Filibustering Keaton: Cops

Cops begins with an intertitle card with a quote by Houdini, which is expressive as it symbolises to the audience the themes of romance and prison. A reverse iris shot takes us into a two shot of Keaton and his girlfriend, keeping the audiences attention on Keaton, who is behind bars. The camera then cuts between a man calling a cab and the taxi driver, parallel edited to show the audience that they are connected and therefore manipulating the audience as they are made to understand the connection between the man and what he was waving at. There is then a long shot though of Keaton sneaking up behind the man to pick up his wallet, letting the audience look where they want, which is a realist filmmaking technique. The same goes for when Keaton tries helping the man into his taxi, but then the film cuts to a mid shot with Keaton centre frame to bring our attention to him looking through the lost wallet, which is expressive as it tells the audience where to look, here, an important plot element. It is also expressive when we cut to a shot of the man in the taxi doing exaggerated shocked expressions and movements to tell the audience that he has realised he’s lost his wallet. The same for when he realises there is no money in it after he has gotten it back.

When the taxi stops and the man gets out, the shot is framed so that after it drives off, Keaton is gone, and the gag is that he has left the man behind without his money, and the man does not know where Keaton has gone too. A fade to black and then fade cut to a new shot of the cab pulling over signifies a passage of time, which is expressionist as it tells the audience information directly, without letting them realise themselves. As Keaton is paying the driver, we cut to a close up of all his money to bring the audiences attention to it and then a mid shot of a man with a newspaper to show that he has noticed all of Keatons cash, which is expressionist as it ensures the audience understands the set up for the upcoming joke. The same happens when the man looks to the right to see the family preparing to leave their home, which the film cuts to, and an intertitle card explains what they are doing directly to the audience, which, again, is expressive.

There is then a vignette shot of the man pretending to cry on the curb to being our attention to his exaggerated and unrealistic reactions, which are expressive and used to give information to the audience that will make them understand the joke. The next intertitle cards explain the joke and we cut to a close up, making the audience focus on the interaction between Keaton and the man. The same thing happens here when the man takes the jacket from the mannequin outside after Keaton steals the horse. There is then a realist wide shot as Keaton begins to load up the furniture but the man comes out and begins helping him, letting the audience focus on what they want to. However, Keaton is still kept centre frame to make him the centre of attention and bring our focus on his confused expression, telling the audience that he does not understand what is happening, an expressive way of communicating the joke.

A fade to black and cross fade tells us that time has passes since the family helped Keaton pack, which is an expressive technique. There is a wide shot when the wife brings out a pair of vases and and a suitcase to Keaton for him to pack, which does not force the viewer to look at a particular thing, but it does cuts closer to Keaton as he crushes the vase in the case, making sure that they see the final gag here. A close up of the address is given is expressive, since it tells us what he is supposed to be doing. The dog biting Keaton’s hand begins in a wide shot, but then cuts to a close up as he is bitten, bringing our attention to the joke for the sake of comedy. There is a wide shot, though, when Keaton uses the punching glove as an indicator, and foe when he accidentally punches the cop with it. The jokes made about police in this film represents the social distrust for police at the time, and the film is shot in an actual real city, which shows what reality was like at the time, but it is not objective reality shown here, which would be realism, since Keaton’s cart is an impossible structure, which is similar to German expressionism, except here it is done for a joke.

There is an iris shot of the gland specialist sign to bring our attention onto it for the sake of the joke being made. There is then a passage of time shown through a cross fade to black, which is also expressive. An intertitle card explains the context of the police parade, but a wide shot lets us look where we want. The same happens when Keaton rolls into the parade. There is also an intertitle card though, explaining that Keaton’s girlfriend if the mayor’s daughter. This police parade scene is a mix of realism and expressionism, as it represents the police force of L.A in the 1920’s, but there is also Keaton carrying an impossible load of furniture on a wagon in the middle of it all. Parallel editing between the cart and the mayor shows his frustration at it, and a close up of Keaton shows his cluelessness in all of this chaos. There is more parallel editing between the terrorist on the roof and Keaton on the wagon to set up the joke of it landing next to him.

