The Delicious Little Devil

1919

Comedy / Drama

4
IMDb Rating 6.3/10 10 938 938

dancer cabaret irish-american roadhouse romcom deception

Plot summary

A poor hat-check girl loses her job and is forced to get a job as a dancer at a roadhouse. There she falls in love with the son of a rich businessman. The boy's father, believing her to be after the family's money, determines to embarrass her and show his son what she really is.

Director

Robert Z. Leonard Photo
Robert Z. Leonard

Top cast

William H. O'Brien Photo
William H. O'Brien as Waiter
William V. Mong Photo
William V. Mong as Larry McKean
Rudolph Valentino Photo
Rudolph Valentino as Jimmy Calhoun
John George Photo
John George as Little Man on the Street
720p.BluRay 1080p.BluRay
702.39 MB
960*720
English 2.0
NR
Subtitles us  
23.976 fps
1 hr 16 min
Seeds ...
1.27 GB
1440*1080
English 2.0
NR
Subtitles us  
23.976 fps
1 hr 16 min
Seeds 2

Movie Reviews

Reviewed by zpzjones 7 / 10

THE DELICIOUS LITTLE DEVIL; An energized Mae Murray vehicle

This long lost film was rediscovered, restored and preserved at Nederlands Filmmuseum. My hats off to them! It is now companioned on DVD with the lost Gloria Swanson/Rudolph Valentino 1922 starring vehicle BEYOND THE ROCKS. TDLD stars Mae Murray for sure. She is a little hurricane moving from scene to scene in this routine Universal programmer of 1919. Murray's then husband, up and coming director and former actor Robert Z. Leonard, does the directing honors. Leonard keeps his wife and cast in a fast paced zip. The fast zip of this movie is no doubt due to the 24fps running speed on the DVD rather than the actual running speed the film was shot in which to me would seem more in the neighborhood of 18-21 fps. Even at the slower speeds the film still moves at a good pace. Most of Murray's starring vehicles of the 1920s are in archives or foreign collections unrestored, so it's hard to judge her career. TDLD was made at the beginning of her great screen success after a few years appearing in dramatic roles. This film shows Murray in all the raw material of her beauty and energy just before her great successes as a fantasy type queen in the 1920s. This film also gives up-n-coming Rudolph Valentino a significant supporting player part as a rich man's son who loves Murray. For once Rudy isn't playing the gigolo or thug that he was always being cast in. He and Murray got along and stayed friends even after Rudy's big success in 1921 with THE FOUR HORSEMEN OF THE APOCALYPSE and when Murray married a faux Russian prince in 1926 it was at Rudy's house. Luckily the TDLD survives in a decent enough 35mm print. Several highlights of this film include Murray getting in and out of a large sunken bath(much like Gloria Swanson in MALE & FEMALE that same year), several cheesecake shots of Murray by director Leonard showing her in near-nude see thru while changing costumes at a play, a funny scene with tall Gertrude Astor that involves talcum powder, a thrilling well choreographed car chase, Murray dancing around and running all while wearing large heeled pump shoes, and a short sequence involving soon to be famous screenwriter Katherine Hilliker as herself in name on a newspaper. Watching this makes one want to see Murray with Lon Chaney in the lost 1918 Universal film DANGER, GO SLOW also directed by Leonard. Audiences are going to discover Mae Murray, if they can find and view her films. This is more deserving of her than just glancing across a famous photo of her in some film book. Oh I must say one thing, the DVD copy has a resurrected original score performed by the Mont Alto orchestra and they do a marvelous job. Overall Mae does what actresses such as Mary Pickford and Lillian Gish wouldn't do, show a little (or a lot?) of cheesecake that verges on the daring when viewing the film. These were the days of no Will Hays or Joseph Breen or his Production Code. Nope, all of that lay in the future. Leonard also manages to imbue the film with some filmic technique where he obviously worm gears a pan across a room. If you're a silent fan, this is a rare glimpse at a once famous and beautiful silent film actress in her prime.
Reviewed by scsu1975 7 / 10

Valentino shows he can do comedy

Mary McGuire works as a hat-check girl, but she is canned when her boss sees her dancing with a customer's coat. Mary sees an ad for a hostess/dancer at the Peach Tree Inn, and applies for the job. She convinces the manager she is really Gloria Du Moine, a famous dancer who has been involved in scandal with the Duke de Sauterne. At the Inn, she meets Jimmie Calhoun, son of a rich Wall Street bigwig. Jimmie's father thinks Mary is a gold-digger, and sets out to prove it. Meanwhile, the Duke shows up and Mary finds herself in a mess. Will true love win out?This is a fun film, smartly directed and acted, and moves along at a great pace. Murray is a terrific physical comedienne, and Valentino (looking like he is barely out of high school) shows a good flair for comedy. The supporting cast is quite good, and the conclusion is hilarious. While there are no belly laughs, this is a pleasant film and a good way to kill an hour.
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