Hard Luck
In this 1921 short, a despondent Buster Keaton decides to end it all, but then he gets a job, meets a girl (Virginia Fox) and his luck changes -- or does it? Hilarity Ensues.
Fired from his job, jilted by his girl, down on his luck... —opening title
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Hard Luck can be seen right here, on this very wiki.
Not to be confused with the 2006 thriller film of the same name.
Tropes used in Hard Luck include:
- Alliterative Name: Lizard Lip Luke.
- Anvil on Head: Averted. Buster tries to set this up with a safe being hoisted with a rope and pulley, but fails.
- Beach Episode: Much of the action is set at a country club with a pool.
- Black Comedy: Did I mention that Buster spends much of the film trying to die?
- Bungled Suicide
- Chase Scene
- Cunning Like a Fox
- Digging to China: Or in this case, diving to China.
- Dragged by the Collar: Literally, and by the seat of his pants.
- Drinking on Duty: A waiter.
- Everything's Worse with Bears
- Fan Service: The country club's pool is an excuse to put several actresses in bathing suits; later, Buster takes a dip and dresses accordingly.
- Glove Slap
- Horrible Camping Trip
- Human Ladder: Actually, human mounting block.
- I Have You Now, My Pretty
- Improvised Weapon: Fishing rod versus handgun.
- Incredibly Lame Pun: Some time after Buster tries to hang himself from a tree.
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- Interrupted Suicide: The first fourth of the film is a series of unsuccessful suicide attempts.
- Large and In Charge: Joe Roberts as Lizard Lip Luke.
- Love At First Sight
- Love Triangle
- The Man They Couldn't Hang
- Nobody Here but Us Statues
- Only in It For the Money: Why Buster hunts for an armadillo.
- Outside Ride
- Paper-Thin Disguise
- Railroad Tracks of Doom: Subverted in Buster's suicide attempt involving a trolley.
- Rule of Funny: How Buster survives his high dive.
- Shot in the Ass
- Slapstick
- Slobs Versus Snobs: Buster wanders into a country club and joins a fox hunt.
- Train Escape
- Unsuspectingly Soused
- Walking on Water: Subverted. Buster tries to mimic a man walking on the surface of a swimming pool -- he turns out to be wearing stilts.
- Wanted Poster