Grandma's Boy on AllMovie

This rollicking comedy is Harold Lloyd's second feature film and like the first, A Sailor-Made Man was originally conceived of as a short film. During the shooting, Lloyd and long-time collaborator Hal Roach insisted on continually developing his character and moving beyond pure gags into a real story. $100,000 and five reels later the film was ready to preview. Because the entire work was so funny and well-done, it was decided to leave it intact and market it as a feature film. Following the success of Grandma's Boy, Lloyd abandoned short films in favor of full length films. The story centers on Sonny, a flighty young boy who is required to join the rest of the men in his small town on a manhunt for a murderer. Totally frightened by the prospect of finding the killer, Sonny heads for the safety of his grandmother's home. She inspires the cowering youth with a stirring tale about her formerly timorous husband who went to a mysterious old witch for the courage to fight in the Civil War. The old wise woman gave him a magical Zuni charm which made Sonny's grandfather invincible. Armed with his amulet, the newly courageous grandfather rushed out to steal some important Yankee plans. The story enraptures the wide-eyed Sonny. Suddenly grandmother hands him the very amulet that made her husband a hero. Not realizing that the bauble is really only a handle from one of grandma's umbrella's, the emboldened Sonny charges off to single-handedly save the town from the fugitive villain.