Hot Water (1924)

Lloyd Silent - Hot Water review by Steve

A change of pace for Harold Lloyd, who plays a married, middle class suburbanite rather than his usual optimistic, enterprising go-getter. There is a series of three linked stories centred on his marriage to Jobyna Ralston and his relationship with her awful relatives.

It’s rated one of his lesser silent comedies. But there’s a hilarious sketch with Harold sent on an errand from ‘wifey’ to collect ‘a few things’ from the market- actually a long, long list of groceries. So many that he struggles to carry them all at once and always has just one too many to grasp onto.

At that least opportune moment he wins a live turkey in a raffle and must also take it home on a trolley bus. Following this standout sequence is a (WC) Fieldsian comedy of the horror of family. Harold takes them on a disastrous trip in his new car, and then (in a pastiche of German expressionism) imagines he has killed his mother-in-law.

Wishful thinking! It’s a funny gag driven sitcom which was a big success, though doesn't satisfy critics today as there is no single overarching narrative. However, it is still entertaining, and fun to see a rare silent comedy set among the aspirational middle classes.