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4.5/10
Senior Film Conservator
A definitive 4.5/10 rating for a film that redefined the boundaries of cult cinema. A Soldier's Plaything remains a cornerstone of transgressive art.
You should probably only watch this if you have a deep, slightly concerning obsession with 1930s early sound films. Or maybe if you're stuck in a hotel room with only one channel and the remote is broken.
It is definitely for people who enjoy seeing how movies used to struggle with the transition to sound. If you want something actually moving or coherent, you will probably hate this.
So, our main guy Georgie thinks he killed a man named Hank in a bar fight. The fight itself is staged so awkwardly that you wonder if the actors were afraid of wrinkling their costumes.
Georgie panics and decides the best place to hide from the law is the front lines of the Great War. It’s a bit like trying to hide from a rainstorm by jumping into the middle of the ocean.
His pal Tim, played by Harry Langdon, goes with him. Langdon is very strange in this movie, even for him.
If you've seen him in silent stuff, you know his whole 'man-child' vibe. Here, he has a voice, and it makes the whole thing even more surreal and occasionally annoying.
The pacing in the first act is just... off. One minute they are in a brawl, the next they are in uniform, and the transitions feel like the film was edited with a pair of garden shears.
The war scenes aren't really about the war. They feel like a backdrop for some very dated military humor that doesn't always land.
There is a lot of shouting. I think directors in 1930 thought sound meant everyone had to yell their lines at the top of their lungs just so the microphone could catch it.
It lacks the grace of something like Smilin' Through, which handled its heavy moments with a lot more tact. This movie just kind of clumps along from one scene to the next.
Once the Armistice happens, the movie shifts gears entirely. We end up in Germany with the army of occupation, and the tone changes into a weird romantic comedy.
Georgie meets Gretchen, played by Lotti Loder. Her accent is so thick you could probably use it to pave a road.
They have these long scenes together where the chemistry is just... absent. It’s like watching two people read a grocery list to each other while trying to look 'in love.'
Specific things I noticed while watching:
The middle of the movie drags so much I actually found myself looking at the wallpaper in the background of the sets. The sets are actually pretty decent, though they look very 'stagey' and stiff.
It reminds me a bit of the domestic stuff in Three Women, but without the interesting character dynamics. It’s much more shallow.
Georgie tells Gretchen he can't marry her until he 'rights his past mistake.' He’s very dramatic about it.
He spends a lot of time staring off into the distance, looking troubled. Ben Lyon is a handsome guy, but his 'guilt face' looks more like he’s just got a mild stomach ache.
There is a scene where they are sitting by a river, and the water sounds are so loud they almost drown out the dialogue. It’s a classic early-talkie mistake where they didn't know how to balance the ambient noise.
"I cannot marry you, Gretchen, for I have a dark secret!" (I'm paraphrasing, but that's basically the vibe for twenty minutes.)
The resolution to the 'murder' plot is so predictable you can see it coming from the first ten minutes. It’s not a spoiler to say that movies like this usually don't end with the hero going to the electric chair.
The way the truth comes out is handled so quickly it feels like they ran out of film and had to wrap it up in a weekend. It makes the whole 'fleeing to war' thing seem even more like an overreaction.
I wish the movie had more of the energy found in At First Sight. Instead, it feels a bit weighed down by its own attempt to be a 'big' talkie.
Also, Andy Devine shows up in a small role. He’s always a delight, even if he doesn't have much to do here except be his usual gravelly-voiced self.
The ending is very abrupt. One minute there’s a conflict, and the next, everyone is smiling and the credits are rolling.
It left me feeling a bit empty, honestly. Like I’d eaten a meal that was mostly just air and old popcorn.
Is it a bad movie? Not exactly. It’s just very mediocre and shows its age in every single frame.
The cast is huge, but most of them are just standing around in the background. You see names like Noah Beery in the credits and expect more, but he’s barely a factor.
If you're into the history of Warner Bros. or the specific career of Ben Lyon, give it a go. Otherwise, you might be better off watching a screen saver for an hour.
I did like the part where Harry Langdon tries to deal with a goat. That was probably the only time I actually laughed out loud.
The rest of the time, I was just waiting for Georgie to stop moping. A Soldier's Plaything is a fitting title because the plot feels like it’s being toyed with by a writer who kept changing their mind.
Anyway, it’s a short watch, so at least it doesn't overstay its welcome too much. Just don't expect it to change your life or anything.
It’s a 1930s B-movie through and through. It has that slightly fuzzy, warm quality of old film, but the story is as thin as a piece of tracing paper.
IMDb 5.9
1916
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