The Patent Leather Kid

The Patent Leather Kid is a 1927 silent film which tells the story of a boxer who scoffs at fighting outside the ring... particularly for the United States once it enters World War I. Eventually, he is drafted, is shipped overseas, and performs a heroic act, which results in his being severely wounded.

Whilst I did rather enjoy watching this, it's not really all that good. Richard Barthelmess is the eponymous "Kid: - a boxer of some skill who gets distracted at one of his fights by the pretty but fickle "Curley" (the rather dewy eyed Molly O'Day). They sort of hook up, much to the detriment of his career and to the chagrin of his loyal trainer "Puffy" (Arthur Stone) and for far more venal reasons by his manager "Stuke" (Matthew Betz) who having promised to help his avoid the draft, does nothing of the kind. So, off he goes to training camp and thence to the fields of France where, whilst not exactly cowardly, he isn't exactly at the front of the battle lines either - until, that is, tragedy strikes and he rises to the occasion. "Curley", meantime, has also come to France - as a nurse - and when the two meet up, they try to salvage something from their relationship as she concludes that she does actually love him (and not her soldier beau "Breen" (the handsome Lawford Davidson) - who also happens to be the "Kid's" commanding officer - small world!)... Barthelmess looks every inch the perfectly vain, dapper, character his is supposed to be but the love story just doesn't really work for me. There is no sense passion from either. There are ample good looking boxing and battle scenes, but they seem to be used as padding more often than not for 150 minutes is just far too long to tell this really quite insubstantial story. Some of the humour is a bit "of it's time", as we say nowadays - but rather than being offensive is just a bit crass. The star received an Oscar nomination for this (and "The Noose" (1928")) in the first ever Academy Awards and that did his career no harm, but this film as it ages has become something more for historians of classic cinema, than - classic cinema.