Courtship of Miles Sandwich (1923)
** (out of 4)
It's Thanksgiving and a young boy asks his father ('Snub' Pollard) what the holiday is about. We then have his story told as some folks land in the country, make it off the boat and try a few "first" before meeting some Indians for dinner. This movie is spoofing 1923's THE COURTSHIP OF MYLES STANDISH with Charles Rey, which ended up costing around one-million only turning out to be a complete disaster and nearly costing the star everything he was worth. That film is lost sadly but this one here probably worked pretty good as a spoof even if the actual film isn't all that good. There are a few very funny scenes but just not enough to carry the twenty-minute running time. The best sequence happens when Pollard is fighting with another man (James Finlayson) and they decide to go skiing. One of the men gets a rope tied to him and a tree as he goes down the mountain with a very funny finish. Another good gag includes the smoking of the peace pipe that doesn't go as planned. Both Pollard and Finlayson are good in their roles but one wishes there were more laughs to carry the picture. Not a disaster but it's doubtful too many will be searching this one out.