Spoilers for how some of the "Sherlock Jr" stunts were done...
From memory:
The sequence where he jumps through the window and comes up in the old lady disguise is, so far as I know, done completely straight: the workings are laid out for us by Sherlock Jr's assistant, and Keaton does a cutaway of the end of the house so we can see exactly what he's doing, and be duly impressed
The old-lady costume is stowed very carefully (like a parachute) inside a paper case: to perform his quick-change, the artiste has merely to dive head first through the centre of the case, tearing free the paper, and land with his head and arms inserted through the openings in the garment. Then he 'merely' has to come up from a diving roll while shaking the dress down over his head. No camera tricks -- just absolute acrobatic precision, and, of course, the ability to keep your head while diving head-first through a window into a paper-covered ring
By "the changing scenery at the theater" I assume you mean the sequence in which he first finds himself inside the film, which cuts for no particular reason between a selection of stock situations: this is done using the same method as that employed in "Seven Chances" for the gag in which he travels from place to place by simply getting into his car and letting out the clutch. Unfortunately this sequence has been somewhat devalued by the subsequent development of back-projection, which enabled films to produce similar effects very easily; but in Keaton's case the locations were all real (as were the lions, with whom he apparently didn't get on!)
He and his crew shot each brief segment in turn, then he would freeze absolutely still while measurements were taken of him from all angles to a high degree of precision. When it was time for the next shot to be started, he would take up exactly the same pose, whether poised on the verge of diving or merely balanced on a rock, and the camera would be placed in exactly the same position relative to him. Then they would film the next few seconds and freeze again. It's another case of technically 'easy, if you know how' -- but somewhat taxing on the star!
The scene where he dives through the peddler's box is essentially a stage trick again. I've seen at least one diagram of this on the Web somewhere: what happens so far as I recall is that the assistant's body lies on a framework projecting backwards through the wall, with only his head and arms showing. The peddler's skirt is weighted to hang down convincingly, with fake legs and feet at the bottom. The box is, of course, hinged to serve as a trapdoor. When the assistant is shown 'standing' against the wall, all the performer has to do is to perform another diving roll headfirst through the wall via this trapdoor and into the space under the framework beyond -- and, most importantly, come to a halt in a curled position within the meagre space available. The camera cuts away... and in the next shot, the assistant is repositioned to walk away using his real legs and feet. Very simple, provided you don't break your neck...
Some of the motorbike scenes (in particular, the one where he covers his eyes at the approaching train) were, I believe, shot with the motorbike mounted on a truckbed -- others, obviously, had to be done in long shot 'for real', although Keaton apparently used his flying coat-tails to hide his hands on the controls. When filming the scene where he negotiates the road-menders with their flying shovels of earth, he received a shovelful right in his face, lost control of the machine, and crashed -- I believe into the camera car
~~Igenlode
Gather round, lads and lasses, gather round...
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tinkerchel
18 years ago
Thank you so much for the long reply. I have to admit the more keaton movies i see the more respect i have for him.To think that lots of movies nowadays still copy some of his tricks. He deserves more recognition that he had received.
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lubin-freddy
17 years ago
The jumping-through-the-window trick was done with another actor, who was already dressed up in the dress. The camera angle is crucial here. Keaton ran alongside the window, passing it exactly when the other actor jumped. That is why the actor walks away from the camera, and you don't see his face until after the next cut.
The other explanations are correct.
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