High Gear

High Gear (1931)

*** (out of 4)

Mickey (Mickey Daniels) gets kicked out of the house by his father but at least he lets him take the car out for a spin. He picks up Dave (David Sharpe) and Alabam (Grady Sutton), as well as three girls, and head out for some fun but end up running into a jerk police officer (Edgar Kennedy) and a group of thugs. This was the fifth entry in Hal Roach's "Boy Friends" series and the first and only to be a three-reeler but to be far this here just runs five-minutes longer than the other films. I thought for the most part all of the jokes worked very well with the middle sequence dealing with Kennedy being the best. We get the typical jokes like the pen spitting ink in his face and the boys making a few jokes at him and while this might not be original it's still very funny here. Another nice gag involves a trip at the end where the boys stumble into a house where some thugs are hiding. The thugs and boys keep battling one another by throwing the other out a window and into the mud. Again, nothing too original but it works here. Kennedy clearly steals the film as the doomed cop but Mickey does a very good job as well. Director Stevens seems a lot more at ease in terms of building the scenes for their laughs.

While this is FAR from a great short from Hal Roach Studio, it is still pretty watchable and about average for a Boy Friends film. The Boy Friends series were akin to an older version of the Our Gang shorts and some of the actors were veterans of the other series (such as the be-freckled Mickey). At Roach, the Boy Friends were definitely lesser talents compared to Laurel and Hardy or even Charley Chase. As a result, their films generally are pretty forgettable and the laughs are fewer and father between.

The film starts out at Mickey's house, where he manages to irritate his very thin-skinned father. Of course, considering that Mickey has the most annoying laugh in film history and was also only second to Rondo Hatton for ugliness, I guess I can understand Dad's disgust with the boy! Anyways, despite Dad growling and arguing with his slow-witted son, he gives him the keys to his car--on the condition that he take good care of it. Of course, in a Roach film this means that the car will be damaged severely! All this is mildly funny. However, when it starts to pour, the film slows down considerably and it just isn't all that funny when the boys and their dates stumble into a home filled with evil bootleggers. Without this, this film might have gotten a score of 6, but with all action and no discernible plot, the last half greatly reduces the impact and enjoyment of the film.

This film is the only three reel comedy from the Boy Friend series by Hal Roach.

The story revolves around Mickey Daniels who just wants to borrow his father's car. He is granted permission with one condition: that he return the car without a scratch. Of course, in a comedy, this rule must be broken. There are many hilarious scenes with Kennedy the cop who gives and receives plenty of trouble. Mickey displays his true comedic talents here with his mastery of facial gestures and goofy personality. The final sequence where the gang stumbles upon a "bad guy" hangout is a riot. Mickey provides plenty of laughs by breaking every object he can find over anyone's head which passes him by. A first rate comedy all the way!

Mickey Daniels, Grady Sutton are at their best in High Gear. Mickey gets his grumpy Irish father's permission to use the family car with a stern warning not to wreck the car's new paint job. Of course, Mickey and the gang get involved in a fender bender, received for a cop (Edgar Kennedy), get a brawl with hoodlums and finally wreck the car's paint job in a downpour. The fight scene is hysterical, with athletic Dave doing all sorts of jumps, kicks and falls that would make Jackie Chan proud. The girl friends, per usual, are all pert and tart, with Mary being the cutest.

Good fun as the gang goes out for a drive and Mickey tries to take care of his dad's car. They give a hard time to a cop and have a big fight with some bad guys in an abandoned house. A great opportunity to see David Sharpe do some of the fancy stunt work that would later make him a legend in the business. Watch for the continuity goof with the ink on Edgar Kennedy's face. He gives his usual excellent job as an exasperated cop who wishes he had never run into those kids.

This was part of a collection of George Stevens shorts on Turner Classic Movies and I'm glad I didn't miss it. Hopefully, it will be rebroadcast in the future.