Allan Garcia Movies

In this entry in the long-running western series, Hoppy and his pals must journey to Mexico after receiving a summons. Upon arrival, they realize that it was fake and that a good friend has been mysteriously murdered. They solve the puzzle with the assistance of the killer's feisty sister and a band of helpful caballeros. ~ Sandra Brennan, Rovi

The Gay Desperado is a 1936 musical lampooning the then-popular gangster pictures. Leo Carrillo plays a genial Mexican bandit, Pablo Braganza, who gets nowhere until he and his amigos begin studying gangster techniques -- courtesy of Hollywood movies. Selecting kidnapping as his crime of choice, Pablo snatches opera star Chivo (Nino Martini) simply because he likes his singing. But the bold bandito gets in over his head when he abducts a troublesome heiress, Jane (Ida Lupino), and her nerdy fiancé, Bill (James Blakely). Chivo hopes to extract a huge ransom for Jane's return, but the girl is more trouble than she's worth. All ends happily when Pablo engineers a romance between Jane and Chivo. ~ Hal Erickson, Rovi

Yankee Buck Jones turns into a south-of-the-border Robin Hood in this fine, if flawed, Western from Columbia Pictures. Arriving with a shipment of food for the starving peons of La Loma, CA, Santa Fe Stewart (Jones) finds himself falsely accused of murdering local businessman Don Marco Ramirez (Emile Chautard) and stealing his valuable cargo. The Yankee Bandit, however, manages to escape from jail and embarks on a quest to defeat local mayor Don Alberto (George Humbert) and his brother Commandante Emilio (Luis Alberni), who have been starving the populace in order to take over their valuable land. With the assistance of Juan (Charles Stevens), whose young son was killed by the Commandante, the hero does his best to feed the hungry and soon discovers a surprising ally in a rich stranger. The latter is revealed to be the governor of California, traveling to La Loma to investigate the uprising. When the dust settles, the governor appoints Juan the new mayor of La Loma and Santa Fe its new commandant. To make sure the Yankee will remain in town, the governor gives the blessing for a union with lovely Dolores Ramirez (Helen Mack). ~ Hans J. Wollstein, Rovi

In his first of six inexpensive Westerns for producer Trem Carr, bantam-weight cowboy ace Tom Steele played Tom Keene, a Yankee defying Mexican Captain Rodriguez (Allan Garcia) by crossing over the border into Mexico to visit his friend, Lanky (Eddie Dunn). At the Thornton ranch, old man Thornton is murdered for his map to a mine by evil Jack Stone (Edwin Brady). At first, Keene mistakenly believes that Thornton's daughter, Beth (Janis Elliott), has been kidnapped by Grainger (Gordon De Main), but he proves to be a family friend. After settling this little matter, the two of them concoct a plan to retrieve the map. The bumbling Captain Rodriguez briefly gets in the way of things but the villains are finally apprehended and the map returned to a grateful Beth. South of Santa Fe was released by Poverty Row company Sono Art-World Wide. Following the demise of that company in 1933, producer Carr and Steele brought their act to Monogram. ~ Hans J. Wollstein, Rovi

Charles Chaplin was deep into production of his silent City Lights when Hollywood was overwhelmed by the talkie revolution. After months of anguished contemplation, Chaplin decided to finish the film as it began--in silence, save for a musical score and an occasional sound effect. Once again cast as the Little Tramp, Chaplin makes the acquaintance of a blind flower girl (Virginia Cherrill), who through a series of coincidences has gotten the impression that the shabby tramp is a millionaire. A second storyline begins when the tramp rescues a genuine millionaire (Harry Myers) from committing suicide. When drunk, the millionaire expansively treats the tramp as a friend and equal; when sober, he doesn't even recognize him. The two plots come together when the tramp attempts to raise enough money for the blind girl to have an eye operation. Highlights include an extended boxing sequence pitting scrawny Chaplin against muscle-bound Hank Mann, and the poignant final scene in which the now-sighted flower girl sees her impoverished benefactor for the first time. Chaplin's decision to release the silent City Lights three years into the talkie era was partially vindicated when more than one critic singled out this "comedy in pantomime" as the best picture of 1931. ~ Hal Erickson, Rovi

The Circus is generally considered to be a lesser Charlie Chaplin effort, coming as it does between two unquestioned masterpieces, The Gold Rush (1925) and City Lights (1931). To be sure, the film is not one of Chaplin's best, but it has a lot going for it. Director Chaplin casts star Chaplin in his traditional "Little Tramp" role, who when first we see him is on the lam from the law. He takes refuge under the tent of a failing circus. Unintentionally, Charlie disrupts the show's big clown act, and the crowd roars. The ringmaster decides to hire Charlie as a clown, building the whole circus around him. Charlie has many an adventure and close shave while performing under the Big Top, the best of which involves a tightrope, a broken support wire, and a playful monkey. The standard Chaplin pathos rears its head when Charlie falls in love with pretty tightrope walker Merna Kennedy. When sweet Merna chooses handsome Harry Crocker, Charlie is left alone once more--but, with a characteristic shrug, he shuffles into the horizon and onto his next adventure. The Circus has several gaping logic holes which tend to pull the film down (we're supposed to believe, for example, that Charlie is unaware that he's a sensation as a clown, even after several weeks of performing before appreciative audiences), but the film contains several excellent setpieces, including a Hall of Mirrors sequence which anticipates Orson Welles' more serious Lady From Shanghai climax by twenty years. The Circus won Chaplin a special Oscar in 1928, then lay unseen for forty-two years; it was reissued in 1970, with a new musical score by Chaplin himself (who can be heard singing the theme song in the opening scenes). ~ Hal Erickson, Rovi

Charlie Chaplin's last two reeler recalls earlier comedies such as the Essanay Work, with Chaplin casting himself as a worker rather than a Tramp, but the film shows great advances in film technique. Chaplin is a construction worker, who arrives late for work, bringing a flower as peace offering for his boss, Mack Swain. As a ditch digger, Chaplin leaves something to be desired, but as a brick catcher, he's amazing, due to a very clever reverse action scene.

