1,000 LAFFS: “Playmates”

Now that’s more like it.

After my bumpy baptism into silent film appreciation on Saturday, Sunday’s venture proved far more fruitful. This time, I wandered towards the city’s east end for and afternoon at The Fox Theatre – and I’m happy to report that the joint was jumping! The boisterous atmosphere was a welcome switch from the day before, and one that was helped all the more by a house almost three times the size of The Revue.

As the houselights dimmed, curator Chris Seguin took the mic to prime us for what was to come. He explained that in culling together the five films we were about to watch, that he had essentially been given carte blanche to put together an amusing and enlightening programme. Talk about trust in your programmers! Well after watching the films Chris selected, I can confidently say that the trust was well-deserved.

The theme of the afternoon was “playmates”, with almost every film focusing on the shenanigans of a duo as opposed to a solo performer. The exception to the rule was Charlie Chaplin, who amused us all with his performance in THE CURE. Of course, while Chaplin is primarily a one-man-wrecking-crew, many of his bits involve him playing off another person. Sometimes he’s working with a mentor, sometimes a love interest, often a foil. So Chaplin’s adventures around the 1917 equivalent of Betty Ford often came at the expense of others, setting the tone well for what was to come.

Next we were given a bit of a history lesson. Most people are familiar with the team of Laurel and Hardy; what many – myself included – don’t realize is that before beginning his work with Oliver Hardy, Stan Laurel was part of a different duo. He worked with Larry Semon first, and their film FRAUDS AND FRENZIES was the second offering of the day. This title brought with it a lot of laughs (and an off colour joke or two), but seemed to be missing that certain something…sort of like that one record Van Halen recorded without David Lee Roth or Sammy Hagar. Off-rhythm as it seemed, it was still a great choice.

Finishing out the first half was a wonderful pairing of Buster Keaton and Fatty Arbuckle in BACKSTAGE. In this meeting of two masters, the slapstick gags were executed with gut-busting aplomb. The film featured some amazing sight gags, some truly wild physical comedy, and might have been the most inspired choice to send us into intermission with.

I should point out that on Sunday, all of the films were presented from dvd (though like Saturday, there was a live accompanist tickling the ivories). Part of me believes that all things being equal, presenting these films digitally might be the way to go for a modern audience. Projecting film involves so many x-factors, it seems like an unnecessary headache when asking an audience from all walks of life to take a leap back 100 years or so.

When the action resumed, we added a theme to the theme. The running line of comedic duos was now stacked with a wink at the fact that men in the early part of the last century were dogs. Single men would chase after women like foxes on a hunt, and married men would step out on their vows without batting an eye. The first piece of evidence came thanks to a comedian who isn’t as widely known as Chaplin, Keaton, or Arbuckle. Harry Langdon led the way as a working stiff who is both tempted and pushed out of his husbandly duties in SATURDAY AFTERNOON. Langdon runs around with Vernon Dent, evoking much of what Laurel and hardy would later perfect.

At this stage of the afternoon, the slapstick comedy was dialing itself back a bit, and situational comedy had taken its place. Thus, SATURDAY AFTERNOON’s laughs came equally from Langdon trying (feebly) to stand up to his wife, and likewise from him clinging for dear life between two cars.

The day came to an end with Laurel and Hardy in a lesser-known film called WE FAW DOWN. The gem – which was written by Frank Capra – has the gents fibbing to get away from their wives. Then when something happens that they are completely unaware of, they have to fib their way back into their wives good graces. Like SATURDAY AFTERNOON, the film plays more like a sitcom than the slapstick of Arbuckle, Chaplin and Keaton. However, in a nod to inspired programming, it felt like the right tone for that point in the afternoon…akin to the way one slows the music tempo as the party nears its end.

However, it wasn’t all maudlin – the afternoon ended on perhaps the most inspired bit of visual humour…sending us all home with a smile on our face.

This was the sort of joyful cinematic experience I’d signed on for when I latched on to this festival, and I was happy to see it play out. Perhaps I’m playing to the cliche that the comedies play better than the dramas, but so be it. Sunday’s crowd dispersed with a wildly different vibe than Saturday’s, and I’d wager it’s the sort of vibe the festival was aiming for when they started spreading the word.

Two down, one to go – and it’s the one I’ve been looking forward to most. Come back tomorrow for a report from one of Toronto’s most distinct landmarks.