Riley the Cop

From the archives of 20th Century Fox, cable station AMC found this silent gem to show during its salute to John Ford and film preservation in general. There is not much to the story in this comedy, but that doesn't matter. The cop on the beat, Aloyishus Riley, uses his twenty years experience to stay out of trouble while practicing an early version of community policing. Then he is sent to Germany (or the Fox lot version of Germany) to pick up a neighborhood youth accused of embezzling money from the bakery the youth works at. In Europe, everyone looks at Riley's big feet and immediately pegs him as a cop. Returning the fugitive back to the US, it is the youth, not Riley who wants to get back, so the lad can see his girlfriend on the boat back to the States. "Riley the Cop" is a fine example of film making. John Ford is at his mellow best here as a director. After seeing this silent movie, you have to wonder what other gems are hidden in the Fox film vaults.