Buster Keaton is the G.O.A.T.
And in this silent short, he's also the 'goat
In today’s header, we are watching a scene from 1921’s silent film “The Goat.” It stars Buster Keaton, who of course does all his own incredible stunts to amusing effect.
In the film, thanks to a photographic mix-up, Buster’s unfortunate drifter character is mistaken for notorious criminal “Dead Shot Dan,” (played by co-director and co-writer Malcolm St. Clair) although for much of the movie our hero has no idea why he is being pursued by the police. This confusion only adds to the humorously preposterous premise and makes for some amusing and magnificently-choreographed chase and escape scenes. Our scapegoat (hence, the film’s title) at one point rescues a lovely lady (played by Virginia Fox) from a street bully but before he can make her acquaintance further he again must flee from a nearby officer. While on the run he finally learns of the mistaken identity driving the law to come after him and soon meets up with with the chief of police (in the delightful comedic foil of Joe Roberts), who hunts him doggedly but ultimately unsuccessfully.
Finally our hero’s luck appears to turn for the better when he again encounters the beautiful lady he had met earlier. She invites him to dinner at the house of her and her parents. All seems to be going well as mother and daughter bustle about finishing the meal while their guest busies himself playing with the family dog. Into this busy scene the father returns home; he’s the very same police chief from the earlier chase. Comedic tension builds as neither man at first notices the other, but finally they spy each other across the table. All seems dire for our hero as the police chief locks the door and menaces closer, but in a wonderfully nimble cartoon-worthy maneuver, Keaton leaps over his captor and glides through the transom window to freedom.
“The Goat” was made only a few years after Keaton’s move to Hollywood in 1917. With his family’s vaudeville act having been only recently disbanded, Buster invited his father, mother and sister to play small roles in the film. Keaton’s father also had a hand in assisting with scouting locations for filming, and Keaton and St. Clair had real talent at stitching scenes together with seamless continuity. Many of the shots from “The Goat” were filmed within walking distance of Keaton’s LA studio. Check out the filming locations link below to see where different scenes were shot and woven together.
You can watch the movie in its entirety at the Internet Archive database: Internet Archive: "The Goat" by Buster Keaton
Wikipedia: The Goat (1921 film)
Quiet Bubble: "Buster Keaton #7: The High Sign (1921) & The Goat (1921)" by Walter Biggins, 7/29/15
The Great Stone Face always amazed me with the stunts he did. Between Buster and Harold Lloyd's work I can't decide who was doing the more dangerous stuff but I can't believe they weren't killed. Buster broke his neck doing a stunt for one move but didn't find out until years later when an x-ray was done! Imagine walking around with a broken neck. Thanks Martini!