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IMDbPro

The Cameraman

  • 19281928
  • PassedPassed
  • 1h 16m
IMDb RATING
8.0/10
12K
YOUR RATING
Buster Keaton and Harry Gribbon in The Cameraman (1928)
ComedyDramaFamily
Hopelessly in love with a woman working at MGM Studios, a clumsy man attempts to become a motion-picture cameraman to be close to the object of his desire.Hopelessly in love with a woman working at MGM Studios, a clumsy man attempts to become a motion-picture cameraman to be close to the object of his desire.Hopelessly in love with a woman working at MGM Studios, a clumsy man attempts to become a motion-picture cameraman to be close to the object of his desire.
IMDb RATING
8.0/10
12K
YOUR RATING
    • Edward Sedgwick
    • Buster Keaton(uncredited)
  • Writers
    • Clyde Bruckman(story by)
    • Lew Lipton(story by)
    • Joseph Farnham(titles)
  • Stars
    • Buster Keaton
    • Marceline Day
    • Harold Goodwin
    • Edward Sedgwick
    • Buster Keaton(uncredited)
  • Writers
    • Clyde Bruckman(story by)
    • Lew Lipton(story by)
    • Joseph Farnham(titles)
  • Stars
    • Buster Keaton
    • Marceline Day
    • Harold Goodwin
  • See production, box office & company info
    • 73User reviews
    • 53Critic reviews
  • See production, box office & company info
  • See more at IMDbPro
    • Awards

    Photos53

    Buster Keaton and Harold Goodwin in The Cameraman (1928)
    Buster Keaton in The Cameraman (1928)
    Buster Keaton, Harold Goodwin, and Harry Gribbon in The Cameraman (1928)
    Buster Keaton in The Cameraman (1928)
    Buster Keaton and Marceline Day in The Cameraman (1928)
    Buster Keaton and Marceline Day in The Cameraman (1928)
    Buster Keaton Film Set Cameraman, The (1928) 0018742
    Buster Keaton Film Set Cameraman, The (1928) 0018742
    Buster Keaton in The Cameraman (1928)
    Buster Keaton and Marceline Day in The Cameraman (1928)
    Buster Keaton in The Cameraman (1928)
    Buster Keaton in The Cameraman (1928)

    Top cast

    Edit
    Buster Keaton
    Buster Keaton
    • Buster
    Marceline Day
    Marceline Day
    • Sally
    Harold Goodwin
    Harold Goodwin
    • Stagg
    Sidney Bracey
    Sidney Bracey
    • Editor
    • (as Sidney Bracy)
    Harry Gribbon
    Harry Gribbon
    • Cop
    Richard Alexander
    Richard Alexander
    • The Big Sea Lion
    • (uncredited)
    Edward Brophy
    Edward Brophy
    • Man in Bath-House
    • (uncredited)
    Ray Cooke
    Ray Cooke
    • Office Worker
    • (uncredited)
    Vernon Dent
    Vernon Dent
    • Man in Tight Bathing Suit
    • (uncredited)
    William Irving
    William Irving
    • Photographer
    • (uncredited)
    Harry Keaton
    Harry Keaton
    • Swimmer in Swimming Pool
    • (uncredited)
    Louise Keaton
    • Swimmer in Swimming Pool
    • (uncredited)
    Charles A. Lindbergh
    Charles A. Lindbergh
    • Charles A. Lindbergh
    • (archive footage)
    • (uncredited)
    Bert Moorhouse
    Bert Moorhouse
    • Randall
    • (uncredited)
    Jack Raymond
    • Swimming Pool Attendant
    • (uncredited)
      • Edward Sedgwick
      • Buster Keaton(uncredited)
    • Writers
      • Clyde Bruckman(story by)
      • Lew Lipton(story by)
      • Joseph Farnham(titles)
    • All cast & crew
    • Production, box office & more at IMDbPro

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    Storyline

    Edit

    Did you know

    Edit
    • Trivia
      The film was almost lost forever. The master copy of it used today was made using a print that was found in Paris, in 1968, and a master positive copy of nearly the entire film, found in 1991. In modern copies of the film, the quality of the image varies dramatically; the scenes with best quality were obtained from the material found in 1991.
    • Goofs
      At the end of the film when Buster and Sally are walking in the ticker tape parade that Buster mistakenly thinks is for him, some newsreel footage shows the parade is actually for Charles Lindbergh after his historic flight over the Atlantic which took place in 1927. Earlier in the film, after Buster purchases his movie camera, he opens his bank passbook and we see his last transaction when the account is closed is June 30, 1928.
    • Quotes

      Sally Richards: [advice to the aspiring cameraman] You must always grind forward... never backward.

    • Connections
      Featured in The Big Parade of Comedy (1964)

    User reviews73

    Review
    Review
    Featured review
    9/10
    Keaton's first film for MGM retains many of the best qualities of his earlier works
    Seeing THE CAMERAMAN for the first time in pristine condition (thanks to TCM) and with a wonderful musical score to keep the pace going for the audience members not used to a steady diet of silent films, I was quite surprised. While THE CAMERAMAN does not really feature any incredible or death-defying stunts, there are a number of set pieces that provide exciting humor (the staircase sequence, for instance), and also some hilarious situations such as when he loses his bathing suit at the "municipal plunge" or when he has to protect his camera from the attackers during the tong war. Thankfully, MGM had not yet put Keaton in films that did not fit his established persona (SIDEWALKS OF NEW YORK) or that did not take advantage of his particular comic gifts (FREE AND EASY). Keaton is wonderful throughout, charismatic, sympathetic, agile. Marceline Day is a charming female lead and actually makes a three-dimensional character out of what could have been a superficial role in other hands. She continued working into the sound era until the mid-30s, but wound up in poverty-row features (see my review of SUNNY SKIES, where she is teamed with Rex Lease and Benny Rubin), many of which I've really enjoyed over the years (MYSTERY TRAIN with Hedda Hopper, the pioneering women-in-war film FORGOTTEN WOMEN/THE MAD PARADE, the VD classic DAMAGED LIVES, the outrageous camp classic THE FLAMING SIGNAL with Noah Beery, Henry B. Walthall, and Flash the dog, and the superb urban melodrama BY APPOINTMENT ONLY. The multi-talented Harry Gribbon, who began working for Mack Sennett in the teens, is well-used as the omnipresent cop who happens to be wherever Buster is doing something that looks fishy out of its proper context. I've been watching some of his sound comedy shorts recently such as RURAL ROMEOS and BIG HEATED, and he was superb as an arrogant bluffer, was a master of mugging and physical comedy, and even sang well in ROMEOS. Overall, THE CAMERAMAN is well worth watching and shows that initially Keaton was able to work well within MGM's system. Things began to slip with his next MGM feature, SPITE MARRIAGE, although many of the MGM features have something worthwhile in them (see my review of WHAT NO BEER, his last, and often considered his worst). With the recent attention given to the MGM films, I think I'll watch some of them again. From my memories of watching them about a decade ago, I remember DOUGHBOYS as being the least funny and most labored.
    helpful•13
    0
    • django-1
    • Dec 21, 2004

    Details

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    • Release date
      • September 22, 1928 (United States)
      • United States
      • None
      • English
    • Also known as
    • Filming locations
      • Venice Municipal Plunge, Venice Pier, Ocean Walk Front at Washington Boulevard, Venice, Los Angeles, California, USA
    • Production company
      • Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer (MGM)
    • See more company credits at IMDbPro

    Box office

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    See detailed box office info on IMDbPro

    Technical specs

    Edit
    • 1 hour 16 minutes
      • Black and White
      • Silent

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