The 'High Sign' (1921) Short Film

Buster is thrown off a train near an amusement park. There he gets a job in a shooting gallery run by the Blinking Buzzards mob. Ordered to kill a businessman, he winds up protecting the man and his daughter by outfitting their home with trick devices. (imdb)
Cast and Information
Directed By: Buster Keaton, Edward F. Cline
Written By: Buster Keaton, Edward F. Cline
Starring: Buster Keaton
Genre: Comedy
AKA: The High Sign
Country: USA
Where to Stream
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The 'High Sign' belongs to 7 collections
1. Doubling The Canon (collaborative - 13 stars)
2. Best of criticker: Comedy (collaborative: moderated by avgcrtckr - 7 stars)
3. Masters of Cinema (collaborative: moderated by hristos - 6 stars)
4. Doubling The Canon (2010 update) (collaborative: moderated by MMAlpha - 5 stars)
5. Best of criticker: Short (collaborative: moderated by avgcrtckr - 2 stars)
6. Doubling the Canon (2011 update) (collaborative: moderated by MMAlpha - 1 star)
7. Doubling the Canon (2012 update) (collaborative: moderated by Cinephile - 1 star)
Browse the full list of collections
Date | User | Rating | |
Aug 09, 2022 | HeyNiceFilm | 50 13th |
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Short film by baby Buster. I put this one on late night after coming home, so memory is fuzzy. It had some funny, classic Buster moments but overall not his best.
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Mar 13, 2022 | ![]() |
Ab-ı Haya | 77 52nd |
10.15 Erkan
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Apr 18, 2021 | ![]() |
driscarpin | 77 58th |
The High Sign estreava há 100 anos nos EUA. Esse curta é menos engajado que o usual Keaton, mas um Keaton menor ainda é um grande Keaton. Box Obras-primas do Cinema Buster Keaton.
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Apr 18, 2021 | ![]() |
Anomaly | 77 66th |
The plot is scattershot and the jokes don't all hit, but at the end Keaton finally shows off some of his skills. A decent directorial debut by him.
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May 04, 2020 | ![]() |
AFlickering | 3 38th |
while this was buster's first independent effort, it remained more tethered to arbuckle slapstick than he would prefer, and lacked something of a human touch. the narrative is wispy and only loosely tied to the gags, while keaton's still calibrating the ideal ratio of self-deprecation. still, i'm glad it was only shelved rather than destroyed as he wished, else i'd never have been introduced to the ludicrous blinking buzzards' or that surreal shot of an ever-expanding broadsheet.
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Feb 20, 2020 | ![]() |
closedmouth | 80 67th |
Loved this one, made me laugh a lot.
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Apr 15, 2019 | ![]() |
oskarhu | 78 62nd |
One of Keaton's most creative shorts thanks to the house with the secret passages.
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Aug 20, 2018 | ![]() |
hotsake | 83 95th |
This was a lot of fun and had me laughing multiple times.
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Aug 05, 2014 | ![]() |
Heliophage | 88 97th |
A fun little one that flies right by, with a great ending.
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Dec 10, 2012 | ![]() |
FunkyAstro | 75 74th |
Good not great
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Mar 11, 2012 | ![]() |
Kadrian | 50 34th |
The best part is at the end, but overall it's not such a bad movie. Much better than some of the stuff he's done.
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Oct 07, 2010 | ![]() |
Stain | 50 33rd |
The slapstick finale is, as indicated by other users here, pretty impressive. Still, it's too little, too late. Most of the comic material beforehand is old *and* stupid, a lethal combination
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Aug 02, 2009 | ![]() |
Nathan S | 2 21st |
Not terribly funny until the last few minutes involving all the trap doors.
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Mar 10, 2009 | ![]() |
Luna6ix | 85 89th |
this bad boy was full of everything that makes buster funny and entertaining, and all in a small package--cutting out the shortfalls of his early feature length films. i've said it before, and i'll say it again, i fall in love with buster more every time i see another of his films.
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Feb 08, 2009 | ![]() |
PeaceAnarchy | 87 87th |
Keaton was at his best with physical comedy, and those last 5 minutes are some excellent stuff. The rest of it is pretty funny too.
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Jun 08, 2008 | ![]() |
joseywales | 70 56th |
Only a couple memorable moments in this early short: 1) the cutaway scene revealing all four rooms as Buster races through them, and 2) the 'High Sign' itself.
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Average Percentile 67.26% from 228 Ratings | ![]() |