AllMovie

Riley the Cop is a diverting and harmless silent comedy from director John Ford about an American policeman who drinks his way through Munich and Paris. The first half is an idealistic portrait of a cop who serves as a favorite uncle to his neighborhood, a man with 20 years on the beat with no arrests, and the second half turns to broader comedy as Riley gets progressively more inebriated, falls in love with a German waitress, and has classic culture shock interacting with the French and Germans. Overall, it is silly and inoffensive, but there are some well-done scenes, notably a nightclub montage of glittering burlesque girls, legs, and champagne glasses. The dominating presence of alcohol throughout the film, especially the second half, is a bit surprising considering that the film was made during Prohibition, but it is equally clear that this is a playful thumbing of the nose at the Prohibition laws. Riley the Cop is, to be sure, a minor credit in John Ford's career, but the cast is game, even if their comedic performances are hardly inspired.