''Cops'' is a 1922 American
two-reel
A short film is any motion picture that is short enough in running time not to be considered a feature film. The Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences defines a short film as "an original motion picture that has a running time of 40 minutes ...
silent comedy film
A comedy film is a category of film which emphasizes humor. These films are designed to make the audience laugh through amusement. Films in this style traditionally have a happy ending (black comedy being an exception). Comedy is one of the ol ...
about a young man (
Buster Keaton
Joseph Frank "Buster" Keaton (October 4, 1895 – February 1, 1966) was an American actor, comedian, and filmmaker. He is best known for his silent film work, in which his trademark was physical comedy accompanied by a stoic, deadpan expression ...
) who accidentally gets on the bad side of the entire
Los Angeles Police Department
The Los Angeles Police Department (LAPD), officially known as the City of Los Angeles Police Department, is the municipal police department of Los Angeles, California. With 9,974 police officers and 3,000 civilian staff, it is the third-large ...
during a parade and is chased all over town. It was written and directed by
Edward F. Cline and Keaton.
Background and plot
This very
Kafka
Franz Kafka (3 July 1883 – 3 June 1924) was a German-speaking Bohemian novelist and short-story writer, widely regarded as one of the major figures of 20th-century literature. His work fuses elements of realism and the fantastic. It typ ...
-esque film was filmed during the rape-and-murder trial of
Fatty Arbuckle
Roscoe Conkling "Fatty" Arbuckle (; March 24, 1887 – June 29, 1933) was an American silent film actor, comedian, director, and screenwriter. He started at the Selig Polyscope Company and eventually moved to Keystone Studios, where he worked w ...
, a circumstance that may have influenced the short's tone of hopeless ensnarement. Even though the central character's intentions are good, he cannot win, no matter how inventively he tries. He gets into various scraps with police officers throughout the film. Eventually, he unwittingly throws a bomb into a police parade and ends up being chased by a horde of cops.
At the end of the film, Keaton's character locks up the cops in the police station. However, the girl he is trying to woo disapproves of his behavior and gives him the cold shoulder. Therefore, he unlocks the police station and is immediately pulled in by the cops. The film ends with the title "The End" written on a tombstone with Keaton's
pork pie hat
A pork pie hat is one of several different styles of hat that have been popular since the mid-19th century. It features a flat crown that resembles a traditional pork pie.
Buster Keaton and the 1920s
The pork pie began to appear in Britain a ...
propped on it.
One of Keaton's most iconic and brilliantly-constructed short films, ''Cops'' was deemed "culturally, historically, or aesthetically significant" by the United States
Library of Congress
The Library of Congress (LOC) is the research library that officially serves the United States Congress and is the ''de facto'' national library of the United States. It is the oldest federal cultural institution in the country. The library is ...
and selected for preservation in their
National Film Registry
The National Film Registry (NFR) is the United States National Film Preservation Board's (NFPB) collection of films selected for preservation, each selected for its historical, cultural and aesthetic contributions since the NFPB’s inception i ...
in 1997.
Cast
*
Buster Keaton
Joseph Frank "Buster" Keaton (October 4, 1895 – February 1, 1966) was an American actor, comedian, and filmmaker. He is best known for his silent film work, in which his trademark was physical comedy accompanied by a stoic, deadpan expression ...
as The Young Man
*
Joe Roberts as Police Chief
*
Virginia Fox
Virginia Oglesby Zanuck ( Fox; April 19, 1899 or 1902 or 1903 or 1906 – October 14, 1982) was an American actress who starred in many silent films of the 1910s and 1920s.
Life and career
Fox was born as Virginia Oglesby Fox in Wheeling, West ...
as Mayor's Daughter
*
Edward F. Cline as Hobo
* Steve Murphy as Conman selling furniture (uncredited)
See also
*
Buster Keaton filmography
This is a list of films by the American actor, comedian, and filmmaker Buster Keaton.
Short films
Starring Roscoe Arbuckle, featuring Buster Keaton
Starring Buster Keaton under Buster Keaton Productions
Starring Buster Keaton for ...
*
List of United States comedy films
This is a list of American comedy films.
Comedy films are separated into two categories: short films and feature films. Any film over 40 minutes long is considered to be of feature-length (although most feature films produced since 1950 are co ...
*
1922 in film
The following is an overview of 1922 in film, including significant events, a list of films released and notable births and deaths.
Top-grossing films (U.S.)
The top nine films released in 1922 by U.S. gross are as follows:
Events
* June 11 ...
References
External links
*''Cops'' essay by Randy Haberkamp at
National Film Registry
The National Film Registry (NFR) is the United States National Film Preservation Board's (NFPB) collection of films selected for preservation, each selected for its historical, cultural and aesthetic contributions since the NFPB’s inception i ...
br>
*''Cops'' essay by Daniel Eagan in America's Film Legacy: The Authoritative Guide to the Landmark Movies in the National Film Registry, A&C Black, 2010 , pages 81–8
*
*
*
''Cops''at the
International Buster Keaton Society The International Buster Keaton Society Inc.— a.k.a. "The Damfinos"—is the official educational organization dedicated to comedy film producer-director-writer-actor-stuntman Buster Keaton.
Mission
According to the Damfinos, their mission is "t ...
Article at ''InDigest Magazine'' about the film recently being scored by guitarist Steve Kimock
{{Buster Keaton
1922 films
1922 comedy films
1922 short films
American silent short films
Silent American comedy films
American black-and-white films
Articles containing video clips
First National Pictures films
Films directed by Buster Keaton
Films directed by Edward F. Cline
Films produced by Joseph M. Schenck
Films with screenplays by Buster Keaton
Surviving American silent films
United States National Film Registry films
1920s American films