JohnHowardReid The Mystery of the Leaping Fish (1916) presents Douglas Fairbanks in a character role as a dope-drilled detective. Despite this two-reeler's reputation as a cult classic, I found its humor laborious rather than witty, its direction ponderous and its players wasted. Fortunately, the main feature on this Grapevine disc is the superbly entertaining "When the Clouds Roll By" (1919) directed with pace and style by former ace cameraman, Victor Fleming (this seems to be his first credited film as a director - at least in studio publicity), and very charismatically acted by zesty Fairbanks, heroine Kathleen Clifford, shifty Frank Campeau and villainous Herbert Grimwood. The story is highly original. Despite its clever interweaving of comedy, drama and weird special effects, it has never been re-made (or even hinted at). In fact, this movie is a real treat and it's available with "The Mystery of the Leaping Fish" on an 8/10 Grapevine DVD!

binapiraeus When I finally got a chance to see this movie, I was just so STUNNED - Doug Fairbanks, our always realistic, down-to-earth (the title of another, QUITE different one of his early movies...) hero of westerns, comedies and swashbucklers, in a completely crazy 'scientific fantasy' that resembles the motion picture experiments of the great Georges Melies in the late 1890s and early 1900s...?! And yet, there he is, an unsuspecting 'guinea pig' for a mad and evil scientist, who provokes all kind of nightmares and mishaps for him, trying to drive him to commit suicide!! And WHAT special effects the expert crew employed for this really UNIQUE movie - making him 'walk' on the wall and the ceiling trying to escape his nightmares (a trick that's mostly remembered today for being performed by Fred Astaire in "Royal Wedding"; in 1951, more than 30 years later!); and of course, giving him the chance to employ ALL his huge acrobatic talent like he did in very few other films... and THAT'S certainly saying something!! Of course, the whole 'nightmare' turns into a pleasant, most enjoyable comedy in due course of time - but then, Doug Fairbanks' movies (almost) ALWAYS have got a happy ending! So this almost forgotten JEWEL of silent cinema, concerning performances as well as story and effects, shouldn't be missed by ANYONE who's even the slightest bit interested in early cinema - and even those who aren't yet are SURE to TURN fans of early cinema as soon as they'll get a glimpse of this masterpiece!

Cineanalyst "When the Clouds Roll by" is a rather offbeat picture from Douglas Fairbanks, and it's one of his best I think. It's from before "The Mark of Zorro" (1920), which redirected his career to more prestigious costume/historical swashbucklers. These earlier films were generally modern comedies where Fairbanks was discontented with a normal life and yearned for some adventure, or he made an adventure out of his relationship to the leading lady. This one seems to be more of the latter, as the leading lady inspires the usually exuberant and smiling Doug to come forth, but for most of the film, he's cripplingly worried and superstitious. Fairbanks gave a similarly morose performance in "Reaching for the Moon" (1917), where he also found himself the victim of an "adventure".The scenario this time is something of a spoof of psychology. Fairbanks is the victim of a mad doctor's experiment to cause him pain and death though the power of suggestion, although Fairbanks is unaware of this. There is an amusingly bizarre scene early on inside Doug's stomach, where the onion, lobster, welsh rabbit and mince pie he is persuaded to eat make him sick—we see performers costumed as the food do somersaults in his stomach and then chase him in a nightmare. The nightmare sequence is wonderful: featuring fast and slow motion photography; superimpositions; a grotesque monster distorted probably by special camera lens or mirrors; a trick-scene, special effects marvel where Doug walks up walls and on the ceiling of a room (done with a rotating set and camera with substitution-splices and multiple-exposures); and otherwise surreal imagery. The over-cranking of the camera to effect slow-motion for Doug running in his nightmare is doubly interesting because it's the opposite way his athleticism was usually shown; that is, the camera was usually under-cranked to make his stunts appear effortless. Later in this film, there is an example of this under-cranking when Doug climbs up a fire escape to avoid following a black cat's path through the door.Another strange scene is when Fairbanks's mind is verging on insanity, which appears as a "brain storm" attack of Worry, Jealousy and, consequently, Despair on the throne of Reason, with Sense of Humor by her side. As with the food attack on his body, actors (including Fairbanks) represent the battling thoughts in his mind.The climax features some more special effects—although, rather than the mostly optical effects in the nightmare, the dam break sequence features some well executed mechanical effects, including the use of a miniature town model. There's also some underwater photography of Doug swimming. Throughout, "When the Clouds Roll by" features impressive technical effects and wonderfully bizarre incidents—a scenario with surprises around every corner. This was an interesting and entertaining vehicle for Fairbanks—one of his best and most unique.

David Atfield What a miracle this film is! Designed as a "cheer 'em up film" following the dark days of World War 1, this is a wildly energetic and fanciful comedy, that is truly life-affirming.Doug is his usual cheerful self, performing some amazing stunts, and lighting up the screen with his ebullient personality. Under the sure direction of Victor Fleming - making his debut as a director - the film never misses a beat, and is full of surprises.There are a couple of moments of pure fantasy, including an insane dream sequence, and scenes set in Doug's brain and in his stomach! And the whole thing comes to a wild special effects climax when a dam bursts!This gem is truly a neglected classic and deserves to be restored and released on DVD, so that we may all enjoy the cyclone of energy that was Douglas Fairbanks. 10 out of 10.