Virginia Fox Movies

The homely Longfellow poem about The Village Blacksmith"will never seem the same after viewing this two-reel spoof. (Buster Keaton) is the assistant to the town blacksmith (Joe Roberts), a big, mean-tempered sort. In the early '20s, it was common for a blacksmith to double as a car mechanic, and Keaton is equally inept at both tasks. This short is essentially a string of wonderful gags -- Keaton helps Virginia Fox's horse pick out just the right shoe, and he methodically and hilariously destroys a gleaming new Rolls Royce. By the end of the film, everyone is out to throttle Keaton for his countless blunders, but somehow he still manages to get the girl! ~ Janiss Garza, All Movie Guide

Although Cops is one of the all-time great two-reelers, its creator, Buster Keaton, never thought much of it. He felt it was just a run-of-the-mill chase film, which suggests that perhaps Keaton was his own worst critic -- the chase is what gives the film its brilliance. The film's beginning is a portent of things to come: Keaton longingly looks at his girl Virginia Fox through what appear to be prison bars. In reality, it's the gate to the mansion where she lives. The girl sends Keaton away, telling him not to return until he is a success in business. Keaton attempts to do so, acquiring, through convoluted means, a horse, wagon, and a load of stolen furniture. Somehow he drives his wagon into the middle of a policeman's parade, where an anarchist's bomb falls in his lap. Carelessly, he lights his cigarette with it and throws it away. It explodes in the middle of the parade, and suddenly Keaton is pursued by every cop in the city. The surrealistic vision of Keaton, small and alone, evading these hundreds upon hundreds of policemen is unforgettable. The filmmaker was both athlete and comic, and here he makes maximum use of both talents, racing down streets, playing a balancing act on a ladder, and casually grabbing hold of a car as it flies past, all in an attempt to evade the cops. When it was first released, this comic short confused many people -- its subtle statements (including its blend of humor and politics) went over the head of the average filmgoer of the '20s. But those same qualities make Cops a classic today. ~ Janiss Garza, All Movie Guide

This two-reeler is one big chase film -- or, rather, it's two chases in one film. A drifter (Buster Keaton) is already on the run from the cops when he's mistaken for murderer Dead Shot Dan (portrayed, incidentally, by Keaton's co-director Mal St. Clair). Keaton has eluded the previous group of policeman, but he's no match for the ill-tempered, heavyweight detective Joe Roberts who's hot on his trail...or is he? The battle of wits and punishing physical stunts is a pleasure to behold -- Keaton wrings every bit of mirth from props such as an old-fashioned dump truck, an elevator, windows and, of course, the passing train. A delightful, fast-moving film. ~ Janiss Garza, All Movie Guide

The plucky little guy that comedian Buster Keaton portrayed throughout most of his two-reel silents is just about out of pluck here. After being fired by his boss and jilted by his girlfriend, there seems to be nothing left but to end it all. And even that won't go right -- try as he might nothing works (and hilariously so). Throwing himself in front of a streetcar fails. He lamely tries to hang himself. The "poison" he swallows is someone's bootleg liquor stash. Desperately he throws himself in front of an oncoming pair of headlights, but it's not a car, it's two motorcycles that navigate easily around him. Suicide is forgotten when he somehow gets involved with a scientific search for an armadillo, which leads him to a country club. Notorious bandit Lizard Lip Luke (Joe Roberts) terrorizes the club's patrons, but Buster saves the day and the girl (Virginia Fox). "Now no one can stand in the way of our getting married!" he tells the young lady. "Except my husband over there," she retorts. Out of luck once again, Buster dons a swim suit, climbs up to the highest diving platform and jumps. Missing the pool completely, he goes through the tile and vanishes. "Years later" reads the title card, and we see the country club pool, overrun by weeds from misuse. The hole is still there, though, and Buster promptly emerges, a Chinese wife and two Chinese-American kids in tow. Out of all the two-reelers he made, Keaton said that Hard Luck was his favorite, and he claimed that performing the high dive was the greatest thrill of his life. Unfortunately, the end of Hard Luck has deteriorated with time (although the rest of the film is mostly intact), and apparently only fragments of it exist. ~ Janiss Garza, All Movie Guide

Buster Keaton stars in the short black-and-white silent comedy The Neighbors, also known as Backyard and Mailbox. The story is basically a variation on Romeo & Juliet set in a regular working-class neighborhood. Keaton falls in love with his neighbor, played by Virginia Fox. Joe Roberts and Joe Keaton play their battling fathers. Their families fight over the fence that separates their buildings. The Neighbors was released in 2000 by Kino Video on the DVD Seven Chances, along with the short The Balloonatic. ~ Andrea LeVasseur, All Movie Guide