Sherlock Jr. (1924)

Sherlock Jr. is a 1924 silent comedy film directed by and starring Buster Keaton, produced by Joseph M. Schenck and released through Metro Pictures.

A young projectionist dreams of becoming a detective. Falsely accused of theft by his rival for a girl's affections, he falls asleep during a screening and dreams himself into the film on the screen, where he becomes master detective Sherlock Jr. The film is celebrated for its extraordinary stunt sequences — all performed by Keaton himself — and its innovative, self-aware play on the relationship between cinema and reality.

Watch

Video source: Internet Archive — SherlockJr1924 · Public domain

Chapters

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1. 00:00 Sherlock Jr. is a 1924 silent comedy film directed by and starring Buster Keaton, produced by Joseph M. Schenck and released through Metro Pictures.
2. 02:00 A young projectionist (Keaton) dreams of becoming a detective. He is falsely accused of stealing a watch by his rival for the affections of a local girl (Kathryn McGuire).
3. 08:00 While screening a film at the cinema where he works, the projectionist falls asleep and his dreaming self walks into the screen, entering the world of the film in one of cinema's earliest and most celebrated uses of dream sequence and film-within-a-film structure.
4. 15:00 Inside the film, Keaton becomes master detective Sherlock Jr., pursuing a gang of jewel thieves through a dazzling series of sight gags and physical stunts that remain extraordinary feats of physical comedy.
5. 25:00 A celebrated motorcycle chase sequence shows Keaton riding on the handlebars of a driverless motorcycle through traffic, crowds, and a road under construction — performed without stunt doubles.
6. 30:00 The projectionist awakens to find his girlfriend has cleared his name. He watches the screen for cues on how to behave with her in real life — a charming, self-aware finale about the relationship between cinema and life.

Copyright status

Sherlock Jr. was first released on 21 April 1924. Under United States copyright law, all works published before 1 January 1928 are in the public domain. This film may be freely watched, downloaded, copied, modified, and redistributed without restriction or payment.

References

1. Knopf, Robert (1999). The Theater and Cinema of Buster Keaton. Princeton University Press.
2. Kerr, Walter (1975). The Silent Clowns. Knopf.
3. Oldham, Gabriella (1996). Keaton's Silent Shorts: Beyond the Laughter. Southern Illinois University Press.
4. Internet Archive. “Sherlock Jr. (1924)”. archive.org/details/SherlockJr1924.