The Mishaps of Musty Suffer

Wow, what a great find! Excellent restorations of films I am astonished even still exist, and some of these are very funny! Not only that, but they are full of exceptional imagination--reminds me a little of Charlie Bowers, but with better pacing. The ensemble is also amazing; they are a wonderful group of bizarros and they work tightly together with some fantastic pantomime. Watson even dances in a couple of these films. I wish they had continued to make movies; I would like to see a whole lot more of these wonderful actors. So, we have short, inventive comedies with wildly creative characters and situations, in quite viewable prints, AND... drum roll please... Exceptional musical accompaniments! Now if anyone out there has by some chance of fate ever read my other reviews of silent films, you probably know that the sound accompaniments are critical to me, and insufficient sound makes me crazy. I can't stand it if the music does not seem to relate to the image, or if it is out of sync (the sound-picture sync problem in the recent release of newly-restored Chaplin's Mutual Films makes me want to firebomb my screen). I must say these are the best musical accompaniments I have ever heard from Mr. Model. He even goes right ahead without apology and places musical accents where there are visual highlights (read: when someone gets hit over the head), and IT IS GREAT! And NO it is not distracting--his music supports the movies beautifully, and makes the comedy come to life. There were a few times when I laughed out loud, and later realized that it was his musical accent that pushed me over the top from a smile to a laugh. There are other comedians out there who need to be brought out of the attic, and I recently read that Mr. Model is next working on a Marcel Perez DVD. Judging by the few clips I've found of this early comedian, the upcoming DVD will also be enlightening. Get this "Musty Suffer" DVD now, and be sure to watch for "The Marcel Perez Collection", probably out early 2015.

I am only reviewing Volume 1 of the release (my review will cover both Volumes 1 and 2). Now, this is the way that silent comedy DVD's should be done!! This is a 5-star labor of love at the pinnacle of perfection!! These were painstakingly restored and mastered from Library of Congress 35mm original nitrate prints from 1916 and 1917. They look beautiful - perfect, and I mean PERFECT projection speed (not looking like a 13 minute boudoir chase from The Benny Hill Show). Of course, there are times when the action does speed up, but that was at the joint decision of both the director and cameraman to emphasize a visual point in a scene (such as an escalator chase or something similar), but overall, the visual flow of these films are not to far removed from a sound movie. Plus, with all new musical scores done by one of the world's best silent film music writers, Ben Model (a heck of nice guy, I met him years ago out in Los Angeles). Harry Watson, Jr., Mr. "Musty Suffer" himself, was a visionary film actor/maker. His surrealistic comic-strip style of violent slapstick was years ahead of its time - a kind of harbinger of things to come with the slapstick of The Three Stooges some 20 years later. An active filmmaker (who got his start as a clown in the Ringling Bros./Barnum and Bailey circus around the turn of the last century) from around 1912 until 1917, he returned to Broadway and Vaudeville for the most part from 1917 until his "reported" death in September of 1930. I put quotes around "reported" because there is also a believable story of a man with the same credentials and work history who died much later in October of 1965, at the age of 89. You decide which version you wish to believe, but, if you want a great example of what great silent comedy is all about, then pick up these discs today!!!

Some hilarious stuff here, and some of the humor is whacked - not what you might expect from 1916-17. Watson's face was certainly made from elastic vinyl; nothing else could stretch and reconfigure itself into so many different contortions. He was a master of facial expression, in the comic vein - not so much an acrobatic comic like Keaton or Chaplin. There are some great gags in these shorts, and some very creative camera and film manipulation for special effects. The price is obviously good, so what are you waiting for? Buy it! I am VERY glad these old films have been made available!

I almost titled this review "A Treasure Trove for the Silents Fan" but that's not quite fair - you don't have to be a fan of silent films to find yourself in tears with any of these shorts. Harry Watson Jr. is the absolute star in each of these nine and a half howlers. His rubber face is perfect for the lead role, reacting to the outrageous situations our hero finds himself in through a twitch of his mile-long mouth or a roll of one of his seemingly independent eyes. He is every bit the master of slapstick, and certainly would deserve a place on the top shelf with Chaplain, Lloyd, and Keaton. If you are interested in finding out more about Watson and his outstanding entourage of comedians and actors who accompany him on his films, you absolutely can't go wrong with Steve Massa's companion guide, sold separately. Once you've read that, you may also enjoy the number of articles available through Google Books - search on "Harry Watson Jr." and you'll have an appreciation for how well-loved this comedian was back in the day. Amazing that he's not better known today.

Dada lives! There were so many laugh out loud things here, I couldn't count them all! There is one bit in one of these that very much reminded me of the great Ernie Kovacs. Remember how he used to draw stuff like table lamps and pull the string and a light would go on? Well good ole Musty does it in one of these. I don't think it's possible that Ernie could have seen these so I am assuming that great minds do think alike. Everything written here about these films is all true! My favorite was the Fairy Tramp. We should all have one of those. I tried to call for mine, but he didn't appear. Darn!! Maxfield Moree (who plays the Fairy Tramp and is in a lot of these films) has to be seen to be believed. Saying that he is a human ostrich almost describes him. Buy this DVD and find out what I am talking about. You won't be disappointed unless you are a snobby old musty stuffed shirt!

I'm a huge fan of silent comedy but I had never heard of "The Mishaps of Musty Suffer" or Harry Watson, Jr. before. I was very excited to learn of another silent comedy series and that it was being released on DVD. I'm glad that I purchased this DVD and the booklet. There are some very clever gags and camera tricks in these films (and these films were done in 1916). Harry Watson, Jr. was a great comedy talent and now finally people can see for themselves. It's great they were allowed to access these hidden treasures from the Library of Congress and make them available to the public to enjoy after 97 years! These shorts are very funny and I hope the rest of these films in the Musty Suffer series will also be released on DVD as well.

An unusual collection of silent shorts featuring forgotten comedian Harry Watson Jr as Musty Suffer. In each short, Musty takes on a new job such as bellhop with predictable, sometimes chaotic results. Not the greatest, but a good curio. Interesting.

Unconventional and ingenious are the best adjectives for this Musty Suffer collection. This is another triumph from Undercrank Productions. Highly recommended.