Film & Shorts Discussions > Random Comedy Reviews

Ella Cinders (1926) - Colleen Moore

<< < (2/3) > >>

Paul Pain:

--- Quote from: HomokHarcos on June 07, 2022, 08:22:21 PM ---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.

--- End quote ---

I assume the ending follows that of the comic: that Ella continues to be an actress with starring roles.  To me the problem was more the way Lloyd just forces her onto the train and ignores her even when she explains that she was filming a scene for a movie.  They could have still safely jumped off at that point if they really wanted to do so.

Umbrella Sam:
Alright, Colleen Moore. Looking at her filmography, the only other film I recognize is BEN-HUR, which she only has a cameo in, so this is really my first time seeing her as a lead, and she left a good impression. It’s very fitting that Langdon was chosen for the celebrity cameo in this because she actually does kind of act like him at times. That part with her trying the cigarette and getting light headed calls to mind similar Langdon moments in shorts like THA HANSOM CABMAN. Overall, Moore’s performance is very good; she has funny reactions and feels very much like a natural comedienne. The eye routine, the puppet show, the part with the fly messing with her...all funny stuff that she pulls off well.

As for the rest of the movie, it’s fine. Outside of being based off of a comic strip that’s already based off of CINDERELLA, the plot itself is kind of a blend of two Mabel Normand movies, MICKEY and THE EXTRA GIRL, so there really aren’t any shocking twists and turns to the formula outside of the discovery that the ice man is a wealthy heir. Probably to the surprise of no one, I do have to pick the Langdon scene as the highlight of the film. The two really just work so well off of each other; I really like when they’re going up and down out of sync in their attempt to hide Ella.

The ending...eh, I guess it’s open to interpretation (IMDb says this movie is supposed to be 75 minutes...are there missing scenes?). The last title card does say they’re back in Hollywood, and the director didn’t seem that angry with Ella when he discovered they were getting married, so I assume she keeps her job in the end. Any way you look at it, she ends up happy, which she deserves after a full movie where she is treated like trash by people whose names aren’t Harry Langdon. Overall, a fun movie, nothing spectacular, but Colleen Moore is very good and if she acts like this in more of her movies, I’d be willing to check them out.

hiramhorwitz:

--- Quote from: Umbrella Sam on June 10, 2022, 10:36:42 AM ---Alright, Colleen Moore. Looking at her filmography, the only other film I recognize is BEN-HUR, which she only has a cameo in, so this is really my first time seeing her as a lead, and she left a good impression.

--- End quote ---

Here's a Clarence Bull portrait of her I printed from the original negative (the old-fashioned way, in silver):

Freddie Sanborn:
All surviving prints derive from a 16mm Kodascope cut-down, and that company usually edited out one or two reels. So Ella Cinders was indeed longer when it was in theaters. Hard to find any Colleen Moore silents on the commercial market. Warner Archive has Why Be Good? from 1929 and Eric Grayson restored and released Little Orphant Annie (1918), made when Colleen was just a wee flapper of 19. Other than that, there’s not much out there.

metaldams:

--- Quote from: Freddie Sanborn on June 10, 2022, 06:29:51 PM ---All surviving prints derive from a 16mm Kodascope cut-down, and that company usually edited out one or two reels. So Ella Cinders was indeed longer when it was in theaters. Hard to find any Colleen Moore silents on the commercial market. Warner Archive has Why Be Good? from 1929 and Eric Grayson restored and released Little Orphant Annie (1918), made when Colleen was just a wee flapper of 19. Other than that, there’s not much out there.

--- End quote ---

Thanks for the info, Freddie, it’s much appreciated.  I’ll keep in mind this is incomplete when I watch and review this tomorrow morning.  It can get frustrating the lack of availability or completeness of these films, especially since I’ve tried exploring Lloyd Hamilton recently and hit a stop way too soon.  You guys who find and restore this stuff are saints.

As far as Sam’s comment about Colleen being in BEN-HUR - every mammal, reptile and crustacean within a 150 mile radius of Hollywood at the time was in that film.

Navigation

[0] Message Index

[#] Next page

[*] Previous page