A film projectionist longs to be a detective, and puts his meager skills to work when he is framed by a rival for stealing his girlfriend's father's pocketwatch.
Stunts
The motorcycle sequence — no cuts, pure insanity
Editing
Screen-within-screen transitions that invented meta-cinema
Direction
Keaton's poker face against maximum chaos
Director
Buster Keaton
Buster Keaton
Projectionist / Sherlock, Jr.
Kathryn McGuire
Girl
Joe Keaton
Girl's Father / Man on Film Screen
Erwin Connelly
Hired Man / Butler
Ward Crane
Sheik / Villain
Doris Deane
Girl Who Loses Dollar Outside Cinema (uncredited)
George Davis
Conspirator (uncredited)
Kewpie Morgan
Conspirator (uncredited)
Steve Murphy
Conspirator (uncredited)
John Patrick
Conspirator (uncredited)
Betsy Ann Hisle
Little Girl (uncredited)
Trivia, insights & behind the scenes
Keaton performed the famous motorcycle stunt with a broken neck from a previous scene — he didn't know until years later when X-rayed.
The film-within-film structure directly influenced everything from Purple Rose of Cairo to Last Action Hero to Everything Everywhere All at Once.
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