I Do

This Harold Lloyd comedy has some funny sequences that are enjoyable to watch, even though it is somewhat uneven overall. Lloyd himself is always funny, and it is only a matter of providing him with decent material in order to make for good comedy. This feature pulls together several sequences with comedy ideas that very somewhat in their level of creativity, and that do not always fit together all that well.

Lloyd and Mildred Davis star as a young married couple. One of the interesting aspects of the movie is the short animated sequence at the beginning, which apparently replaced a reel of material that did not turn out as well as everyone had hoped. The main body of the film as it stands follows Lloyd and Davis as they contend with Prohibition, baby-sit some troublesome children, and deal with a neighborhood burglary threat.

A number of the gag ideas work well, and the two stars also get some help from imposing Noah Young in the second half of the movie. The young child playing their nephew is also quite believable as a young trouble-maker. There are a few stretches of relatively routine slapstick material, but the good parts make it worth seeing.

This Harold Lloyd short wasn't really much; not one of his funnier efforts. Of course, I never see bratty kids as anything hilarious. That's what the bulk of this story is, Harold and his wife, Mildred Davis, babysitting his in-laws two young kids. One is a baby who is constantly crying and the other is a four-year-old terror who does everything but demolish the house. Letting the kid create havoc over and over was not entertaining to me.

The best part was the last four or five minutes when the couple thinks that this big goon (Noah Young) is burglarizing their house. Half the time it's the pet cat scaring the couple, but overall, that segment is fun with some good sight gags, reminding me of another Lloyd short, "Haunted Spooks."

However, the good ending doesn't save the whole picture, which I probably wouldn't watch again. Lloyd has done too many other good things to waste even 25 minutes on this one again. It just isn't that funny.

This Harold Lloyd short is the story of newlyweds who use subterfuge to transport some bootleg liquor, then agree to watch a couple of children while the brother-in-law is otherwise occupied. The story includes a bad guy who seems to be checking out the neighborhood.

The best part of the film is the small section that deals with the ornery nature of the young boy left in their charge. I could have watched an entire film about the duel of wits between Lloyd and the kid.

As others have pointed out, the film is uneven, but its best parts are truly funny.

The Boy (Harold Lloyd) marries The Girl (Mildred Davis). It is a year later and they are carrying around an alcohol bottle in their baby carriage. Her brother asks them to babysit his children and chaos ensues.

This is relatively fine. Harold Lloyd is doing a lot of Mr. Mom gags and ends with some Scooby Doo fun. Maybe this would be funnier without Mildred Davis in the babysitting caper. In that way, Harold would be alone dealing with two kids. I can imagine a lot of slapstick possibilities with him juggling a fake baby. As it stands, there is always an adult near the room and it's not as dangerous.

A Hal Roach HAROLD LLOYD film.

When he says `I DO' at his nuptials, a young man has no idea the travail his wife's family will put him through.

Harold Lloyd had another winner with this domestic comedy in which he must deal with his wife's nephews, the elder a dreadful little brat and the younger a crying baby, during a long & frightful night. As so often happened, Harold's superb athletic abilities enhance his role, even with half of his mutilated right hand hidden by a special glove. Lloyd's hilarious HOT WATER, which came three years later, doubtless drew some of its inspiration from this film.

I DO originally ran longer, but when the preview audience didn't respond with enough laughs to the opening scenes Harold removed the entire first reel, tightening the picture down to a tad under 25 minutes. The animated sequence depicting the wedding is a nice touch.

Mildred Davis appropriately plays Harold's wife - they would soon be married in real life. Noah Young, who acted many a tough guy in Lloyd's films, lends his menacing presence to the end of the movie.

Robert Israel has composed an excellent film score which perfectly complements Harold's antics on the screen.