We are not shown Keaton jumping off the cart, which is expressionist as it sets up the joke of Keaton hiding behind the umbrella in the panicking crowd. The wide shot here though lets us look around the frame ourselves before noticing Keaton , which is a realist technique. The cops are always kept out of frame before they run at Keaton, which is expressive as it deliberately hides the joke from the audience to make the surprise more comedic. The same thing happens as Keaton walks down the alley with the cops following him before one jumps out in front of him. An iris shot of Keaton sat in the car with a tie as a fake moustache he is expressive as it forces the audience to notice it. The see-saw joke is realist as it is a symmetric wide shot that lets the audience focus on either part of the frame they want, but is an expressive scenario that cuts to a close up of Keaton being ready to jump off to help us understand the joke. A vignette shot brings our attention to Keatons’s disapproving girlfriend, and a wide shot with Keaton centre frame to keep our focus on him, which is an expressionist technique of conveying a joke. The final shot of the gravestone is expressionist, as it makes us focus on the joke of his bizarre death.

Filibustering Keaton: The High Sign

The beginning shot in The High Sign is an intertitle card establishing Keaton as “our hero” and providing contextual information, which is expressive. The Newspaper gag is expressionist but the setting is a realist depiction of a seaside town of the time period. Also shot in a long take to make the joke clearer. Keaton is kept centre frame during the cop banana gun joke to keep our attention on him. The man flipping bottles on the beach is centre frame, while Keaton is on the right side of the shot, a realist technique through long shot but only done for comedy so that the audience can see reactions of both men. Long take of Keaton shooting bottles used to let the audience focus on what they want but cuts to close up of man mocking him with exaggerated reactions and makes us focus on him, but this situation is expressionist also as Keaton makes impossible misses/shots

The film uses a realist technique as the man is shot in his back, which is not centre frame either. The man behind the counter is kept out of frame for a comedic jump at Keaton to scare him, which is expressive since it is hiding information from the audience as it is from the protagonist for comedic effect. The shooting range scene is a long shot to show Keatons lack of aim for comedy, an expressive joke shot in a realist technique. The Blinking Buzzards are a comedic/comic representation of gangs in the 1920’s America. An Inter title card gives information on the gang, telling the audience how bad they are instead of letting them see for themselves or come to own conclusions, so this is expressive. The shot of Keaton worrying cuts to dog with meat to tell us directly what he is focusing on, and force our attention onto it. An iris shot on the gang leaders message makes us look at it to understand the message.

An iris shot on calendar also makes us understand more contextual information when it was already visible in the background of the long shot of the basement. Another intertitle card gives contextual information on August Nickelnurser, explaining his character before the audience even sees him, and he is first shown in a vignette shot to make us focus on him and understand that this man in frame is him. A close up on the letter from the gang to August has the sides of the frame blacked out to make us reads the text and understand the circumstances August is in. Another iris shot on August’s daughter is done to show her reaction and pondering, showing her to be an important plot element. A long shot of the gang’s basement lets us focus on anything in frame which is a realist technique, but the cartoon depiction of real gangs through exaggerated performances also makes it expressive. The iris shot of the gang leader shows that he’s impressed by Keaton’s shooting skills and makes sure that the audience notices it so that the plot can progress. An iris shot keeps our focus on the cash in the register to make us see it, therefore setting up the robbery joke. Parallel editing between the dog and Keaton shows the relation between them, but does not a show where Keaton is shooting, just how he is faking it. Expressive as the audience’s attention has to be on whatever is important in that moment, and is not allowed to wander on anything in frame assuming its all visible and in focus. A close up on the cat shows that it is afraid of the dog, which is expressive as it makes the audience understand the correlation and that events are about to escalate because of it. The film then cuts between Keaton and the dog to show that things will escalate via parallel editing, making certain that the audience understands why the bell wont stop ringing and Keaton has to improvise.

An iris shot of the woman brings attention to how she is persuading Keaton. The iris shot of Nickelnurser’s business card does the same. A close up of Keaton stood with gang member behind holding a skull shows us what scares Keaton for the joke. A close up of Keatons shocked face looking at the letter, him looking at camera to show shock, and an intertitle card telling him to kill Nickelnurser tells us directly the bizarre scenario. Intertitle card literally tells us what Keaton has to do and the bizarre nature of it. It’s an expressionist gag as Keaton paints coat hanger on wall and it magically works. Iris shot of banana gun makes us pay attention to it and make the connection to the earlier gag, representing social distrust again of police at the time. There is a fourth wall break as Keaton looks at camera and does the high sign for comedic effect, which is expressionist. A long shot is used when the cop catches up to Keaton, and we can see them fighting and Keaton trying to use the high sign but also the man approaching in the background with a baton. This is a realist technique as the audience is allowed to look at what they want to in frame. Another Inter title card tells us that there are booby traps in home for Nickelnurser’s safety even though we can see that, so the filmmakers are making sure the audience understands the set up for the climax, an expressionist technique.

