Harold Lloyd, Richard Pryor: Revisiting two giants of comedy on DVD

By Kenneth Turan, Los Angeles Times Film Critic

July 4, 2013 12 AM PT

Two men living decades apart have two key things in common: They lived in Los Angeles, and they were two of the funniest men ever.

Harold Lloyd was one of the great silent clowns, and 1923’s “Safety Last” was one of his classic roles, the source of one of the best-known images from the entire silent-film era: Lloyd dangling above the Los Angeles skyline, hanging from the hands of an enormous clock.

The Criterion Collection provides a newly restored version of “Safety Last!” as well as numerous extras, including a documentary (“The Third Genius”) that places his career in perspective and another film, “Locations and Effects” by John Bengston and Craig Barron, that describes exactly how those famous stunts were done.

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If Lloyd was all about silence, Richard Pryor was all about talk. He helped revolutionize comedy, and the Shout Factory’s release of “No Pryor Restraint” shows exactly how it was done.

This collection of two DVDs and seven CDs has Pryor’s three concert films, bits from his classic albums, and two hours of previously unreleased material. It is the most comprehensive Pryor aggregation yet. And, like the Lloyd set, it will make you laugh.

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