Just Pals (1920)

The pals hanging out

Directed by "Jack" Ford
Starring Buck Jones, Helen Ferguson, George Stone
Produced by Fox Film Corporation

Bim is the town bum.  No one associates with him.  Parents advise their kids to be careful or they may grow up to be Bim.  He sleeps in a hay loft all day and complains that watching people work makes him tired.  His only interest is in the pretty school teacher Mary Bruce, but she only has eyes for the local banker Harvey Cahill.

One day, a runaway boy named Bill gets caught riding the rails through town and Bim intervenes to protect the boy.  Bim takes Bill under his wing, much to the dismay of the town.  Mary advises Bim that his ward should be going to school so off Bill goes to be educated.  However, Bill is bullied by the other boys because of Bim's social status. 

Bim decides to try to get a job, but he needs a uniform.  Bill attempts to steal one from a rail car, but the train takes off with Bill on board, forcing the boy to jump and injure himself.  The town doctor sees there is a reward for the missing boy and conspire to take Bill from Bim.

All of this, plus a conspiracy by Cahill to embezzle funds from the memorial fund run by Mary and a bank robbery that Bim finds himself smack in the middle of?  Can Bim go straight?  Or will he end up hanging from a tree limb, wrongfully accused?  And who is Bill's dad?

John Ford = horses

Just Pals is a really enjoyable series of adventures in the life of a loveable loser.  The plot is cliche today (man on the wrong path has his life changed by the unexpected introduction of a child).  However, this is really well done.  John Ford is the director here and seems incapable of shooting a bad frame.  I've included a couple of extra pictures with this one simply because of how beautiful this one was in its simplicity.

There are a lot of genres here: drama, comedy, mystery, western.  None of the transitions feel jarring.  The plot move at a breakneck pace and there is a lot of forward momentum and character moments of the course of a 50 minute running time.

The acting is also great.  Buck Jones is fantastic as the lead.  He is funny, sympathetic and has that charm that no matter what he is doing at any moment, he's always likable. George Stone plays Bill and is a natural actor.  Bill's every action in the film feels completely organic to the plot.  The other characters are pretty generic, though I did find the local law enforcement officer to be hysterical throughout.

A simple moment, perfectly framed

By the end, Bim is the only one in town who is actually without blemish.  Mary gives Cahill the money from the fund, despite her better judgment.  The townspeople all end up at a prayer meeting where no one gives to the collection plate.  Bim is a bum, but he's the only person with a heart of gold.

I really liked this film.  It's a simple tale, simply told, but I think that is its virtue.  Great acting and great directing go a long way.

**** out of *****

Watched on DVD from Netflix