It’s another expressionist gag as Keaton looks into his tea cup and sees a horse kicking, which is symbolic and conveys meaning to the audience. Not objective reality. There is a realist long shot showing August pretending to be dead on floor and his daughter mourning him while the gang member can be seen in the background congratulating Keaton before leaving. But then the film cuts to a close up on August and his daughter to show him revealing that he is still alive, and she shocked as she looks at the camera, breaking the fourth wall and directly communicating her emotions to the audience, all expressionist techniques. Parallel editing of gang outside and Keaton inside shows that they know he has faked August’s death. The chase sequence begins with close ups to direct our attention to where the action is happening, such as the window shot of Keaton falling back down onto the gang member poking his head out, but eventually cuts to a long shot to let us look where we want. The house here is similar to the one in One Week, constructed in an expressionist way for comedic effect, but shot in a realist way to let us see the whole joke. However The High Sign does cut to close up shots occasionally to break up the long shot to make us focus on important moments, e.g when Keaton finds August and his daughter again, guiding behind the curtains. The gang leader is shown in a long shot as he aims his gun at August’s daughter, centre frame despite the fact that Keaton is in frame, to the right. This is a realist technique as our attention can wander to Keaton pulling the trap door lever, the gang leader holding the gun up, or August’s daughter’s distressed reaction. However, just before this it cuts to a close up of the gang leader and the woman, getting the audience to focus on this dramatic development. The final shot iris zooms in on Keatons hand to show high sign gag, focusing the audiences attention on this one last joke.

Filibustering Keaton: The Scarecrow

The scene setting in the first intertitle card is expressionist, influencing the audience. The next shot is of the sun rising, which is an expressionist technique as it is sped up to show the passage of time, communicating information to the audience without letting them realise it themselves. Then next intertitle card gives context to the layout of the house. Buster is kept centre frame at first to keep the audiences focus on him, which is an expressionist technique. The next shot is a long shot in focus depth which is realism as it allows the audience to look where they want and cut with their own eyes, taking information from the frame without it being told directly to them.

There is then an iris shot of the mirror, forcing our attention onto the man’s reflection and woman’s picture, which is expressive. The film cuts between Keaton and his roommate to show Keatons jealously aswell as his exaggerated reaction, which is a form of expressionism, using unrealistic characters to convey information to the audience rather than attempting to capture objective reality. The camera cuts to a closer shot of the two men to show their gestures and expressions, which is expressionist as it directs our focus onto objects of significance. We cut between one side and the other side of the houses front door, which is done in parallel editing to show that the mans actions on one side affect Keaton on the other, which is an expressionist technique of conveying information although the film is representing a real way of removing tooth. The long shot of Keaton’s tooth being removed is realist. An expressionist close up of Keaton shows that he is healed, directing our attention to this important plot development.

Keaton is kept centre frame when its just him in shot to keep our attention on him, which is expressionist. An iris shot of gas meter brings attention to it. The table with strings gag is an expressive scenario but shot in a long shot on static camera so a realist technique reflecting the widespread poverty of the time in America. There is a similarity to one week in the crafty and unrealistic furniture that is expressionist but reflects the poverty of this time period so its realist context represented in an expressionist way with realist techniques. No particular person focused on here, the film only shows the aspects of the house, however its not objective reality represented here as the scene is for the purpose of a gag. Parallel editing is used during the chase sequence to cut between Keaton and his roommate to tell the audience that both events are happening at the same time. An iris shot is used to bring the audiences attention to the medicine labels, which is expressionism.

