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Ella Cinders (1926) - Colleen Moore

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Paul Pain:


Ella Cinders was a newspaper comic started in 1925.  The premise of the comic is identical to that of the movie. 





IMDB: https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0016822/

Yes, the entire story is deliberately worked off the Cinderella story, though the birds don't gouge out the eyes of the evil step-sisters here.  There are jokes referring to this peppering the film, so it's meant to be obvious and funny.  Overall, the plot is simple enough to keep you entertained for 51 minutes.  One could call this half parody and half satire.

Colleen Moore was a good choice for this role as she already sported the perfect haircut for the role.  Throughout, she perfectly acts out the little mannerisms that are needed to bring life to this role, especially with her adventures that happen along the way.  Ella gets her ear pulled by the evil step-mother at one point, and at another point Lloyd Hughes uses his ice tongs to sort-of cuff her arms behind her in a surprise prank.  I also imagine it took some work to get the cross-eye seen just right, as it required the same trick Buster Keaton used in THE PLAYHOUSE, but here there are apparent jumps.  From start to finish, Colleen has fantastic reactions to every situation.

The supporting cast more-or-less isn't too great and mostly requires being either (1) annoying or (2) overly ham-fisted.  This is by design in the nature of satire, and the actors add no life to the roles which really just require a direct performance.  While a particular character type or talent is required for the roles, anyone with that talent could have done it.  What a pill some of those characters were!

The Indian who grows increasingly annoyed with Ella is played by none other than Daniel Simmons a.k.a. Chief Yowlachie, a real Native of Puyallup heritage who even lived on the Yakima reservation.  His career consisted entirely of playing... Native Americans.  The other cameo was by E.H. Calvert, who was a long-time actor and already 62 when this was filmed!

Now, let's talk the real reason we're here: Harry Langdon.  This was the next released film with Harry Langdon in it, as this was a First National production.  As a result, Harry is the only real name actor, let alone comedy actor, to show up in this film, when Ella walks onto the set.  Harry acts fully in character and works Ella's need to escape as though it were part of the scene.  His part is only two minutes, but it's {unfortunately} the funniest part of the film.

Unfortunately, the worst part of the film happens right at the end when Waite Lifter gets all dopey-headed (after being the tough and actually not-dumb guy who stands up for Ella the entire film before this point) and kidnaps her from the set of a film!

metaldams:
I was wondering if you were going to do this film.  Cool.  I have seen the Langdon scene but not the entire feature.  Looking forward to seeing this.

Umbrella Sam:
Not going to lie, I assumed we were skipping this one. Eh, whatever, I’m always up for more Harry. Looking forward to it.

Paul Pain:

--- Quote from: metaldams on June 07, 2022, 10:12:23 AM ---I was wondering if you were going to do this film.  Cool.  I have seen the Langdon scene but not the entire feature.  Looking forward to seeing this.

--- End quote ---

I was going to skip it, but then when I saw it was a film selected for conservation I figured it was worth taking the time.  At 51 minutes, it's short even for 1920s comedy film standards.  The shared attribute of being preserved films also leads into THE STRONG MAN nicely.

HomokHarcos:
I was considering reviewing this as a bonus, since it has the Harry Langdon cameo, and I like Colleen Moore. When it comes to 1920s flappers there are three that usually come to mind: Louis Brooks, Clara Bow, and Collen Moore. Moore is my favorite out of the three.

Yes, it's a comic adaptation, but I mostly watched it for Colleen Moore. She was terrific here, showing off a lot of her charisma, the peak scenes being her and the eye routine (I think that has to be a nod to Ben Turpin), her putting on a show for the children, and then the photo shoot.

When she messes up the film shoot, it's not annoying but rather she looks innocent and charming, just like Harry Langdon. It's interesting to see Harry Langdon playing himself here, as he is presented as a film star. That just shows how famous he actually was during this time. I agree the ending is not so good, and that can be a problem with these old movies where a woman gives up her job to be with the man.

Very fun comedy film at less than an hour. Like Marion Davies, she's an actress I've started to get more appreciation for.

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