Tell It to the Marines

in this smash hit of 1927 that also boasts a star turn from Lon Chaney. Eleanor Boardman, Carmel Myers, and Warner Oland are also effective in this comedy-drama about the wise guy from Kansas City (Haines) who joins the Marines and grows up under the tutelage of Chaney. From this point in his career until the early 30s (talkies) Haines was a top 5 box office star for MGM.

A tough-as-shoe-leather sergeant patiently molds a rambunctious, rowdy youth into a sturdy Marine.

Available again after decades of obscurity, TELL IT TO THE MARINES is a wonderful, rousing paean to America's famous fighting force. Produced with the full cooperation of the Corps, it surges with heartfelt emotion & genuine excitement. It is the kind of film which should be shown to skeptics who doubt the power of silent cinema to satisfy a modern audience.

Lon Chaney is beyond praise as the hard-boiled Sergeant O'Hara, who loves the Corps and all that is stands for, but still has a tender heart and a good soul hidden beneath his rough exterior. This was Chaney's favorite role and he plays it without any of the extravagant make-up for which he was so famous. A superb character actor, Chaney became the parts he played. Completely believable, he fascinates the viewer into forgetting that this is an actor they are watching. His early death robbed him from rightfully enjoying the accolades & acclaim which other actors, like Chaplin, reaped in old age.

TELL IT TO THE MARINES provided the celebrity-making role for young William Haines and in it he practically revels in the silly billy antics that would dominate the rest of his movie career. In 1930, only 4 years after the release of this film, Chaney would be dead at the age of 47 and Haines would be the industry's top box office male. Things move fast in Hollywood.

Eleanor Boardman is perfect as the crisp Navy nurse who harbors tender feelings for both men. Carmel Myers is the exotic, albeit flea ridden, native girl who tempts Haines. Warner Oland has a small, flashy role as a despicable Chinese bandit. Movie mavens will recognize Willie Fung unbilled as a servant translating for Oland.

And what was the Marines' reaction to this film? They loved it, and especially Chaney's performance in it and he became the first actor to be awarded an honorary membership in the Corps.

The film's shipboard sequences were filmed on the mighty USS California, later to be sunk in the Japanese attack on Pearl Harbor. Where was Lon Chaney when they needed him?

TELL IT TO THE MARINES has been restored to pristine condition & given a rousing new score by Robert Israel.

Chaney gives a recruiting poster performance of a rough,tough,Marine with a tender heart[thats well hidden],with Haines giving an equally good performance as the recruit.A mixture of humor and excitement are well blended to make this a very entertaining movie.

Lon Chaney is simply fantastic as a Marine Sergeant who puts a screw-off new recruit (William Haines) through boot camp, and then guides him through some action overseas in China afterwards. The two men are also involved in a little love triangle with a young nurse (Eleanor Boardman). It's a great cast, with the exception of Carmel Myers as an island girl, and the film has a reasonable amount of authenticity running through it. It was shot in part at the Marine Corps Recruit Depot in San Diego with consultation from a General, and there are also nice scenes on the USS California, whose big guns surprised me a little for 1926. I was entertained by the mix of humor, romance, and drama which is all somewhat quirky and fitting to the period, though unfortunately the scenes in China reek of cultural condescension. It's probably unfair to the film, but in part it was less interesting to me just because I've seen the boot camp part of the story done so many times over the years, though apparently this was the prototype. The template is complete to the point of ushering in the new class of recruits in the same way at the end. Watch it for Lon Chaney though. Man, I'd probably watch him in just about anything.

... that odd couple being Lon Chaney and William Haines.

Haines plays "Skeet" Burns, a young guy whose plan was just to hitch a free train ride to San Diego with a voucher from the Marines since they think he is going to join up there, when he really plans to just go to Tijuana for the races. He has no intention of becoming a marine. But he does come back from Tijuana, looks a bit envious of the comradery he sees on the Marine base, and does indeed join up.

From that point he's at odds with marine lifer sergeant O'Hara (Lon Chaney), in one of his few MGM roles where he is not monster or blackguard of the week. Burns has a problem with rules, as do all William Haines characters, and worse, he falls for Navy nurse Norma Dale (Eleanor Boardman) who happens to be the woman of O'Hara's dreams. Worse, O'Hara is the kind of guy Norma thinks she should love, but Burns gets under her skin in spite of his abrasive foolhardy ways.

This film is charming and entertaining with a rousing battle for a finale, but it does have its faults and plot holes. It does realistically portray the rivalry between the navy and the marines, right down to nurse Dale being insulted when Burns innocently asks her if she is a Marine nurse. She harshly barks back that she is a navy nurse! The film avoids getting claustrophobic by having the marines deploy overseas for an extended period, where Burns both gets in hot water and proves himself.

Chaney's commanding presence and ability to convey deep emotions shine through his portrayal of the hardened but compassionate Sergeant O'Hara. His performance is a testament to his status as one of the greatest actors of the silent film era. Lon Chaney was named an honorary marine for his performance, and his funeral was officiated by a marine chaplain. I'd definitely recommend this one. It doesn't make the mistake of so many MGM films and abruptly make an out of character right turn at the end just so there can be a happy ending.