Who's Who in the Zoo Review: Billy Bevan vs. A Very Sleepy Lion

If you have 15 minutes to spare and love dusty, silent-era chaos, Who's Who in the Zoo is absolutely worth a quick look. Slapstick fans and people who miss old-school physical comedy will find it pretty charming, but anyone who gets stressed out by 1920s animal safety standards should probably steer clear. 🦛

This is basically a showcase for Billy Bevan and his legendary, oversized mustache. He plays a dad trying to show off his animal "expertise" to his family, and naturally, the universe punishes him for it.

That Elephant Scene, Though

The whole thing starts innocent enough with some zebras, but things go downhill fast when they reach the elephant. Billy gets absolutely blasted with water, and you can tell he actually took a heavy soaking for this gag.

It is way funnier than it has any right to be. His wet, droopy mustache just tells the whole story of defeat. It reminds me a bit of the chaotic energy in Radio Riot, where everything just exists to go wrong.

Cinematic perspective: Exploring the visual vocabulary of Who's Who in the Zoo (1931) through its definitive frames.

The Monkey Cage and The Lion "Fight"

Then we get to the younger kid, played by the tiny legend Billy Barty, actually hanging out inside the monkey cage. You look at that and think, "Yeah, they definitely did not have modern safety inspectors on set back then."

But the real highlight is the climax. One of the kids throws the mom's handbag right into the lion cage, and Billy has to go retrieve it.

The "fight" with the lion is this bizarre mix of a real, very sleepy-looking lion and what is clearly a guy in a terrible rug suit. Billy is rolling around on the ground with this beast, and the editing is so choppy you can't help but laugh out loud.

It's not high art like some other silents from the era, and it doesn't have the grand scale of something like Brilliantino the Bull Fighter, but it works. It is just pure, unpretentious fun.

• Best moment: The kid casually chillin' with the monkeys like it's no big deal.
• Worst moment: The leopard tamer bit goes on a little too long without a real punchline.

Anyway, if you want a quick laugh and some classic silent era vibes, give this one a go. It is short, dumb, and very sweet.