Some Pumpkins is a weird, clunky relic of a comedy short

Should you watch this today? Honestly, only if you have about five minutes to kill and a high tolerance for extremely old-fashioned physical humor. If you like seeing how people used to try and be funny before everyone got cynical, you might find it charming. If you want a real story or anything resembling modern pacing, you’re going to absolutely hate it. 🤡

I found this tucked away and it’s one of those things that makes you wonder what people were thinking back then. The movie is called Some Pumpkins, and it’s basically just a vaudeville act caught on film.

It starts at a barn dance in what the movie calls a "hick town." We see this couple walk out to the entrance. It’s Murray Roth and this unnamed lady.

The first thing you notice is the height difference. It’s staggering.

Murray is this incredibly tall, lanky guy in clothes that look about three sizes too small for him. He looks like a beanpole that’s about to snap. The woman is short and, well, the description says "dumpy," which feels a bit mean but she’s definitely built like a square.

They start doing this "patter," which is just old-timey talk. You can’t really hear it because it’s silent, but you can see their mouths moving and their exaggerated gestures.

Here is the weirdest part: the movie is supposedly set in the present (which was the 1920s). But they are dressed like it's 1890. She’s in a massive hoop skirt and a bonnet.

Why? I have no idea. Maybe the "hick town" was supposed to be thirty years behind the times? 👗

It feels a bit like the rural vibes you get in Emmy of Stork's Nest, but without any of the actual drama. It's just two people looking out of place.

The Big Dance Moment

Murray decides to show her "The Black Bottom." This was a huge dance craze back then.

Seeing a guy who looks like a folding chair trying to do jazz steps is... something. He’s all elbows and knees.

They try to dance together, and because of the height gap, it looks like she’s trying to hug a tree. It’s very awkward.

Then comes the big finale of the joke. She trips over her own feet—or maybe his feet, they're everywhere—and falls flat.

Her hoop skirt goes flying up. You see these funny patterned knickers.

That’s the joke. That’s the whole movie. 🩲

It reminds me a little of the physical stuff in Land o' Lizards, but much more low-brow. It’s the kind of thing that would have killed in a theater in 1920, but now it just feels like watching a strange dream.

I noticed the camera doesn't move once. It just sits there like a bored spectator at the fair.

The background of the barn looks like it’s made of cardboard. You can almost see the edges of the set.

I think I enjoyed the costume choice more than the actual comedy. That hoop skirt is so wide she can barely get through the door.

It’s a bit like Billy Jim in that it tries to capture that rough-and-tumble rural energy, but it’s much shorter.

Is it a masterpiece? No way. Is it a fascinating look at what passed for a viral video 100 years ago? Definitely.

There is something oddly sweet about how hard they are trying to be funny. Even if the "funny" part is just a lady falling over and showing her drawers.

I’ve seen better acting in Drusilla with a Million, but Murray Roth has a certain energy. He’s got those long limbs that just won't stay still.

If you're into the history of dance, seeing the Black Bottom performed this way is actually kind of cool. Most people only know the Charleston, so this is a nice change of pace.

Don't expect much. It’s just a snippet of time.

I’m still confused about the 1890s clothes though. It’s like the director just grabbed whatever was in the costume trunk and said "yeah, that'll do."

It has that same sort of "just throw it together" feel you find in Children of Destiny.

Anyway, if you see it on a list of silent shorts, give it a look for the visual weirdness alone. Just don't expect to laugh out loud.

It's more of a "huh, so that happened" kind of experience. 🎃