There is a long shot of Keaton running around a building to escape the dog on the roof, which is realist as it allows for the audience to look at what they want to in frame. The buildings here represent rural farmland of America at the time, which is realism. The romance between the woman and two men also shows the traditional gender roles of the time. Another iris shot of the dog in Keaton’s one room house brings our focus to it. The Scarecrow shows a realist context of farming in America during the 1920’s, as seen by the maize fields and agriculture technology, scarecrows and huts. A long shot of Keaton dressed as a scarecrow hiding from the men in maize field is a realist technique. The costumes, veichles and technology are realist depictions of the time period as seen in the horses still being used on roads. An iris shot on screw being put on lady’s finger to is done to make a joke but shows poverty in realism through expressive technique. Intertitle card at the end shows that the couple are now married, directly giving information to the audience, which is expressive filmmaking. Cinematography, editing, mise en scen and performance are expressionist and the scenarios are too but represent realist context through some realist techniques for the purpose of a gag, similarly to one week.

Expressive scenario of a marriage being performed on a motorbike ended through an expressive filmmaking technique in the form of an iris shot, directing the audiences attention onto everything in frame and not blacked out.

Filibustering Keaton: One Week

In the opening shot of One Week, an iris shot reverses and expands to reveal the whole screen, which is expressive as it adds a layer to the film that does not capture objective reality. The first shot of the calendar is an example of expressionism as it directly gives the audience information to contextualise the film, such as what day of the week it is on a calendar. The first intertitle card is expressionist as the text is there to manipulate the audience into accepting the message and to convey the point that the film is making, hinting at the bad events to come in “such a sour echo”.The sound that is added to the film in post production is expressive as it tells the audience when something is exiting or sad, and so on, manipulating them into understanding the meaning rather than capturing objective reality and letting them come to their own conclusions. The next shot is an iris shot with a bell centre frame, the rest of the shot cut out by the black sides of the iris, directing the audiences attention onto the bell, or whatever is important in that moment of the film.

There is then a cross fade from the bell to the newly married couple leaving the church, which is also expressive as it shows that these two events are connected. The shot of them leaving the wedding is realist though as it is a long shot that allows for the viewer to direct their attention to anything in frame, although the central framing of the couple who are descending the church steps to be exactly centre frame shows that they are the object of importance here. So here, cinematography creates a mixture of realism and expressionism through composition. People throw rice at the couple aggressively, which is a realist depiction of the tradition, but the aggressiveness of their throwing of the rice and the shoes is there to be funny and therefore expressive, as it does not capture objective reality.

As the couple are about to walk out of frame Keaton stops to pick up a pair of shoes, which is a gag but also reflects the poverty of the time period. The costumes that people are wearing are realistic reflections of what was fashionable at the time of filming this. And aren’t exaggerated for effect like what would be done in German Expressionism. All intertitle cards are expressive as they provide context that the film itself doesn’t, so manipulate the audience into understanding more. We then cut to a close up shot in depth of field of Handy Hank, which is expressive as it directs our attention to him, and his performance is an exaggerated depiction of a jealous man. The next shot is a 3 shot with no emphasis on any particular character so we can focus on who we want, which is a realist technique. The film is filmed on a real street-representative of America at that time. There is then a cutaway to a closeup of a wedding gift card, but it is shot in vignette to focus our attention on what is important, which is expressive, directing the audiences focus, therefore manipulating them.

There is an unrealistic and therefore expressive stunt as Keaton balances between two cars. One Week often uses exaggerated situations and performances to emphasise athleticism and bravery, which is an expressionist technique used here for the purpose of physical comedy. But this is still shot in L.A, which makes it a realist representation of America at the time of filming in the 1920s. There are no close ups or cutaways or focus directions in action sequences apart from central framing, which makes these comedic action sequences expressionist scenarios that represent the context of the films setting and time period through realist filmmaking techniques. This can also be seen in the cop being knocked out gag, which is an expressionist representation of the real distrust of police at the time in America, done for the sake of a joke here. This is expressive, but is also shot by a static camera in a long shot, which makes it a realist technique. Realist depiction of flat pack portable build your own house gift gag, realist depiction of social problem of lack of affordable housing at the time. Iris shot of delivery man and inter title card and close up on him isolating him-expressive and manipulative. Box is left right way for us to read it as it is opened, which is expressive to give context. Iris close up shot of directions sign to show that it is important plot element. Vignette shot of first direction is expressive as it forces the audience to focus on a certain thing, usually an important plot element in the film.

