Sherlock Jr. (1924)

A film projectionist longs to be a detective, and puts his meagre skills to work when he is framed by a rival for stealing his girlfriend's father's pocketwatch.

Director:

Buster Keaton

Writers:

Jean C. Havez (story) (as Jean Havez), Joseph A. Mitchell (story) (as Joe Mitchell)

Stars:

Buster Keaton, Kathryn McGuire, Joe Keaton

Top Rated Movies #169 | 1 win.

Cast

Complete credited cast:
Buster Keaton	...	Projectionist / Sherlock, Jr.
Kathryn McGuire	...	The Girl
Joe Keaton	...	The Girl's Father / Man on Film Screen
Erwin Connelly	...	The Hired Man / The Butler
Ward Crane	...	The Local Sheik / The Villain

Storyline

A meek and mild projectionist, who also cleans up after screenings, would like nothing better than to be a private detective. He becomes engaged to a pretty girl but a ladies man known as the Sheik vies for her affection. He gets rid of the projectionist by stealing a pocket watch belonging to the girl's father - which he pawns to buy her an expensive box of candy. He then slips the pawn ticket into the projectionist's pocket and subsequently is found by the police. He doesn't have much luck but in his dreams, he the debonair and renowned detective Sherlock Jr. who faces danger and solves the crime. In real life, the girl solves crimes quickly.

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Plot Keywords:

false accusation | surrealism | national film registry | pawn ticket | pocket watch | 

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Taglines:

every inch of footage holds such a laugh!

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Genres:

Action | Comedy | Romance

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Certificate:

Not Rated

Details

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Release Date:

11 May 1924 (USA)

Also Known As:

Sherlock Holmes Jr.

Filming Locations:

3630 Pasadena Ave, Los Angeles, California, USA

Box Office

Gross USA:

$977,375

Company Credits

Production Co:

Buster Keaton Productions

Technical Specs

Runtime:

45 min 49 min (1924)

Sound Mix:

Silent

Color:

Black and White

Aspect Ratio:

1.33 : 1

Did You Know?

Trivia

For the scene where Sherlock Jr., escaping gangsters, leaps headfirst through the body of his assistant, Gillette (who is disguised as an old lady selling neckties) and disappears, Buster Keaton used an old magician's trick. Prior to the trick, Gillette is seen standing with his back against a wooden fence. A section of the fence was sawed out and placed on hinges, so that it opened up and back like a garage door. Ford West (the actor playing Gillette) was then strapped to the underside of the cutaway section, so that when it was opened, West's body was hanging parallel to the ground, but his head and arms stuck out through the upper part of the opening in the fence. The dress and open suitcase were then hung from West's shoulders, so that they hung down in front of the fence, concealing the opening. Both the dress and the suitcase had holes cut in them. With the cameras rolling, Keaton leaped headfirst straight through the hole in the suitcase, the hole in the dress, and the opening in the fence (he later recalled that he "landed face-first in the dirt" on the other side). The cutaway fence section was then swung down to close the opening, so that West's body landed perfectly inside the dress. Attendants on the other side of the fence cut the straps holding West's torso and feet to the cutaway section, and West stepped away from the fence as if nothing had happened. In the film you can see West reach behind his back to close the opening in the dress as he steps from the fence. If you look closely you can also see the outline of the cutaway section in the fence.

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Goofs

After Sherlock Jr spins the fence around placing his pursuers behind it, he puts a crossbar across the gate to stop them coming back. In the next shot as he leaves the alley, the crossbar is no longer visible on the fence.

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Quotes

The sheik: [to Sherlock Jr. about a man locked in a tight cage] That's a detective. When he's dead I'll put you in there.

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Alternate Versions

In 1995, Film Preservation Associates, Inc. copyrighted a 45-minute version of this film, with a music score performed by Vince Giordano and His Nighthawks Orchestra.

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Connections

Referenced in A Black and White World (2005)

User Reviews

A World of Possibilities

Not only is this Buster Keaton's best film, but it is among the greatest achievements in the history of cinema, period. While it is not a feature-length film--and thus barred from most critics' lists of great films--it invented just about every single basic special effect known to movies (except for morphing). The story itself, about a film projectionist who desires to become part of the movies, and then does, by walking right onto the screen, made palpable the desire that we all have to be in the movies: To get the girl, to be an action hero, to outsmart the bad guys. Keaton invented meta-cinema before anyone even had a phrase for it.

This movie has entered our dreams.