Ted Wilde

The Kid Brother

The Kid Brother

Silent-comedy legend Harold Lloyd goes west in this irresistible blend of action, romance, and slapstick invention. The bespec­tacled everyman is at his inimitable best as Harold Hickory, the gentle son of a prominent lawman who lives in the shadow of his rough-and-tumble brothers. When a traveling medicine show rolls into town, it brings with it excitement, the possibility of love, and a chance for Harold to prove his mettle. Deftly balancing Lloyd’s brilliant sight gags and thrilling set pieces—including an epic, knock-down, drag-out fight aboard an abandoned ship—with one of the actor-filmmaker’s most fully realized, root-for-the-underdog narratives, The Kid Brother is a hilarious and heartwarming high-water mark of early screen comedy.

Film Info

  • United States
  • 1927
  • 82 minutes
  • Black & White
  • 1:33:1
  • English
  • Spine #964

Special Features

  • New 4K digital restoration
  • Orchestral score by composer Carl Davis from 1989
  • Alternate archival organ score performed by Gaylord Carter
  • Audio commentary from 2005 featuring filmmaker and Harold Lloyd archivist Richard Correll, film historian Annette D’Agostino Lloyd, and Harold Lloyd’s granddaughter Suzanne Lloyd
  • Harold’s Leading Ladies, a new conversation between author Cari Beauchamp and Suzanne Lloyd
  • Anatomy of a Gag: Monkeyshoes, a new video essay by critic and filmmaker David Cairns
  • Behind-the-scenes stills gallery curated by Harold Lloyd archivist Richard Simonton Jr.
  • Close to Home, a new video essay on the film’s shooting locations by author John Bengtson
  • Dutch television interview with Lloyd from 1962
  • Featurette from 2005 about Greenacres, Lloyd’s estate, hosted by Suzanne Lloyd
  • Two restored rare early Lloyd shorts: Over the Fence (1917) and That’s Him (1918), with new Wurlitzer theater pipe organ scores and a discussion of their early film formats by archivist Dino Everett
  • New tour of the Wurlitzer organ with composer Nathan Barr and organist Mark Herman
  • PLUS: An essay by critic Carrie Rickey

New cover by F. Ron Miller

Purchase Options

Special Features

  • New 4K digital restoration
  • Orchestral score by composer Carl Davis from 1989
  • Alternate archival organ score performed by Gaylord Carter
  • Audio commentary from 2005 featuring filmmaker and Harold Lloyd archivist Richard Correll, film historian Annette D’Agostino Lloyd, and Harold Lloyd’s granddaughter Suzanne Lloyd
  • Harold’s Leading Ladies, a new conversation between author Cari Beauchamp and Suzanne Lloyd
  • Anatomy of a Gag: Monkeyshoes, a new video essay by critic and filmmaker David Cairns
  • Behind-the-scenes stills gallery curated by Harold Lloyd archivist Richard Simonton Jr.
  • Close to Home, a new video essay on the film’s shooting locations by author John Bengtson
  • Dutch television interview with Lloyd from 1962
  • Featurette from 2005 about Greenacres, Lloyd’s estate, hosted by Suzanne Lloyd
  • Two restored rare early Lloyd shorts: Over the Fence (1917) and That’s Him (1918), with new Wurlitzer theater pipe organ scores and a discussion of their early film formats by archivist Dino Everett
  • New tour of the Wurlitzer organ with composer Nathan Barr and organist Mark Herman
  • PLUS: An essay by critic Carrie Rickey

New cover by F. Ron Miller

The Kid Brother
Cast
Harold Lloyd
Harold Hickory
Jobyna Ralston
Mary Powers
Walter James
Jim Hickory
Leo Willis
Leo Hickory
Olin Francis
Olin Hickory
Constantine Romanoff
Sandoni
Eddie Boland
Flash Farrell
Frank Lanning
Sam Hooper
R. Yearsley
Hank Hooper
Credits
Director
Ted Wilde
Produced by
Harold Lloyd Corporation
Codirected by
J. A. Howe
Story by
John Grey
Story by
Ted Wilde
Story by
Tom Crizer
Scenario by
John Grey
Scenario by
Lex Neal
Scenario by
Howard Green
Photographed by
Walter Lundin
Film editor
Allen McNeil
Art director
Liell K. Vedder

Current

The Kid Brother: Mettle Is Stronger than Muscle
The Kid Brother: Mettle Is Stronger than Muscle

There was more to Harold Lloyd than laughter. In one of his best movies, the silent-film legend deftly balanced elements of action and romance with his signature slapstick set pieces.

By Carrie Rickey

Harold Lloyd’s Ingenious Blend of Slapstick and Horror in The Kid Brother

Anatomy of a Gag

Harold Lloyd’s Ingenious Blend of Slapstick and Horror in The Kid Brother

In one of his most ambitious sequences, the silent-comedy legend throws his innocent “glasses” character into a death trap of a setting.

By David Cairns

100 Years of Harold Lloyd’s Glasses Character
100 Years of Harold Lloyd’s Glasses Character

Celebrate the centennial of one of silent cinema’s most iconic figures with a documentary about actor Harold Lloyd, now playing on the Criterion Channel on FilmStruck.