Buy Your Own Cherries

Starring: Unknown
Directed by: Robert W. Paul
Rating: Not rated
Genre: Short, Drama
Length: 4 minutes
1904

Times Seen:
Tim: 2

Summary: A drunk considers his disappointing life and the possibility of redemption.

Review:

Tim: I've read a number of reviews about Buy Your Own Cherries, and many of them were negative. I suppose I understand that view, but I personally enjoyed this little melodrama. Many people rail against the film for its simplistic story, but this is a 4 minute movie. I believe, considering its run time, that it did a good job of telling a moralistic story.

Here's the film- a guy who is a drunk is in a bar, and has run up a huge tab. When a delivery man brings cherries to the bar, he tries to take one. The barmaid refuses him, scolding him for his huge bar tab. He angrily pays off the whole bar tab, likely spending all of his money on it. He returns home, where we see his two children cower under a table. His wife confronts him, and he slaps her quite hard across the face. As he goes to leave, he notices his kids hiding, and I'm guessing her apologizes. Outside, he meets a priest, signs a paper, and likely promises not to drink. Suddenly, we see him with his life changed- he doesn't drink, and can afford to buy his own cherries. He returns home, where his family welcomes him, and he gives them wonderful gifts.

So yes, the story is a bit simplistic. The biggest issue is that he suddenly, and almost inexplicably turns his entire life around. I'm sure if the film had another 1-2 minutes, they could have elaborated on this. It is a little hard to believe he makes such a switch, but we have to suspend our disbelief. I actually really liked the vivid portrayal of a drunk, especially when he arrives home. His children are afraid of him, and it's not easy watching the domestic abuse unfold on screen. Even for a film well over 100 years old, this is not easy to forget. I love that this film tackled spousal abuse as one of the dangers of alcoholism.

I also liked the overall morale of the story, despite its simplistic nature- that we can change our lives by changing our behaviors. Our protagonist stops drinking, and his life is radically transformed. While a bit naive, there is a very powerful message here. I do want to mention that it's pretty hard to pick all of this up on one viewing. I figured it out eventually, but the early scenes are especially confusing on the first view. This is a movie that almost requires multiple screenings.

Buy Your Own Cherries is a great example of how filmmakers began telling more complex stories in 1904. The Cinema started to really move away from the one-shot films, and they would never be the same. This movie might not be the greatest film of this era, but it's a worthwhile little story, and I enjoyed it.

Rating 1-10
Tim's Rating: N/A



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