Sherlock Jr.
1924 · 45m · USA
Directed by Buster Keaton
Genres: comedy, mystery, romance
Tones: surreal, tense, whimsical
A lovelorn movie projectionist who dreams of becoming a detective falls asleep in the booth and literally enters the film on screen as the suave 'Sherlock Jr.,' solving a jewel theft in his fantasy while his girlfriend does the real detective work to clear his name.
Picked by Margot
The scouts
Keaton walks into the screen in 1924 and postmodernism shows up forty years late, hat in hand. Every meta-cinema trick since is a footnote to this.
Keaton's meta-cinematic dream sequence anticipates Buñuel, Resnais, and the entire postmodern toolkit by nearly half a century, and the Archive print is reliable. A foundational work that retains its delight.
Keaton physically walking into the projected screen and getting tossed between cuts as locations change around him is a stunt and a thesis about cinema in one shot. Internet Archive confirms it's still streaming public domain, which is rare luck for a 1924 short.
Reviews
The impeccable comedian directs himself in an impeccable silent comedy.
A clockwork machine of craftsmanship, Sherlock Jr. is Keaton at his best. Precise gag construction, lots of laughs and a personal point of view make this not only one of the best comedies of all time, but also an early reflection on the role of cinema and storytelling in our personal lives.