*Spoilers.*
July 21, 1922—the day The Blacksmith was released. It’s regarded as one of Buster’s weaker independent shorts, though it still has its moments. It wasn’t as hard for me to narrow my favorite gags down to the Top Five this time around, but each one definitely earns its slot.
The Magnet
There’s a giant horseshoe, which is in fact a powerful magnet, hanging over the door of the blacksmith’s shop. Big Joe Roberts is out front working on a wheel, but every time he calls for Buster to bring him a hammer, the magnet lifts it up out of sight as soon as both of them are turned away. Naturally, Big Joe just thinks Buster isn’t doing his job and throttles him for it, at which point the sheriff intervenes. Before it’s all said and done the magnet snatches up two hammers, the wheel itself, and the sheriff’s badge and gun! Well-paced and absurd, just the way I like it.
Shoe Shopping
Probably my favorite sequence in the short. Tasked with shoeing a fussy horse, Buster plays the part of the fastidious shoe salesman trying to satisfy an impossible-to-please customer. The whole bit is drawn out to perfection, with the horse vetoing multiple options before Buster finds the answer (in a glass case!): a fancy shoe with a sassy ankle strap. And of course, Buster has to show the horse the shoe in a mirror before it’s ready to commit.
Holding Up the Car
The Blacksmith has more “cartoon gags” than are typical for a Buster Keaton short, but some of them are a lot of fun. Here, Buster is disassembling an old junker, and after he removes one of the wheels, he looks around for something to hold the car up. He takes a kid’s helium balloon and ties the string to the axle. The capper comes when the kid slingshots the balloon and the car crashes into the floor, which causes a floorboard to lever up and smack Buster in the face. Nicely executed!
Runaway Engine
At this point, Buster has already thoroughly wrecked the Rolls-Royce that’s sitting next to the junker he’s working on, all obliviously: smeared it with oil, broken its windows, and left a torch burning beside its door. But as he lifts the junker’s engine out with a pulley, it gets away from him, swinging like a pendulum and crashing repeatedly into the Rolls-Royce. Great physical work from Buster as he frantically tries to get the pulley under control.
Return of the Horse
A quick moment, but it’s a good one. After selling a customer a “saddle shock absorber,” the horse returns to the shop sans rider, having bounced her off with the shock absorber. Buster clocks the riderless horse, glances around, and slowly removes his apron, getting the hell out of dodge. Buster’s acting here is subtle, as usual, but so funny.
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