Movie Discussion: Sherlock Jr. (1924) by Buster Keaton

About this event

Anticipating Jean-Luc Godard and postmodernism by decades, the detective fantasy Sherlock Jr. largely takes place inside the head of a hapless and wronged cinema projectionist (Buster Keaton) who dreams himself into the screen, only to be flummoxed by the film’s editing. Among the film's many antecedents and influences is Delmore Schwartz’s short story ​“In Dreams Begin Responsibilities,” whose title might just as well suggest the wild inventions of Keaton’s filmography. "Makes later efforts by Dalí, Buñuel and Cocteau look pedestrian and a bit timid. They felt obliged to clarify matters by a symbolistic apparatus. Keaton never rose — or sunk — to that." (New York Review of Books) "Both a love letter to cinema and a gentle warning about its power. The screen can offer freedom, but it offers freedom in pre-existing forms." (Philosophy in Film) “A clockwork machine of craftmanship, Sherlock Jr. is Keaton at his best. Precise gag construction, lots of laughs and a personal point of view make this film 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.” (Sight and Sound) \-\-\-\-\-\-\-\-\-\-\-\-\-\-\-\-\-\-\-\-\-\-\-\-\-\-\-\-\-\-\-\-\-\-\-\-\-\-\-\-\-\-\-\-\-\-\-\-\-\-\-\-\-\-\-\-\-\-\-\-\-\-\-\-\-\-\-\-\-\-\-\- Let's discuss the 1924 silent film classic Sherlock Jr, directed, produced, and edited by Buster Keaton, and recently voted the 54th greatest movie of all time (https://www.bfi.org.uk/sight-and-sound/greatest-films-all-time) in Sight & Sound's international survey of film critics and scholars. We've previously discussed (https://www.meetup.com/the-toronto-philosophy-meetup/events/308155682/) Keaton's acclaimed 1926 movie The General. Please watch the movie in advance (45 minutes) and bring your thoughts, reactions, and queries to share with us at the meeting. You can stream a high quality copy of the movie here (https://drive.google.com/file/d/1e80r8Y58LDtE54_APNB1VT80gTEY2Lg4/view?usp=sharing) (check the player settings to adjust quality) or rent it through Criterion or other streaming platforms (for best quality). A trailer. (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JSEK1NUPrGA) \-\-\-\-\-\-\-\-\-\-\-\-\-\-\-\-\-\-\-\-\-\-\-\-\-\-\-\-\-\-\-\-\-\-\-\-\-\-\-\-\-\-\-\-\-\-\-\-\-\-\-\-\-\-\-\-\-\-\-\-\-\-\-\-\-\-\-\-\-\-\-\- Check out other movie discussions (https://www.meetup.com/the-toronto-philosophy-meetup/events/calendar/) in the group, currently happening about 2 or 3 times a month. This link here (https://docs.google.com/spreadsheets/d/1g9-EXZDCsRVcVgpXWE80vB9gxkdgdtVFKxTWYrxydA8/edit?usp=sharing) is a spreadsheet of the approximately 200 movies we've watched in this group and my ratings for each. You're invited to share your ratings too if you've watched a bunch of these movies with us. (I can add your list here if you send me a link. You can make your own list on sites like Letterboxd or by copying my spreadsheet and filling in your own values. Note that my list doesn't include every movie that Yorgo hosted on cause I didn't watch them all.)