Until just a few days ago, WELCOME DANGER stood out as the sole feature in Harold Lloyd's catalogue I had yet to watch. This one notch in the chronology had not kept me up at nights, taking for granted as I did that every inch of its shoddy reputation had to be accurate, but the completist in me still surrendered when an opportunity to see the film finally appeared. As the very first scene unveiled, introducing the character of Harold Bledsoe on-board a train to San Fransisco, I expected, quite literally, to feel disgusted at his every move, being confident that this figure of the mortal world of sound shared only the exterior attributes of the silent Harold (such as the horn-rimmed glasses). To my surprise (and slight embarrassment), the first few gags actually made me chuckle, as Harold's character was established as an inventive and well-meaning, though perhaps sometimes overly eager sort of fellow; an impression quite synonymous, I think, with how he often presented himself in the silent years, as well as in his later, slightly more acclaimed talkies. Even so, a neat enough beginning was not enough to win me over, and anxiety arose as I expected the dreadful parts of the film to turn up. As the sweet scenes depicting Harold's first encounter with Barbara Kent and her wrecked vehicle developed, however, I could do little else than realize that the film I was watching seemed to provide me with something so ghastly as an enjoyable way to spend a couple of hours. This is not to say that the film gave me the same, more or less uncompromising amount of pleasure that characterizes Lloyd's best silent work; but then, that is a high standard to go by.
Only a few months had passed since Lloyd's latest success SPEEDY hit theaters in April 1928, when he embarked on his next project WELCOME DANGER. Lloyd had found a first-rate talent in director Ted Wilde, whose style possessed a level of sophistication similar to that of his previous director Sam Taylor. Sadly, at this point Wilde fell seriously ill, and a replacement was found in Mal St. Clair (who, among other things, had once co-directed some of Buster Keaton's most inspired shorts). Reportedly, St. Clair wound up directing an astounding twelve reels of finished film, turning out a vehicle for Lloyd nearly twice as long as any of the comedian's earlier films. The mere length of the film should have made WELCOME DANGER quite a challenge for Lloyd and his crew, not only because more gags were thus required for, but as much due to the expectation of stronger, believable characterizations than in shorter films. However, Harold Lloyd was not one to half-heartedly undertake a project he believed in, certainly not as a character on film and no more so, it turned out, as a film-maker. As shooting went on, Lloyd discovered the recent triumphs of films with synchronized sound; though the technology had in fact been available for years, it was not until THE JAZZ SINGER starring Al Jolson premiered in early '28 that the world of silent films began its visible, rapid decline in public consciousness. By the next year, all major studios in Hollywood had installed the new equipment required for in order to make their stars express themselves through spoken words. However, none of the three major comedians of the day had yet adapted themselves to this new existence; Buster Keaton had recently joined MGM, but was still blessed from dialogue to interfere with his pantomime, and Chaplin, of course, remained reluctant to make the transition for another ten years. Lloyd, on the other hand, surprised everyone by suggesting that WELCOME DANGER should be a talking film, and as the film reached its completion, he hired old-timer Clyde Bruckman to redirect several sequences with synchronized sound.
Make no mistake: the result is a film which does, indeed, suffer from many typical, technological limitations of very early sound films. On several instances, Lloyd and Bruckman decided to reuse the silent footage for the sound version, a method which may have saved considerable time and money, but the dubbing work done afterward is often extremely unconvincing and, doubtlessly, unintentionally funny. I also cannot get around that the film, even if restored and remastered to appear as crisp as when originally released, is far less aesthetically enthralling than earlier Lloyd-features, notably GIRL SHY and THE KID BROTHER. This is an odd tendency common to many early sound films; late silents often look less dated. Part of the reason to this may have been that the visual abilities of film tended to be less relied on for a while after dialogue could be brought in to "do the job" of moving a story forward. Even so, a first viewing of WELCOME DANGER convinced me that the film deserves a better reputation. There are plenty of solid gags and comic situations in it throughout, which Lloyd performs gracefully; little truly remarkable, perhaps, but at least I chuckled at the odd friendship and interplay between Harold and the cop Noah Young, as well as the smaller bits such as Harold's reaction when he discovers who the girl he's been annoyed at while stuck in the woods r-e-a-l-l-y is Some strong supporting players are also at hand, notably lovely Barbara Kent as leading lady, Edgar Kennedy as another, more gruesome cop, and highly- unforgettable Charles Middleton as John Thorne. Unexpectedly, the story takes a relatively dramatic turn in the latter half of the film, which arguably adds some depth to it absent from Lloyd's later talkies. In sum, WELCOME DANGER may be a flawed film, and less magical than Lloyd's best silent work, but in my book still an enjoyable comedy which filled its presumed purpose of entertaining me.
