not as if I don't have a backlog of films to watch in the meantime). I've heard Donald Sosin's work before and have enjoyed it. He doesn't score in a traditional or conventional manner, but his work tends to supports the films in question. He scored a set of Harold Lloyd shorts for Kino a little over a decade ago (it was released around the same time as the New Line/Harold Lloyd trust set), and the scores were quirky and at times surprisingly melancholic. Yet, they worked quite well, and "Running Wild" does strike me as a film where that approach could work. I will say that I am a bit disappointed that Kino didn't use the theater organ score that Gaylord Carter recorded for the film's 1980s Paramount videocassette. It's a lively and energetic score, and it's a shame that it wasn't used here. I'd be curious to know why the Carter score for "The Covered Wagon" was retained but this one wasn't. The posted running time seems to conform with the running time of the VHS. Perhaps some internal editing differences rendered the older score difficult to sync. Nonetheless, I'm eager to see the film with Mr. Sosin's score. Oddly enough, a couple years ago I made an mp3 file of the Carter score to use for "needle-drop" purposes when running some of my Blackhawk 8mm films. At some point I might see if the new blu will track with the mp3 file!

 

[Josh Steinberg]

I'm not 100% sure but I'm reasonably sure that the Kino disc was my first viewing of Running Wild. I certainly would be interested in the Carter score for the sake of comparison - will have to keep an eye out for that VHS version.

The Sosin score at times seemed a little less traditional, but in a good way. Model's was more traditional to my expectation of an organ score but I don't know how historically accurate it actually is. But listening to both, Model's playing doesn't seem as affected by the action onscreen; it doesn't betray a lot of emotion. But with Sosin, it's almost as if I can tell from his playing which parts of the movie are cracking him up. I can feel his laughter in the playing. It's sort of the difference between a news article and an opinion article. Model's playing is the "some people found this routine to be amusing" way of describing the event without actually participating in it, where Sosin's playing is more "isn't this great?! I hope you're having as much fun as I am!"

 

[bigshot]

I have a problem with organ scores. They hit a spot in me that was created when I was a little kid in church. An organ starts playing and I promptly fall asleep.

The term you are trying to describe is called "Mickey Mousing". A score that follows the action specifically is said to be Mickey Mousing the action. As opposed to "wallpaper scores" that take a more broad approach.