The Kid Brother (1927)

The most important family in Hickoryville is (naturally enough) the Hickorys, with sheriff Jim and his tough manly sons Leo and Olin. The timid youngest son, Harold, doesn't have the ... See full summary »

Directors:

Ted Wilde, J.A. Howe

Writers:

John Grey (story), Ted Wilde (story),

Stars:

Harold Lloyd, Jobyna Ralston, Walter James

Cast

Complete credited cast:
Harold Lloyd	...	Harold Hickory
Jobyna Ralston	...	Mary Powers
Walter James	...	Jim Hickory
Leo Willis	...	Leo Hickory
Olin Francis	...	Olin Hickory
Constantine Romanoff	...	Sandoni (as C. Romanoff)
Eddie Boland	...	'Flash' Farrell
Frank Lanning	...	Sam Hooper
Ralph Yearsley	...	Hank Hooper (as R. Yearsley)

Storyline

The most important family in Hickoryville is (naturally enough) the Hickorys, with sheriff Jim and his tough manly sons Leo and Olin. The timid youngest son, Harold, doesn't have the muscles to match up to them, so he has to use his wits to win the respect of his strong father and also the love of beautiful Mary.

---

Plot Keywords:

medicine show | sheriff | rural setting | father son relationship | farm | 

---

Genres:

Comedy | Drama | Family | Romance

---

Certificate:

Passed

Details

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Release Date:

17 January 1927 (USA)

Also Known As:

The Mountain Day

Filming Locations:

Placentia, California, USA

Company Credits

Production Co:

The Harold Lloyd Corporation

Technical Specs

Runtime:

82 min 82 min (1990 alternate)

Sound Mix:

Silent

Color:

Black and White

Aspect Ratio:

1.33 : 1

Did You Know?

Trivia

Production originally began with Lewis Milestone as director. Production photos show that Milestone directed a few scenes but, due to contract difficulties with Warner Brothers, he had to resign. He was replaced by Ted Wilde, but Wilde had to leave the film due to illness (he later died of a stroke). Harold Lloyd replaced Wilde with gagmen J.A. Howe and Lex Neal, but Lloyd wound up directing much of the film himself, as he did with most of his films. He never took credit for directing, however, only producing.

---

Goofs

Backgrounds changes when the billy goat is eating the laundry.

---

Connections

Featured in Moguls & Movie Stars: A History of Hollywood: The Dream Merchants: 1920-1928 (2010)

User Reviews

Very Entertaining & Very Imaginative

Even by Harold Lloyd's high standards, this is one of his most entertaining and most imaginative movies. It combines humor and melodrama very well, and it is particularly rich in sight gags, again even by Lloyd's standards. Lloyd has a character that is well suited to his style, and he adds some impressive stunts as well.

As "The Kid Brother", Lloyd's character is the put-upon son of a tough sheriff, with two older, domineering brothers. The story has Harold involved romantically with Jobyna Ralston, who comes to town with a traveling medicine show that the sheriff is trying to shut down. There is also a large sum of money that has been collected for a new dam, and entrusted to the sheriff. There is a lot going on, and Lloyd's character faces challenges and difficulties both from his family and from the villains in the medicine show.

The efforts of Lloyd's character to win the respect of his family give the plot some depth that complements the comedy and melodrama well. The action sequences often combine stunts, drama, and visual comedy at the same time, and there are just enough thoughtful moments to keep the important characters from becoming flat. Constantine Romanoff makes a memorable villain, and the lengthy showdown in the old abandoned ship is a wonderful set piece with lots of interesting details.

It's well worth watching a number of times, in order to catch and enjoy everything that Lloyd and the rest of the cast and crew have packed into less than an hour and a half of running time. How fortunate it is that this and Lloyd's other gems have finally come out on DVD for all of us silent movie fans to enjoy.