Only a few months had passed since Lloyd's latest success SPEEDY hit theaters in April 1928, when he embarked on his next project WELCOME DANGER. Lloyd had found a first-rate talent in director Ted Wilde, whose style possessed a level of sophistication similar to that of his previous director Sam Taylor. Sadly, at this point Wilde fell seriously ill, and a replacement was found in Mal St. Clair (who, among other things, had once co-directed some of Buster Keaton's most inspired shorts). Reportedly, St. Clair wound up directing an astounding twelve reels of finished film, turning out a vehicle for Lloyd nearly twice as long as any of the comedian's earlier films. The mere length of the film should have made WELCOME DANGER quite a challenge for Lloyd and his crew, not only because more gags were thus required for, but as much due to the expectation of stronger, believable characterizations than in shorter films. However, Harold Lloyd was not one to half-heartedly undertake a project he believed in, certainly not as a character on film and no more so, it turned out, as a film-maker. As shooting went on, Lloyd discovered the recent triumphs of films with synchronized sound; though the technology had in fact been available for years, it was not until THE JAZZ SINGER starring Al Jolson premiered in early '28 that the world of silent films began its visible, rapid decline in public consciousness. By the next year, all major studios in Hollywood had installed the new equipment required for in order to make their stars express themselves through spoken words. However, none of the three major comedians of the day had yet adapted themselves to this new existence; Buster Keaton had recently joined MGM, but was still blessed from dialogue to interfere with his pantomime, and Chaplin, of course, remained reluctant to make the transition for another ten years. Lloyd, on the other hand, surprised everyone by suggesting that WELCOME DANGER should be a talking film, and as the film reached its completion, he hired old-timer Clyde Bruckman to redirect several sequences with synchronized sound.
Make no mistake: the result is a film which does, indeed, suffer from many typical, technological limitations of very early sound films. On several instances, Lloyd and Bruckman decided to reuse the silent footage for the sound version, a method which may have saved considerable time and money, but the dubbing work done afterward is often extremely unconvincing and, doubtlessly, unintentionally funny. I also cannot get around that the film, even if restored and remastered to appear as crisp as when originally released, is far less aesthetically enthralling than earlier Lloyd-features, notably GIRL SHY and THE KID BROTHER. This is an odd tendency common to many early sound films; late silents often look less dated. Part of the reason to this may have been that the visual abilities of film tended to be less relied on for a while after dialogue could be brought in to "do the job" of moving a story forward. Even so, a first viewing of WELCOME DANGER convinced me that the film deserves a better reputation. There are plenty of solid gags and comic situations in it throughout, which Lloyd performs gracefully; little truly remarkable, perhaps, but at least I chuckled at the odd friendship and interplay between Harold and the cop Noah Young, as well as the smaller bits such as Harold's reaction when he discovers who the girl he's been annoyed at while stuck in the woods r-e-a-l-l-y is Some strong supporting players are also at hand, notably lovely Barbara Kent as leading lady, Edgar Kennedy as another, more gruesome cop, and highly- unforgettable Charles Middleton as John Thorne. Unexpectedly, the story takes a relatively dramatic turn in the latter half of the film, which arguably adds some depth to it absent from Lloyd's later talkies. In sum, WELCOME DANGER may be a flawed film, and less magical than Lloyd's best silent work, but in my book still an enjoyable comedy which filled its presumed purpose of entertaining me.