The Freshman (1925)

Too much of everything

Just perfect...

Highly Overrated But Still Good

The film's masterful storytelling did its job. The message was clear. No need to overdo.

Always a big fan of silent slapstick, and having seen Harold Lloyd's excellent 1923 iconic comedy classic 'Safety Last!' many times over the years, I did have somewhat high hopes going into this, especially since I'd heard before that it's among his best films and was released on the prestigious Criterion Collection a few years back, which is more often than not a good sign. Well, apparently my high hopes could've been much higher and still would have been surpassed! This is one of the most fun and genuinely positive movies I have seen in a while! Hardly do I ever call a movie "inspiring", but this movie is unexpectedly just that. It is also extremely funny throughout, and is extremely well structured, as each slapstick set piece gets increasingly higher scale as the film goes on, culminating in an extremely memorable football-themed finale that actually made me audibly gasp at one point. Seriously, this movie is hugely affecting. It is also super sweet and the romantic elements are on par w/a film like 'The Gold Rush' or 'City Lights', most silent slapstick comedies have some bits of romance attached, but few execute said romance in a way nearly as memorably and just generally skillfully as this film does. It's a legitimately lovely and heartwarming movie, and none of that overshadows the constant and consistent flow of humor. It's a genuine audience pleaser, and is admittedly somewhat predictable but is so damn likable, or should I say LOVABLE, that I see no problem in its predictability. Few films have made me so elated honestly.

I tried really hard to get into this film, yet perhaps my greatest impediment was that I tried a bit too hard.Having thoroughly enjoyed "Safety Last!" (1923), I was struggling to move past mere admiration for "The Freshman" (1925). I did admire the technical astuteness of it, the timing of the gags, and Lloyd's impeccable expertise. Yet that's admiration, whereas I'm looking forward to be swept off my feet and to fall in love. (This reaction is not too dissimilar to my feelings about Wes Anderson's "Moonrise Kingdom" [2012]; there's another movie of technical and comic brilliance that I'm more inclined to admire but not love like I did "The Grand Budapest Hotel" [2014], in fact every single minute of it.)But the final climax, the football game, is perfect and without any doubt the gem of the film. That's where everything seems to transcend that which has come before, and every single gag take a completely new meaning on a whole different kind of level of existence. I was enthralled, laughed out loud, and was holding my breath. What else can one wish for when seeing a film? That final sequence alone makes "The Freshman" a worthwhile experience for me, and perhaps one day I'll be able to appreciate it more as a whole than I do now. But, for the time being, I'll cherish that last run.

Harold Lloyd was a master of action driven silent comedies,but he is also one of the most underrated actors in cinema history,and probably should have at least been considered for an Oscar or two,but as we all know,comedy is the most ignored and neglected genre of film in cinema history when it comes to awards.The thing that stands out about The Freshman is that the beginning of the film relies a little less on Lloyd's talent for sight gags and focuses more on the development of his character.He does a great job of getting us to like his character and care about what happens to him.When you see him get emotional over learning that he has,in fact,been made a fool of by those who made him feel as though he were the most popular man on campus,you want to get emotional with him.The sight gags are still there,though to a lesser degree,and they are as hysterical as ever.

To say that Harold Lamb (Lloyd) is excited about going to college is an understatement. He knows all the cheers, has read all the books and has even perfected a meet and greet dance that he saw in the movie "The College Hero" again and again and again!!! His parents aren't so sure - "if he tries that dance at college they'll either break his heart or his neck"!! During the movie his "freshie" friends try to do both. Beautiful Jobyna Ralston plays the girl - "the kind of girl your mother must have been" (so the title says). She helps out at her mother's boarding house where Harold is forced to live after treating the entire college to ice cream!!! She also works behind the cigarette counter at the college and sees first hand how Harold is treated by his "friends". They meet on the train over a crossword puzzle and it is love at first sight for the cute pair. When he steps off the train and goes into his "routine" he is secretly thought of as a college boob but Harold thinks he is on the first rung of the ladder to popularity.Even though there is no chase sequence there are plenty of laughs as "Speedy" (his nickname) fronts up to the college dance in a suit that is only half made and as the night progresses proceeds to lose pockets, sleeves etc until he is left only in his underwear!! Another stock part of college movies -Football - has a hilarious sequence as "Speedy" tries out for the team, doesn't make it but impresses the coach and top player with his spirit and determination. They allow him to believe he is on the team while in reality he is only the water boy!! In a really thrilling game Harold makes a few silly mistakes but gives his character grit and enthusiasm which is what made him popular with audiences of the 20s. His character didn't have the wistfulness of Chaplin's "the little tramp" or the "against all odds" personality of Keaton - he was a typical American go-getter and audiences loved him and laughed along with him and was there ever a more adorable girl to win his heart than Jobyna Ralston.The last scene has Harold, now truly popular, looking out of a window as the new "freshies" arrive by train and all are doing that crazy dance - Harold has created a craze!!!Highly, Highly Recommended.