Lunchtime brings Swain's daughter, Edna Purviance with his lunch and Chaplin seems smitten. He has no lunch, but is lucky enough to partake of some of his co-workers' food due to a very active work elevator, which they all seem to use as a sideboard.

It's pay day and Chaplin argues about his wages, despite being overpaid. His battleaxe wife Phyllis Allen (in their first re-teaming since the Keystone days) shows up at the end of the workday to collect his wages, some of which he's able to retain despite her efforts.

That night, Chaplin and his co-workers go drinking and are quite looped at the end of the evening - bellicose but songful. In a rare night time photography scene, Chaplin tries to catch the last streetcar home but is pushed out one end when huge Henry Bergman pushes his way on at the other. In his drunkenness Chaplin boards a hot dog cart, thinking it's another streetcar, holding onto a suspended salami as a hand strap.

Arriving home at daybreak, Chaplin has just started undressing for bed when the alarm clock rings, waking the wife. Pretending to leave for work, he tries to settle down to sleep in the bathtub, but is caught and sent out to work by his nagging mate.

Payday began life as Come Seven, a story about two rich plumbers. Production was interrupted by Chaplin's trip to Europe after only eight scenes were photographed. ~ Phil Posner, Rovi

Charlie Chaplin's eighth film under his million dollar contract with First National is a return to the two reel form, and to the lightness of the Mutual style. Chaplin plays dual role, that of a vacationing Tramp, and a high society inebriate husband.

Arriving in Miami on the same train are Edna Purviance, a neglected and lonely wife, who descends from the coach, and Chaplin, who emerges from the baggage compartment under a train car, complete with baggage and golf clubs. Chaplin hitches a ride on the back of Purviance's limousine. Purviance's forgetful,
alcoholic husband is a natty double for Chaplin. A telegram tells us he was supposed to meet Purviance at the train. Already late, he leaves the hotel room without his pants. Escaping notice of the other guests in the lobby causes him to delay his departure, to the point where newly arrived Purviance finds him hiding in bed.

That afternoon he receives a note telling him that his wife has moved to other lodgings until he stops drinking. He gazes longingly at Purviance's picture and, his back turned to the camera, appears to be sobbing. As he turns, however, we see the cocktail shaker he is expertly manipulating.

Purviance, meanwhile, is out for a horseback ride, and Chaplin has found the nearby golf links. His hilarious golf game, highlighted by his run-ins with Mack Swain and John Rand pauses when he sees Purviance pass by on horseback. After looking longingly at her, he fantasizes rescuing her from her runaway horse (in another of Chaplin's dream sequences), imagining their lives all the way through marriage and children. But the dream ends and Chaplin returns to his golf game, in which his drive breaks Swain's whisky bottle causing him to burst into tears, and in which he again runs afoul of Rand.

The inebriate husband has received a note from his wife, saying that she will forgive him if he attends her costume ball. Dressed in a suit of armor, his visor jams closed, preventing him from taking a drink, and he spends great effort trying to open it.

Meanwhile Chaplin has got himself in trouble with the law - while sitting on a park bench his neighbor has been pickpocketed and Chaplin is the suspect. Pursued by a cop, he sneaks his way through an arriving limo and into Purviance's costume ball. Purviance, naturally mistaking him for her husband, makes moves toward reconciliation, which Chaplin welcomes as affection. When greeted by Swain, who turns out to be Purviance's father, Chaplin expects trouble from their golfing encounter, but is amazed that Swain thinks he's Purviance's husband. Chaplin denies that thy are married, which gets him knocked down several times. Caught together by the still visored husband, Chaplin is attacked but the unknown assailant is subdued by the other guests. Eventually he frees himself and identifies himself to Swain, who tries to remove the helmet. Eventually Chaplin uses a can opener to peel back the visor (revealing an unknown actor double), and the confusion is explained. Told unceremoniously to leave, Chaplin departs, but Purviance decides they've treated him shabbily and sends Swain after him to apologize. Chaplin accepts his hand, but points to Swain's shoelace. When Swain bends over to tie it,
Chaplin delivers a swift kick to the derriere, before sprinting off into the distance.

The golf sequences in The Idle Class were inspired by an earlier, unfinished Mutual called The Golf Links, featuring Eric Campbell and Albert Austin, portions of which were included in Chaplin's 1918, How to Make Movies. A still, showing Campbell and Chaplin teeing off on the same ball made its way into Chaplin's autobiography, labeled as being from The Idle Class (made four years after Campbell's death) and was a source of confusion to Chaplin aficiandos, until How to Make Movies was assembled by Kevin Brownlow and David Gill. Chaplin's lovely score for The Idle Class was composed for its reissue in 1971. ~ Phil Posner, Rovi