If you're curious about Roscoe Arbuckle, HE DID AND HE DIDN'T is not the best place to begin. To a newcomer, I would rather recommend FATTY AND MABEL ADRIFT, LOVE or THE GARAGE. These short films are some of the most slickly paced from the era, and provide plenty of pure, often clever fun. That said, HE DID AND HE DIDN'T is still one of the best films he made during this period, just not so much, I think, for the sake of comedy.<br /><br />(***SPOILERS***)<br /><br />Roscoe loves his wife (as usually played by Mabel Normand, who also did a remarkable job as a dramatic actress) terribly much, but, as in so many other cases, the fear of losing the love is much higher than the pleasure of having it. Mabel receives a card from an earlier boyfriend, Jack, and she invites him home to dinner, which makes Roscoe jealous, but not in the usual Keystone-way; he feels serious bitterness and his feelings are powerfully expressed through very small gestures.<br /><br />When Mabel offers Jack to sleep over in her and Roscoe's house that night, the husband can't handle the pressure any longer. He takes his coat and is ready to go. Mabel tries to explain that Jack doesn't mean anything to her, but he won't listen. Mabel rushes up to Jack in the guest room, and knocks on the door. Jack comes out. Mabel stares at him with sleepy eyes; it is quite obvious that the emotions have not left even after all the years that have passed.<br /><br />Shortly afterwards, some bandits arrive at the house. Jack finally manages to throw them out, but Mabel is terribly affected by the shock. Meanwhile, Roscoe returns, frustrated as never before. Jack holds Mabel in his arms, in an attempt to get her back on her feet again, when Roscoe opens the door with a gun in his hand. Roscoe's face explains all his thoughts. He stares at Jack, cold and bitter, and raises the gun against him. Arbuckle's acting is here thoroughly underplayed, quite a contrast to the various grimaces he usually adapted at this time. Jack falls out from the window behind him. Mabel wakes up, confused and still in shock, and Roscoe strangles her in frustration.<br /><br />Then, of course, it turns out that everything was a dream. After all, a Keystone-flick is a Keystone-flick. When Roscoe realizes that none of this happened outside his imagination, he goes up to Mabel's room. She is sleeping. He closes the door with a grin on his face, and the film is over.<br /><br />(***SPOILERS END***)<br /><br />Now, one question is perhaps fair to ask: is HE DID AND HE DIDN'T a parody? The whole story might seem dated and silly to some of you, but frankly, I don't care. If HE DID AND HE DIDN'T actually was intended as a parody of the many short dramas of the era, it surely says something about Arbuckle's talent when his performance leaves the viewer wonder whether it was supposed to be serious or amusing. Whatever the case, along with the beautiful musical score, this is a truly remarkable little film, much better than many authentic dramas from the same period.