The Book Worm (1920) is weirdly cozy but kind of a mess

If you have an afternoon to kill and don't mind squinting at a grainy screen, The Book Worm is a decent way to spend it. It is definitely for the people who like those old, scratchy silents that feel like they were found in a basement.

If you need things to blow up or move at a million miles an hour, you are going to hate this. It moves like molasses in January.

Harry Conley plays the lead with this very specific kind of nervous energy. He has these eyes that sort of bulge when he gets stressed out by other people entering his personal space.

The whole thing is based on a Willard Mack story, so it feels very much like a play that got stuck inside a camera. Everyone enters the room from the same side and stands in a line.

I noticed a scene where a character is holding a book upside down for like, three full seconds. It is the kind of mistake that makes me love these old movies more because it feels real.

Ethel DeVoe shows up and she’s fine, I guess. She does a lot of that heavy breathing acting that was popular back then to show she is worried.

There is a moment where they show a close-up of a letter, and it lingers for so long I actually had time to read it three times. The handwriting is honestly better than mine.

It reminded me a bit of The Lion and the Mouse in how it handles these big, clunky moral choices. The Book Worm isn't as polished, though.

The lighting in the library scenes is actually kind of moody. You can see the dust motes floating in the air, or maybe that is just the film decaying. Either way, it looks cool.

Duncan Harris has a very stiff way of walking. He looks like he is wearing a suit that is two sizes too small and he's terrified of popping a button. 🧥

I found myself thinking about The Lost Paradise while the plot was meandering. Both movies seem really obsessed with how your social class determines if you’re a good person or not.

There is a sub-plot about a theft that feels like it belongs in a completely different movie. It just sort of crashes into the story and then leaves without saying goodbye.

The ending is... well, it just kind of happens. One minute they are talking, the next the screen says 'The End' and you're left wondering if a scene got lost in the mail.

It is not nearly as weird as The Evil Eye from the same year, but it has its own quiet charm. It feels like a movie made by people who really liked their local library.

Don't expect a life-changing experience. Just expect a dusty little story about a guy who probably smells like old paper.

I liked it, but I also like staring at walls sometimes. Take that for what it's worth. 📚