The shot then fades to black and brings us back to the calendar, directly giving the audience contextual information, which is expressive, showing the passage of time. Keaton’s stunt performed on the plank is expressive since it does not progress the plot at all or present bye time reality, it’s simply there for the purpose of a joke. The gender roles of the couple, the woman cooking and man working on the house, is a realistic depiction of traditional gender roles at the time. However, parallel editing is used here to show that these two events are happening no at the same time, which is expressive as it gives information directly to the audience without letting come to their own conclusions. The cinematography is also dictated by the jokes in One Week, as seen when awe cut to a long shot to get a full view of Keaton falling from the plank, which makes it expressive. There is then parallel editing between Handy Hank and the couple, and Hank’s expressions and mannerisms are extreme exaggerated to show his glee at the trick he’s pulled off, which is expressive as it strays form a realistic depiction of reality.

The house itself here is also constructed for Keaton to do stunts off, as seen when the wall flips and leaves Keatons wife hanging in mid-air, which is in no way similar to reality. This mise en scene is similar to that of German Expressionism, which used exaggerated and symbolic mise en scene to convey meaning and themes. Keaton’s wife also breaks the fourth wall when she swoons over him, looking at and therefore acknowledging the camera and audience, which is expressionist as it does not portray objective reality, and directly communicates with the audience. However, there is then an expressive scenario in the strongman giving Keaton the piano that crushes him filmed in a realism technique through long shot in depth of focus which is a realism technique as it allows for the audience to focus on what they want to.

One Week often incorporates expressionist scenarios for the sake of comedy, such as Keaton dangling from a chandelier, but films them through more realist techniques, such as long takes from static cameras, which allows for the audience to see the whole image themselves and therefore take in the entire gag. However, it also uses expressionist techniques, such as an Iris shot on the wife shouting up at Keaton to bring the audiences attention to important plot points, but at the same time is realist in its depiction of 1920’s America and traditional gender roles at the time, poverty and traditions/societal norms. Each of the little comic sequences that comprise the overall film are shot in static cameras, long shot, depth of focus etc to let the action play out, which is realist filmmaking. But parallel editing is an expressive technique as its a filmmaking technique used to convey information directly to the audience, thereby preventing them from coming to their own conclusions. In the bath scene, for example, the wife directly acknowledges the camera and therefore the audience, breaking the fourth wall, an expressive technique used here for comedic effect. As Keaton runs through the extremely high up door and lands on the ground, a long shot is incorporated so that the audience can take in the entire stunt, but is a realist technique regardless.

There is an iris shot of Keaton as he realises rain is coming through the roof, making the audience notice his dismayed and comedic reaction. This is the filmmaker making decisions for the audience rather than letting them cut with their own eyes. The whole situation of the house spinning is also expressive, done for comedic effect, shot through depth of focus and long shots which are realist techniques of filmmaking. The editing in this sequence is also expressive as the length of shots decreases and the pace of editing increases to increase the intensity and pace of the scene, therefore manipulating the audiences reaction. The wife at the piano is shown through an iris shot to signify her importance and focus the audiences attention. The intertitle card of the merry-go-round joke is literally a joke written on screen, directly communicated to the audience for comedy rather than conveyed through physical action or sequence, which is expressive. To show the effects of the storm, the house is physically altered to look more damaged and deformed, which is expressive as the depiction of reality is manipulated for comedic effect, not showing objective reality in the process. As the couple try to get their house off the railway tracks, there is parallel editing to show the train approaching, which is an expressive technique. Joke relies on our perspective and position from where we’re seeing things take place, position of camera allows joke to work, expressive as it is manipulative, shows train coming one way and makes it look like it will hit the house. The audience cant see it coming from the other way. At the end, you see the real location of the time, which is realism in the film.

Andre Bazin: The Realist v.s The Expressive

Andre Bazin was a French film critic and theorist who was active from 1951 to his death in 1958. He wrote in the popular magazine ‘Cahiers du Cinema’ which he founded in 1951. He believed that the filmmaker should strive for objectivity and refrain from manipulating the audience in any way, rather, allowing them to come to their own conclusions and experience the film in a personal and subjective way. “It adds nothing to the reality, it does not deform it, it forces it to reveal its structural depth, to bring out its pre-existing relations”. He believed that it was possible to show the essence of reality by simply showing it through film without altering or manipulating it into fiction, etc.

