User reviews

This one is worth catching simply because it is one of the few surviving examples of the series of 'Bunnygraph' comedies rotund comedian John Bunny made with the bird-like Flora Finch. Sadly, it's not particularly funny - although the number of times this basic plot has been copied in the 100+ years since it was made suggests it was far more original at the time of its release than it seems today. Bunny was just 49 when he made this movie, but he looks at least 15 years older, so his death in 1915 was perhaps to be expected.

Wife (Finch) plots to cure her husband (Bunny) of his inveterate poker playing.

"A Cure for Pokeritis" was one of many Vitagraph Studios one-reel or shorter comedies starring Bunny and Finch in a domestic setting, known popularly as Bunnygraphs or Bunnyfinches. The number of these shorts originally produced is unknown because Vitagraph's films were generally not archived. Estimates vary considerably; totals in excess of 150, 200, or 260 have been proposed. Most are now lost.

While I appreciate this early attempt at husband-wife humor, and apparently it also was an early attempt to escape "theater framing"... it is rather dated. What was funny in 1912 is not always funny 100 years later. This is not the fault of the film, but turns it into more of a historical document than a comedy.

An amusing story and John Bunny's lead performance make "A Cure For Pokeritis" very entertaining, and put it among the better short comedies of the early 1910's. The story is set up efficiently and is told well, with the cast also getting the most out of the situation.

Bunny plays a compulsive poker player who taxes his wife's patience once too often, provoking her to try to come up with an involved 'cure' for his obsession. The story builds up nicely to a frantic finale. Along the way, Bunny shows a knack for expressing quite a bit with basic means such as a simple facial expression. Uncomplicated though the role may be, he does quite a good job, and it's too bad that not many of his films have survived. Flora Finch also makes a good partner for him. Overall, this is quite good, and worth seeking out.

This is the second short I watched on YouTube that starred John Bunny and the first with Flora Finch as his wife. In this one, Bunny has lost another card game and he's promised Flora he's giving up. But his wife has found out that his rehab meetings are a cover so she gets her cousin to catch him in the act. I suppose the fact this was the first time this particular plot was presented in a filmed comedy gives this some points but personally, I didn't find anything here that was funny and the conversion wasn't too convincing to me. And since there were no real chases or slapstick of any kind, I guess there's not much I can recommend about this short except if you want to see something starring this forgotten duo, A Cure for Pokeritis is worth a look since there's so few of their movies still in existence.

I saw a nice Blackhawk print of this film not too long ago. It is a good representation of John Bunny's comic persona. He was a very heavy set man and was frequently paired with very slender ( and a good bit taller) actress Flora Finch as his wife. The films they made together were often referred too as Bunnygraphs( A play on the title of DW Griffith's Biographs). A Cure for Pokeritis runs about 11 minutes or so when projected at silent 18 frames per second speed. It is a cute little film and some of John's facial expressions are quite funny. This is worth seeing if you are interested in early American cinema comedy and would like to see something from a star that PRE-DATES Charlie Chaplin.