Cops (film)



In this 1922 short, Buster Keaton is trying to become a successful businessman in order to woo the mayor's daughter (Virginia Fox), but unwittingly gets into a series of steadily escalating mishaps with members of the LAPD. Eventually he wanders into a policemen's parade, obliviously tosses a bomb into the crowd, and ends up chased by the entire police force.

This film is in the public domain and may be viewed in its entirety at Google Video.

"Cops" provides examples of

 * All-Natural Snake Oil: "Dr. Smith, Goat Gland Specialist"
 * Angry Guard Dog
 * Black Comedy: Specifically, Kafka Komedy.
 * Bomb Throwing Anarchists
 * Cartoon Bomb
 * Chase Scene
 * Con Man
 * Couldn't Find a Lighter: Buster lights his cigarette off the fuse of a bomb.
 * Did Not Get the Girl
 * Downer Ending
 * Dressing As the Enemy
 * Hot Pursuit
 * Irony: "Maybe he was arrested for speeding."
 * Lemming Cops
 * Nobody Here but Us Statues
 * Non-Fatal Explosions
 * Outside Ride: Combined with a Vehicle Vanish (see below).
 * Short Con
 * Spurned Into Suicide (Implied)
 * Suicide By Cop (Implied)
 * Tap On the Head
 * Under Crank: Used sporadically in the big Chase Scene.
 * Vehicle Vanish: Buster grabs a passing truck with one hand. It happens in plain sight of the camera, but it's a blink-and-you'll-miss-it moment.
 * Why We Can't Have Nice Things: Buster packing a vase and a pitcher.
 * Wire Fu: When Buster is launched from a seesaw.