However, he did not believe in realist films as in observational documentary that only documented events without any intervention, but rather for the film to select what it is showing. “Every form of aesthetic must necessarily choose between what is worth preserving and what should be discarded, and what should not even be considered”. He said that the entity and whole of the film should be preserved, so that the audience can understand it. He knew that film could not show the essence of reality by simply being as realistic or authentic as possible, instead deciding which parts of reality to show and emphasising the belief that the end result image should be whole and that the fact of reality should be the basis for creating this whole image of reality, which we know as realism in film.

Bazin, essentially, looked for essence in real events and facts and believed that that should be captured and conveyed through film to create a whole picture of reality in realism film. He knew that all films lied somewhere on the spectrum between complete realism and total expressionism, but believed that films should strive for objectivity in presenting an important facet of reality for the audience to view and interpret in a subjective, personal way. Since Bazin was opposed to the use of manipulating the audiences interpretation, this extended to the use of editing, such as Soviet Montage, which was a popular filmmaking technique in Russia at the time of his writing. However, he was not completely opposed to the use of editing.

“Bazin is not against editing which forms the basis of film structure, that is cutting necessary to join unconnected scenes/sequences, but is against optical illusions (superimpositions, dissolves, process shots), needless pedestrian editing within a single scene, and expressive editing that adds meaning through the juxtaposition rather than content of each image. Bazin employs a simple aesthetic criteria for deciding when to edit: anytime two or more objects/subjects are necessary to the construction of meaning in a scene, depth of field is preferable over editing.”

As observational documentary filmmakers attempt to do, Bazin argued for directors who made themselves “invisible” and depicted “objective reality”. He advocated the use of deep focus, which allows for a large depth of field in a shot, making all aspects of the frame completely visible to the audience and letting them focus their attention on what they want, so the director avoids manipulating the audiences. This method can be seen most famously in Citizen Kane(Orson Wells, 1941). He also believed in wide shots so that the audience could look at what they wanted to, such as in The High Sign(Buster Keaton, 1921). This conflicted with the theory of societ montage that had emerged at the the time of his writings, which he disagreed with as it distorted objective reality and it could be used to manipulate viewers.

He had conflicting ideas of the director involving a unique and certain style onto their film, but also allowing the audience to interpret the film in their own way without having meaning forced onto them. He believed that filmmakers should engage themselves with the production process personally because “it is the director that brings the film to life and uses the film to express their thoughts and feelings about the subject matter as well as a worldview as an auteur. An auteur cash use lighting, camerawork, staging and editing to add to their vision.” Bazin argued that the director was the author of the film through their personality and preference.

“This is why depth of field is not just a stock in trade of the cameraman like the use of a series of filters or of such-and-such a style of lighting, it is a capital gain in the field of direction—a dialectical step forward in the history of film language.”

“In addition to affecting the structure of film language, it also affects the relationships of the minds of the spectators to the image, and in consequence it influences the interpretation of the spectacle.”

Bazin claimed that depth of focus brought the film closer to a depiction of complete reality, which would in turn bring the viewer closer to the film, interpreting it in a personal way without the filmmakers influence, but also seeing a film that reflected the directors own interpretation of reality without attempting to inflict it on their audience.

Bazin and a cat. Cute photo.

Buster Keaton: The Silent Clown

Joseph Frank “Buster” Keaton was born in October, 1895 in Kansas, USA. He moved to New York in 1917, where he was signed to show in “The Passing Show of 1917”. He made popularity throughout a series of commercials and American programs, and directed his first film, Sherlock Jr. in 1924. He did not experiment with expressionism and realism, simply just filming what he thought audiences would find funny, which often involved physical stunts that he himself performed or unrealistic and wild scenarios involving a naive but lovable protagonist that he played.

He became very famous and one of the most iconic actors/creators of silent cinema, as people recognised him for his physical gags, still stature and chaotic situations. His films involved a clueless hero who would accidentally get dragged into escalating situations what would eventually reach a climax, performing stunts to achieve physical comedy and creating sets that he used to perform off of and create comedy through the environment, as seen in the unfinished house in One Week(Buster Keaton, 1920).

Although his career died out after the end of silent cinema, Buster Keaton is remembered as one of the pioneers of comedic film, and one of the most iconic faces of silent cinema.

