Years ago I watched a fading-to-white, scratchy, blurry old VHS tape of "Skinner's Dress Suit" (1926) which, when I'd finished, I thought had been a lot of fun; just wished it could have been a much better print. Well, the new Reginald Denny three film Blu-Ray set from Kino Lorber is now my answer. I re-watched the film and enjoyed it all over again, only this time my eyes weren't crossed when I finished watching. The print isn't necessarily pristine, as there are a few lines here and there, but they're so minor as to be barely noticeable. I have to admit that half-way through this the only thing running through my mind was that Cary Grant HAD to have learned to copy Denny at some time or other because I kept seeing Grant playing the part! Grant's farceuring in "Bringing Up Baby" and "Arsenic and Old Lace" come immediately to mind.
This one begins with Denny's wife, played by lovely Laura La Plante, wondering if Denny had asked his bosses for a raise yet. No, he hasn't. Well, when will you? Today... Bye, Dear, gotta dash, catch the 7:32. Of course, he doesn't get it. Plus, other factors enter into the picture which complicate all even more. He gets home. Does he have the raise? No, but does he tell his wife? No. But does she think he does? Yes. And so what does she do? Buys him a new dress suit - that is, white tie and tails evening dress. And does it stop there? Of course not! New suit for work. New set of furniture. And whose outfit is more expensive than his new dress suit? Hers! But does he get the raise yet? NO! And so forth and so on. But do you think the outcome will be tragic? OF COURSE NOT!
The plot is short on genuine comedic drive. But...with Denny in his top farceur mode - absolute non-stop body action and eye movements and mouth movements that scream farce; and with Laura La Plante matching him at every step of the way; and with all of the cast in top fashion under director William A. Seiter's helm - this is a comedy masterpiece. Such a pleasant journey from the get-go. Besides Denny and La Plante, we have Ben Hendricks, Jr., E. J. Ratcliffe, Arthur Lake, Hedda Hopper, Lionel Braham, Frona Hale, and two who simply outdo even the stars: William H. Strauss and Betty Morrissey. The last named can do a mean 20's dance, too. By the way, the dance everyone does in the film, called the Savannah Shuffle, a somewhat combination of the Black Bottom and the Charleston, was an invention of Denny himself. Denny, as we discover, was no mean dancer himself. Nor was Laura La Plante. The fun of the dance is strewn throughout the film at different points as we're given small doses here and there.
The film, for the record, is actually a re-make of a seemingly very successful 1917 film of the same name which had starred Bryant Washburn, Hazel Daly, Virginia Valli, and Ullrich Haupt. The Variety reviewer mentions the earlier version with a seeming nostalgia. The film was re-made even a third time for sound in 1929 with the bland Glenn Tryon and Myrna Kennedy in the leads. E. J. Ratcliffe, who appeared in the Denny version, also appears in the sound version.
If you look closely during the large party scene in the Denny version, you'll notice early silent star Minta Durfee, Janet Gaynor, and Grady Sutton as extras. This one is not to be missed.
