{"id":31209,"date":"2019-05-17T21:22:38","date_gmt":"2019-05-18T01:22:38","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/cinema-crazed.com\/blog\/?p=31209"},"modified":"2019-05-17T21:22:38","modified_gmt":"2019-05-18T01:22:38","slug":"the-marcel-perez-collection-volume-2-dvd","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.cinema-crazed.com\/blog\/2019\/05\/17\/the-marcel-perez-collection-volume-2-dvd\/","title":{"rendered":"The Marcel Perez Collection: Volume 2 (DVD)"},"content":{"rendered":"

\"\"<\/a>It\u2019s estimated by Deutsche Kinemathek that 80\u201390% films, and 75% of all silent films are now lost. Many made even before the 1900\u2019s are gone, with over 3500 lost films having been recorded by archivists and historians. So it\u2019s an invaluable service that Undercrank Productions is giving its movie loving audience by delivering previously unseen and rare short films by many movie stars audiences have never even heard of. While the shorts aren\u2019t always pristine, the fact that they get a new life on DVD is a wonderful gift to film enthusiasts that want to learn more about the film stars of yesteryear and how they helped shape the genres.<\/p>\n

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Undercrank Productions makes available Volume 2 of silent film comedian Marcel Perez, a comedian very much in the vein of Chaplin and Keaton who is quite funny most of the time. The restoration is pretty great all things considered, and while there are some film streaks and occasional artifacts, this is a collection worth owning if you are a cineaste. \u201cThe Short-Sighted Cyclist\u201d from 1907 is a one reeler showcasing Perez\u2019s slapstick skills, and it\u2019s one that helped launch his career. It\u2019s a fun and funny short about Perez who, with bad eye sight, has to ride across town as a messenger and things go awry.<\/p>\n

\u201cSome Hero\u201d from 1916 is an action melodrama, where Perez fights bad guys to save his girl, chews through thick ropes after he is tied up and yes, gets a safe dropped on him! That old gag. \u201cLend Me Your Wife\u201d from 1916 features Perez as Tweedle Dee, who is kicked out of his boarding house because he can\u2019t pay his bill. He also hilariously hits his land lady with a piece of toast and jelly. When Tweedle Dee is taken in by a kind couple, he receives news that he\u2019s inherited his uncle\u2019s wealth, but only if he is married.<\/p>\n

When he decides to pretend he\u2019s married to the wife of the man who took him in, things get wacky. \u201cOh! What a Day\u201d from 1918 is a funny bit of slapstick where Perez takes a girl to the Jersey shore for a boat ride and accidentally fills his care with booze instead of gas, and \u201cChickens in Turkey\u201d 1919, where Perez dresses as a woman to board a ship of women, but has to run when the captain starts taking a fancy to him\u00a0 There\u2019s also 1916\u2019s \u201cA Scrambled Honeymoon,\u201d 1921\u2019s \u201cPinched,\u201d 1921\u2019s \u201cWild,\u201d and a two minute fragment that was saved from 1923\u2019s \u201dFriday the 13th.\u201d<\/p>\n

The short films are all accompanied by wonderful piano work by Ben Model, whose own music compliments these silent shorts and enhances the experience big time. Kudos to Mr. Model who keeps to the tradition of upbeat and exciting silent film music.<\/p>\n