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.
![](http://static.miraheze.org/allthetropeswiki/0/02/BusterKeatonCops_1638.jpg)
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.