Cops (Buster Keaton, 1922)

Cops was written and directed by Buster Keaton in 1922, and follows the usual clueless and naive Keaton character getting into insane scenarios. Here, Buster stokes the anger of an entire city’s police force, after a series of laughable events, and ends up outrunning them through some unique and crafty escape routes.

The film is similar to Keaton’s other films of the 1920’s, except Cops involves more outrageous and unbelievable scenes, such as Keaton outrunning hundreds of cops or catching a bomb and using it to light his cigarette while riding a cart full of stolen furniture, in the middle of a police parade! The film suspends realism to a large extent, featuring impossible stunts and scenarios that escalate into outright chaos, as his films often did, involving physical stunts to achieve comedy and reflecting the belief that cops were unnecessary at the time, including one aspect of realism. The film is not expressionist either though, only using impossible stunts and structures to achieve comedy, as Keatons other films of the 20’s did. They reflect the industrial advancement of America at the time, and follows an innocent but chaos-creating man who the audience can sympathise with in his struggles.

I personally enjoyed Cops a lot! It did escalate extremely quickly and ended up being quite jarring with the pace and lack of buildup to the absolute calamity that was the climax. But other than that it involved some of the funniest stunts and wacky moments of any other Keaton film, although the ending was very sudden and the plot was almost too unbelievable at times. I rate Cops 3 and a half stars!

The High Sign (Buster Keaton, 1921)

The High Sign was written and directed by Buster Keaton in 1921, and follows a man in a seaside town who accidentally becomes involves in an assassination plot, where he is both hired to kill a man and protect him from harm. Things escalate, as they often do in Keaton films, and the plot intensifies and the stakes are raised as events become more chaotic and ridiculous.

The film combines elements of realism, reflecting the time period in which it was made, and expressionism, with some elaborate stunts and impossible scenarios that are used for comedic effect. For example, Keaton is working in a shooting ranch in one scene, but then creates a coat hanger by painting one on a wall in the next. It is only used for comedy, but the jokes in The High Sign are more elaborate than those in One Week(Buster Keaton, 1920) and The Scarecrow(Buster Keaton, 1920). In these films Keaton achieves comedy by using exaggerated movements and stunts to make physical comedy in wild, over-the-top scenarios. This is done in The High Sign, but here Keaton also creates a more complex plot with more buildup than climax, as the main action sequence only happens at the end of the film. He relies less on physical comedy and more on the bizarre and wild nature of the scenario that he is in and the outcome of the things he does by accident due to his own characters naive and clueless personality, something that the other films feature.

I personally really enjoyed The High Sign! I liked how the small and silly events escalated and spiralled into a funny and exiting climax, and Keaton’s clueless but lovable character moved through them, hanging on by the skin of his teeth but somehow making it out fine. It was goofy, silly, but entertaining nonetheless. I rate The High Sign 4 stars!

The Scarecrow (Buster Keaton, 1920)

The Scarecrow was written and directed by Buster Keaton in 1920, and stars him living in a single house with a man who plans to propose to the same woman as him. As the film continues, Keaton becomes involved in a number of wild and wacky situations that involve physical stunts, comedy and romance, as things escalate and become more ridiculous as they go on.

The film was released the same year as One Week(Buster Keaton, 1920), and involves many of the same themes. A man, played by Keaton, getting into multiple crazy and unbelievably unlucky scenarios that involve him running away from something, or performing some impressive stunts for some reason. Keaton often incorporated physical, slapstick comedy into his films, as many silent film stars did in the 1920’s, such as Charlie Chaplin, using exaggerated movements and seemingly painful stunts performed by a clueless but lovable protagonist who cant catch a break. The film is fast paced, and once the chase scene begins, it remains exiting and intense towards the final frame. The environment is built specifically for Keaton to run around in manic circles from a “mad dog!”, and the house itself incorporated physical comedy in the way that it is built, similarity to One Week.

I personally really enjoyed this film! It was much faster and intense than One Week, which I also enjoyed, and involves less ridiculous situations with funnier outcomes and moments. It feels longer but is consistently paced, and Keaton’s slapstick comedy and stunts bring a lot to the film. It was funny and entertaining, as films were made to be in the Hollywood industry at the time. I rate The Scarecrow 4 and a half stars!

One Week (Buster Keaton, 1920)

One Week was written and directed by Buster Keaton in 1920 and follows a newly married couple trying to assemble a portable house kit, when they come up against a multitude of obstacles and inconveniences that end to an interesting end result.

