• a brilliant realization of Buster Keaton’s set-piece (the boat), long shot auteur-driven genius
  • takes aim at the rich—starts with the “every family tree must have its sap” with a deadpan and affluent heir (Keaton) walking into the bath with his clothes on and taking the car across the street
  • the way the frame is set on the ship, Keaton is one level above the Kathryn McGuire character—they’re running as fast as they can in circles and can’t find each other
  • amazing wide shots—long shot distance
  • the ineptitude of the rich—a hilarious scene of them making coffee together
  • another long shot of Keaton pulling the massive ship with a row boat at 24 minutes
  • another set piece long shot gag with the doors opening and closing at the same time as the ship moves
  • the underwater sequences with squid and swordfish – great shot of Keaton emerging from the water in the scuba suit at 48 minutes and even there there’s the long shot gag as he scares the crowd
  • certainly a precursor to his masterpiece, The General, machine set-piece (ship instead of train here) and long shots
  • takes the camera upside down in the submarine—again using the camera for the gag (Keaton) instead of placing the camera and doing the gag in front of it (Chaplin)
  • certainly an influence on every big set piece director in cinema—especially comedy—from Jerry Lewis’ The Ladies Man with the living dollhouse to Tati’s long shot visual superiority
  • the set piece is from Murnau’s Nosferatu– wonderful idea
  • I’m calling it a Must-See—top 5 of the year quality