Surviving prints are not the greatest, although they are watchable. The worst part about them is that they are projected at the wrong speed. The movie rushes by so fast, we don't have much of a chance to appreciate some of the gags. Also I didn't like the movie's constant attacks on vegetarians and its overbalanced endorsement of meat eaters. One or two jokes on this subject would be tolerable, but the movie seems to go out of its way to keep these attacks coming long after they have saved their purpose. They were not all that amusing in the first place. Nonetheless, producer Fairbanks has made sure that the movie constantly focuses on him, so at least Fairbanks fans will go away happy. And it is certainly well produced, although the original movie was certainly projected at a more tolerable speed than surviving copies like the Alpha DVD in which the action uncomfortably speeds by at too fast a clip and then dawdles around with the sub-titles. HIS picture for sure, although not exactly my cup of tea, but still a must-have for Fairbanks collectors.
Review of His Picture in the Papers
