There's no point in my synopsizing the plot of Harold Lloyd's last movie for Hal Roach. All of his silent features are lots of fun, so Why Worry over those details? It's my favorite of all his features, not because it's clearly better or others are worse, but probably because Harold is so American in this one. Really, it's how we see ourselves when we're honest: rich and self-obsessed and blowing every little problem out of size and ignoring the real issues, but basically kind to giants with toothaches, and when something threatens our real self-interest -- say, by having Jim Mason put his dirty hands on Jobyna Ralston -- then truly terrible in our wrath. Actually, I don't see any world power behaving any different, and the only reason the little guys resent it is because they can't do it themselves.
But enough of politics, modern and ancient and all times in between. I also think that this movie marks a high water for Lloyd. His next movie would be released by Paramount, but it was all his own money and profit, and he would retreat a bit, with GIRL SHY, relying on the big chase sequence, and HOT WATER seeming more like three shorts stitched together.
In some ways, like the other greatest stars of the era (Pickford, Chaplin, Fairbanks) Lloyd was the victim of his own success. He was giving the audience what they wanted because he was a star. A star was not just the player; he was the sort of character he always played in the sort of movie he starred in, and so long as he remained a star, he was stuck doing that, until his public grew tired. That wouldn't happen until the 1930s rolled around, so Lloyd didn't worry.
