STUFF YOU GOTTA WATCH - For Heaven's Sake

FOR HEAVEN'S SAKE

(1926)
With Harold Lloyd, Jobyna Ralston, Noah Young
Directed by Sam Taylor
Silent, Black and White
Reviewed by JB

By the time FOR HEAVEN'S SAKE was released, audiences knew exactly what they would get in a Harold Lloyd picture. There would be a pretty, likable love interest in the form of Mildred Davis or Jobyna Ralston, and she and Harold would inevitably "meet cute". There would be a bully or tough guy, often played by the funny and underrated Noah Young, who excelled at portraying big dumb lugs who were always puzzled by Lloyd's character. In every Lloyd film there would be an amazing chase and/or action scene and a nonstop procession of gags, some incredible, others incredibly contrived.

FOR HEAVEN'S SAKE followed this formula to the letter. Like the earlier GIRL SHY, the film's strength is the sweetness and likability at the heart of the main character, here named Harold Manners, a rich man who opens up a mission and falls in love with a beautiful girl. FOR HEAVEN'S SAKE's weakness is that I have just described the entire story, which is fleshed out to barely feature length with several comedy action sequences, the most memorable coming near the end, as Harold attempts to lead five drunken Irish thugs to his wedding, and winds up on an absconded double-decker bus. There is no goal for Harold to achieve, no compelling reason why we should be interested in Harold Manners except that he is played by Harold Lloyd. FOR HEAVEN'S SAKE is one of Lloyd's "gag" comedies rather than a story comedy. It is far from his best picture but equally far from his worst. Or, as they used to say in The Film Daily, "It's a Lloyd. That's enough." ½ - JB