Sherlock Jr. certainly has a wide variety of gags and stunts
however their common denominator is their effect on Keaton’s character. These
gags and stunts were all self-inflicted causing him some sort discomfort. For
example, Keaton placed a banana peel on the ground in order to have his opponent
step on it and slip. However, Keaton himself stepped on the banana peel causing
him frustration and agony. This trend is constant throughout the whole story
where Keaton tries to manipulate the fast paced world that is around him
resulting in some sort of self-inflicted predicament. This sort of humor is
very relatable and common in comedy and humor today. For example, one of my
favorite cartoons of all time is Road Runner vs. Wile E. Coyotes. The story is
always the same where Wile E. Coyote attempts to kill or capture Road Runner
but despite his best efforts, ends up causing himself pain instead. I feel that
this sort of comedy is very relatable to humans simply, because many of the things
that go wrong in our lives are indeed self-inflicted. As a result, I feel that
people find humor like Keaton’s and Wile E. Coyotes funny, because they are actually
laughing at themselves and all of the dumb mistakes that they have made in
their lifetime. Although I cannot say I have tried to run on top of a moving
train only to fall down and injure myself and others as Keaton did in his
scramble to find out who stole the watch, I have definitely hurt myself by
doing something I shouldn’t have done. As a result, I feel that this kind of
humor is very relevant in modern shows and films and in some ways is very therapeutic,
because it allows us to reflect on our own mistakes, laugh, and move on.
Even though I wrote about how the comedy found in Sherlock Jr. was very different than that of today, I definitely see where you are coming from. Your blog was very well written and you made some interesting points.
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