A Sailor-Made Man is Certainly Tailor-Made for Me

Continuing my exploration into the slapstick greats of the 1920s, Fred Newmeyer’s 1921 Harold Lloyd-starrer, A Sailor-Made Man, only continues to prove how difficult it must have been to compete with one another. While a completely simple story (a man attempts to impress a girl by joining the Navy; chaos inevitably ensues), the undeniable charisma, confidence, and timing of Harold Lloyd (playing, what I assume, is his trademark “Speedy” character) is an absolute riot and makes for an incredibly immersive and enjoyable film. It’s certainly clear why he was able to establish himself as one of the greats of the genre – where Linder established the foundation, Keaton had his stunts and Chaplin had his heart; Lloyd certainly had the confidence seriously pulsating through each frame.

Looking through his entire catalogue, it seems that Lloyd often worked with Newmeyer so perhaps there’s a reason for that. While Lloyd served to be the confidence and humor the story needed, Newmeyer’s direction certainly helped make an already 46-minute film go by like a breeze. Each scenario and frame is filled with so much action and humor that it’s difficult to ever be bogged down or bored by the film, even for those who perhaps find it nearly impossible to watch a film from before their time or without talking (like most of the people I know). It’s quite easy to see why, this being Lloyd’s first transition into features, he would become a huge success for the rest of the decade.

Lloyd is not the only one who brings to life the humor of the film, however. His co-stars, the beautiful Mildred Davis, and the brawny Noah Young (pictured below) certainly give the film a spark of life as well and perfectly bounce off of Lloyd’s brand of humor. Young, in particular, surprised me quite a bit as he played the “Lenny” type of brawns over brains to a tee, but with hilarity that I rarely see in roles like that. Their chemistry with one another makes me hope they had made more work together, but for what it is, their work here is still a gem in an already golden era of slapstick.

As this seems to be a “lower-tier” Harold Lloyd – judging from IMDB, anyway, and its general lack of discussion – it certainly makes me excited to see the type of work both Lloyd and Newmeyer make together when they’re at their supposed best. The two of them certainly give Chaplin and Keaton a run for their money laughs-wise, but I wonder if Lloyd is able to give as much depth as those two. For what it’s worth, though, for just one film he’s already quite memorable and perhaps that’s good enough for being nearly a century old. Can’t wait to see more of this team offers.


8/10