Cops (1922) starring Buster Keaton
Buster Keaton’s Cops is a very funny, fast-paced silent comedy. The well-meaning Buster manages to get the entire police force of the city chasing after him!
Synopsis of Cops
In a nutshell, that’s the driving conflict. Buster needs to become a big businessman, to impress his girlfriend. But how? Then, opportunity arises unexpectedly. A men enters a cab, but drops his wallet. Buster tries to return it, but the other man is brusque and dismissive. He pushes Buster out of the way and leaves. Having dropped his wallet again.
Buster picks it up, counting the large wad of cash inside. The man has the cab drive back, and plucks the wallet from Buster’s hand! He’s congratulating himself, until he realizes that the wallet’s empty! The cab goes back again, and the man gets out. Meanwhile, on the opposite side of the cab, Buster gets in, and the cab drives off! And the audience realizes that the man’s a high-ranking official …
Buster Keaton’s in the money
Now that Buster has money to invest, how to spend it wisely? A family is moving from an apartment to a house, and they’ve called for a mover. But, a con man, having seen Buster with the cash, fools him into “buying” the furniture, beds, etc. Buster’s planning on reselling “his” new furniture at a profit. But how to sell it? Across the street, he sees a horse and wagon for sale. For only $5.00! Of course, this is another misunderstanding, but Buster doesn’t realize it, and takes “his” horse and wagon to load up “his” furniture.
The actual owner of the furniture helps load the wagon, thinking that Buster’s the moving man he hired. It’s a very funny, slapstick affair. But eventually, Buster leaves with “his” furniture, horse, and wagon. When buster tries to signal for a turn, he gets bitten by a dog! So, in a moment of clown cleverness, he uses a telescoping piece for furniture and a boxing glove as a turn signal. Punching out a cop on the way!
In the Parade
There’s wan annual police parade. And, the audience sees that Buster’s girlfriend is the Mayor’s daughter. And Buster mistakenly gets caught up in the parade! That’s funny enough, but then an anarchist throws a bomb on Buster. He throws its away — in the midst of the police! And the madcap chase is under way! The poor horse runs wildly, knocking over a fire hydrant! Hundreds of police officers are now chasing Buster. He keeps eluding capture in a variety of funny, clownish escapes. It’s madcap, and hilarious! And that homeowner, who’s been waiting for his furniture to arrive? He’s also a cop!
There’s far too much visual comedy to share here — the movie’s embedded at the bottom. But, I’m going to include my favorite: Buster is trying to escape over a fence, courtesy of a long ladder. It acts like a giant seesaw, with police on both ends of the ladder. It ends with him getting catapulted through the air!
At the very end, a huge crowd of cops chase Buster Keaton into the police precinct. Somehow, Buster appropriates a policeman’s uniform, walks out, and locks the door behind him! He sees his girlfriend who … snubs him. Brokenhearted, Buster unlocks the precinct doors, walks into the mass of cops, ending the short.
Cast
- Buster Keaton (Seven Chances) … The Young Man
- Edward F. Cline (The Boat) … Hobo
- Virginia Fox (The Haunted House) … Mayor’s Daughter
- Steve Murphy (The Circus) … Conman Selling Furniture
- Joe Roberts (Our Hospitality) … Police Chief
Editorial review of Cops courtesy of Amazon.com
Buster Keaton, arguably the greatest comedian that ever lived, enthralled audiences into sidesplitting laughter with his unique, clever, and outrageous comedy. Here in the short, silent film Cops, Keaton does it again by employing his patented physical inventiveness and playful storytelling. In love with a greedy girl, Keaton sets out to make himself a rich businessman to impress her. Through a set of convoluted complications, Keaton ends up stealing furniture, acquiring a horse and wagon, and enraging the entire city police force to the point that they ALL chase him! Eluding hundreds and hundreds of men in uniform, Keaton’s acrobatic and athletic stunts never cease to amaze and amuse as he defies every last policeman. A pillar of artistic achievement, Cops boasts one of the greatest chase scenes ever recorded and is one of Keaton’s best films.