In real life actress Mabel Normand was really ahead of her time. She was not only a beauty, but also a pioneer in many fields. She drove cars, airplanes, had her own financial independence and even directed her own films in her own studio for a while in the 1910s in the Keystone Studios (which was subsequently renamed as “Mack Sennett comedies” as of 1917). As of circa 1915 she was paired with another star of the studio, Roscoe “Fatty” Arbuckle and they made romantically-oriented comedies, some of them praised by cinema critics to this day.
As usual, Mabel’s character was admired by the guys and had more than one suitor, to the displeasure of her father. One of suitors was Fatty, who was not approved by Mabel’s father either. One day it showed up another suitor, a neighbor (played by actor Al St. John) who was finally accepted by Mabel’s father. Unfortunately, Mabel did not like him and, to make things worse, Fatty was visiting Mabel at the time and felt insulted when he realized there would be another competitor for Mabel’s affections and then it started an argument between Fatty and Mabel’s father and things soon got physically violent. Meanwhile, Mabel herself literally kicked the neighbor suitor out of the living room.
As if things were not messy enough, it resurfaced another Mabel’s suitor (the one who was firstly seen visiting her in the beginning of the film). Mabel’s father tried to force her to accept the affections of her neighbor, but she refused vehemently. Fatty watched it and decided to take matters into own hands by removing Mabel from home and her other suitor tried to do the same thing while Fatty left a note to her father, but fortunately Mabel got to run away. Fatty realized what was going on upon his return outdoors but it was just the beginning of the chaos because Mabel’s father had just called the police.
Who rescued them? The reckless, incompetent Keystone cops, of course. While the cops were on their way, Fatty and the other suitor were fighting, to Mabel’s horror – even though it would not take long until she started laughing at the situation. Fatty and Mabel soon reunited and it was when they saw an empty airplane, which was a relatively new invention at the time. As Mabel’s father and one of her suitors were approaching, their only option was leaving in the airplane. Although everybody else tried to reach them both by car and bicycle, they could not keep up with the plane for obvious reasons. Even the Keystone cops arrived late.
Fatty and Mabel were having fun while Fatty made some maneuvers with their airplane, which gave to the audiences a very interesting chase with multiple vehicles. When Fatty and Mabel finally landed they went to a house where there was a clergyman and Mabel had inadvertently lost her wig, which deeply shocked Fatty and made him have second thoughts about the upcoming marriage. After lots of confusion, Fatty and all other suitors run away and gave up Mabel for good.
All in all, this is a typical 1910s slapstick comedy short, with broad gestures, exaggerated physical gags and simple plots. Those comedies were very popular in their own era and their charm remain due to their easy understanding, ingenuous physical scenes and good acting. Behind the apparently simplicity there is lots of talent and bravery. In case you are interested to watch other Fatty and Mabel films of this type, it is recommended -among others - He Did and He Didn't (USA, 1916), Fatty and Mabel Adrift (USA, 1916), Fatty and Mabel at the San Diego Exposition (USA,1915), Mabel and Fatty's Wash Day (USA, 1915).
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