The film is in the romantic comedy genre, and features much slapstick and physical comedy by Buster Keaton who performs stunts and tricks for comedic effect. It also falls into both realism and expressionism as the events in the film are completely impossible, but reflect the time period in which it was made and is not artistic. The film is funny as it involves many unrealistic and over the top stunts and situations that are so exaggerated that they are laughable, and the goofy nature of the film and wild shenanigans that the couple get into make it a fast paced comedy.

The film is silent, and a musical score was composed to be fast and jingle, reflecting the lighthearted and innocent nature of the film but also the exiting and dramatic physical comedy, rising and falling in the mix to reflect emotion and tone. The film also uses sped up footage to quicken the pace and make Keaton’s movements look more unnatural and funny, and also. Heightens the pace and comedy.

I personally enjoyed One Week a lot! I found it more funny than most other silent films I’ve seen. It was funny, innocent, and entertaining, and the perfect length for a short film.

Silent Cinema: Stars And Studios In The States

While film was viewed more as an art form in Europe, it became a commercial enterprise in America. In the backdrop of the Great Depression of the 1930’s, the film industry was propelled forwards by aspiring businessmen and audiences who desired some form of escapism. The introduction of audio to films also brought more people to theatres and made more possibility’s for musicals, comedies, romance and western genres, which became the most successful and popular in the 1930’s. Entrepreneurs viewed it as a business opportunity, so film studios were formed and began to buy up the rights to actors and competed against others, and had moved there in the first place to avoid copyright infringement lawsuits by Tomas Edison. They wanted to make a large a profit as possible so that they could invest it into their next film project, making that bigger and more enticing to audiences, to make more profit, and so on.

They aimed to attract as many people to the theatres, which they owned, as possible, and they did this by hiring notable stars, directors, etc, and exercising complete control over the production process so as to keep the final product exactly as they wanted it. Genre films like comedies and romances emerged and became more popular as audiences flocked to the theatres to see the stars, not the plots. Similarly to how slapstick comedies were so popular during the era of silent cinema. Names like Gary Fonda and Marilyn Monroe became known by viewers everywhere, and studios hired these actors and actresses through contracts that prevented them from working for other studios. Audiences came for the glamour of the stories, fantasy and actors, and studios took advantage of this by owning every step of the production process, from production to distribution and exhibition.

The commercialisation of film as an industry led to it being dominated by 5 main studios (Paramount, RKO, MGM, Warner Brothers and 20th Century Fox), and the production of films becoming an efficient, assembly line process, where actors and directors were viewed as assets by the studios, who were at the top of the creative process, instead of the filmmaker or government, such as in Russia or Germany at the time. This meant that films were much more focused on entertainment and attraction than artistic expression or experimentation. While patriotic films did emerge during WW2, there was little experimentation with new techniques, as people made films for money and fame. “Screwball comedy” became the most significant comedy genre in the 1930’s, characterised by fast paced, witty dialogue and containing elements of romance and adult humour. This was essentially the first form romantic comedy, and it attracted large audiences who looked for escapism from the economic climate of the 1930’s. The amount of money that the industry made was used to invest in films with bigger stars, sets, equipment and locations etc. Traditional American values like optimism and courage were celebrated and displayed in these films, taking people away from the Depression at the time and being immersed in the motion pictures they saw.

Creating Meaning: German Expressionism and Soviet Montage

The original Khuleshov Effect, created in the 1920’s by filmmaker Lev Khuleshov, here’s showing actor Ivan mosjoukine reacting to 3 different scenarios, giving his expression context and therefore meaning, despite it staying the same after each shot and relatively blank.

A still shot from The Cabinet Of Dr. Caligari(Robert Wiene, 1920) in which these twisted and surreal buildings reflect the theme of madness and paranoia, giving the film a visually dark and gothic aesthetic.

Component 2c: Silent Cinema

For this part of the course we will be looking at silent cinema from the 1920’s. We will be watching One Week(Buster Keaton, 1920), The Scarecrow(Buster Keaton, 1921), and Cops(Buster Keaton, 1922) and The High Sign(Buster Keaton 1921). We will be assessed on Aesthetics and key elements of film form, and I have looked through past exam questions to see what sort of things will be asked in an exam and what I should be thinking about as we work through this component.