Mickey

Dogs love her, cats love her, jackasses love her and squirrels love to run up her pants legs. Well, who can blame them, right after a scene where she is shown diving nude.... with a suitably long lens of course. Darn it.

There is nothing terribly novel about this Cinderella story of a movie, but it is all carried off with a great deal of charm. Mabel even gets to cut a few capers, instead of simply looking charming while the comedians around her make a mess of things. She's not a great physical comedian, but she is a fine actress and under the direction of comedy *wunderkind* Richard Jones, she gives a fine performance, as does just about everyone in this movie.

Mack Sennett had a strong reputation for producing wild, violent, fast- paced slapstick that often got its laughs without even a superficial attempt to make sense. He got that reputation for the simple reason that it's true. However, it's interesting to see how when Sennett knew he had on his hands a comedian whose laughs come from subtleties or reactions rather than fast antics, he knows to slacken the pace. That was true with many of the brilliant Harry Langdon shorts he would produce later, and it is true here in "Mickey" with Mabel Normand.

Mabel is the star and it is she on which the movie turns. She steals every scene she appears in and has infinite screen magnetism, with her attractive, fascinating face, constantly changing expression, and childlike and uninhibited yet somehow ironic manner. The greatest moments of comedy come in little bits of performance, as Mabel comes up with many ingenious ways to hide dust she has swept up, or simply can't resist eating cherries off a cake.

That said, there are not actually a lot of scenes of overt comedy in this film, and sometimes when there is overt comedy it comes out as a digression or bit of broad slapstick that is well-executed but has a different feel -- the battle in the country store (which looks a lot like the one Arbuckle worked at in "The Butcher Boy") over Mable's dog or the animal the scurries up her pantleg. It's not actually an uproariously funny film, but doesn't usually try to be, and it's always pleasant.

The plot is simple and of a kind that has spawned infinite variations. Mabel is a rough-hewn girl from a miner town who loves playing with animals and skinny dipping (from a very wide angle); she is sent to her rich aunt and becomes involved in a kind of love square through no fault of her own. It's really as much melodrama as anything else, but it comes off. There are plenty of twists, especially as the end draws near, involving who is rich and who is poor when; these remain able to keep the interest, and make a kind of commentary too, intentional or not, on the true insignificance of wealth.

This has been cited as the first feature-length comedy starring a single comedian rather than an ensemble cast, but even so it feels fairly developed as a form, with decent pacing and plot developing in two places at once. This is a simple story well told, and really made by its star, who is well showcased.

Mabel Normand gives a very lively, engaging performance that makes "Mickey" an entertaining movie with several other strengths. The supporting cast all help out as well, and the story effectively moves back-and-forth between the backwoods and the big city. It combines comedy and melodrama effectively, and while it contains mostly familiar elements, it's the kind of movie that is quite enjoyable to watch.

The role of "Mickey" gives Normand some good material to work with, and as always she is sympathetic and charming. Part of the story is set in a mining settlement, where Mickey is right at home, and part of it moves into high society, where she is ill at ease. Both settings are believable and make good backdrops for comedy, and both are also used to bring things out about Mickey and the other characters.

The supporting cast, which includes Wheeler Oakman as Mickey's suitor, has its own comic moments, and Minta Durfee gives an effective performance as the snobbish society girl who is Mickey's romantic rival.

While none of the components of "Mickey" are especially imaginative or innovative, they are all of good quality. It all fits together to make an enjoyable movie.

Mickey (1918)

** 1/2 (out of 4)

When Mack Sennett and Mabel Normand's personal relationship took a hit (two stories are out there), he tried to bring some peace by forming the Mabel Normand Feature Film Company, a separate division of Keystone. This new studio only turned out one film but it was a hit for the studio even after a disastrous production. In the film Normand plays Mickey, a poor girl helping her uncle in a worthless mine. Feeling she's all grown up, the uncle sends her to New York to live with an aunt hoping that she will turn the young lady into a woman. MICKEY is pretty predictable from start to finish and I even though some of the 74-minute running time dragged in spots. Still, it's easy to see that everything going on was just done so that Normand could shine and I think she does just that. There's no question that it's Normand who makes the film worth seeing due to her very strong performance. She's pleasant no matter what situation is in front of her. It could be the early tomboy stuff in the mines, the scenes where she's trying to figure out you don't sweep dirt under a rug or the scenes where she must make decisions for the rest of her life. Mabel is clearly the star of this picture and without her the bland story would have killed any shot at an entertaining movie.

'Mickey', as all Mabel Normand films, has her at the centre of attention from the beginning till the end. The camera, the action, the entire plot, are all attracted to her like magnets. And Normand is excellent in this film, establishing her status as silent era's first lady of comedy.

And we do have a great comedy. Full of suspense, 'Mickey' is never tiring, never boring. We are to witness the adventures of a mine-owner young girl, who cares for mining as much as donkeys care for belts being pushed down their throats. She is a mischievous child who, even when she is brought in the rich household of her aunt in the East, never tires to be a child. Yet it is remarkable what love can do.

The supporting cast is all first rate, with Wheeler Oakman, George Nichols, Minnie Devereaux or Laura La Varnie, all delivering some great comedic performances that seem to be untouched by the axe of time. But they are all there for Normand, who does everything from jumping nude into the water to riding horses and some impressive high altitude stunts. She was one of a kind, and 'Mickey' is there to prove it.