SHERLOCK JR.: WHAT MOVIES CAN DO

I have a tough time talking about any one movie from a great director, I always think "why not choose this one, or that one?" To pick a favorite movie, particularly by a man such as Buster Keaton would be unfair to the artist. Keaton's films belong as a group and should not be thought of as separate entities. However I do not think I could sit here on my computer and compose an entry on every single film he's done, (if I had time however that would be an ideal situation for me). So in a way I am picking one of his masterpieces "Sherlock Jr." for the people who have never seen a Buster Keaton film just to give you a little taste of what you're missing.

"Sherlock Jr." runs about 45 minutes, which probably makes it along with Bunel's "Un Chien andalou" and countless Warner Brothers Cartoons as one of the shortest masterpieces in film history.

The first time I saw "Sherlock Jr." I thought I was watching a magic show. I didn't know what to expect, I had seen Keaton films before, but this one sounded a bit different. It's the story of a film projectionist who one day falls asleep while watching a mystery movie and then imagines himself on the screen as the famous detective Sherlock Jr. The idea is a simple but ingenius one. In the short time he is given, Keaton pretty much sums up that film is capable in doing anything, in other words there are no boundaries. Keaton is in control of his own destiny, he makes up the rules and the rest follow him, this of course sets us up with some of the most inventive and memorable gags ever.

The one scene that still has me baffled every time I see it is when Keaton, in order to escape from some jewel thieves jumps through the stomach of his assistant and then through a fence. The shot doesn't seem to have any cut aways, so I don't know any other way this is accomplished, not that I mind, I always have my mouth in open wonder when I see this performed, and part of me who loves the mystery of movie making just doesn't want to know.

The film itself is a surreal exercise with a bit of absurdity in the end. The sight gags such as Keaton jumping out of a window which is rigged with one of his disguises is priceless. The jewel thieves run out to chase him but instead find what looks to be a ragged old woman. Then there is the memorable climactic chase with Keaton on the handle bars of a motor bike being driven by no one. To watch this scene is to watch sublime comedy to perfection.

There are still some people who choose not to watch Keaton, or Chaplin, or The Marx Brothers simply because they are old. Supposedly if they are old they are not funny, or what was funny back then is no longer funny now. This nonsense can only be attributed to (and forgive my harshness) ignorance. What Keaton has shown us with "Sherlock Jr." it's that movies can do anything and it would be a hard sell indeed to try to convince me there is a comedian or even a film maker out there today who has created a world as clever, insightful, and hilarious as Buster Keaton.