IMDb RATING
7.1/10
3.1K
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After being mistakenly certified as an electrical engineer, Buster is hired to wire a house.After being mistakenly certified as an electrical engineer, Buster is hired to wire a house.After being mistakenly certified as an electrical engineer, Buster is hired to wire a house.
Buster Keaton
- Buster
- (as 'Buster' Keaton)
Virginia Fox
- The Millionaire's Daughter
- (uncredited)
Joe Keaton
- Buster's Father in Prologue
- (uncredited)
Louise Keaton
- Buster's Sister in Prologue
- (uncredited)
Myra Keaton
- Buster's Mother in Prologue
- (uncredited)
Laura La Varnie
- Guest
- (uncredited)
Steve Murphy
- Real Electrical Engineer
- (uncredited)
Joe Roberts
- Millionaire
- (uncredited)
- Directors
- Writers
- Buster Keaton
- Edward F. Cline
- Jeffrey Vance(1995 version)
- All cast & crew
- Production, box office & more at IMDbPro
Storyline
Did you know
- TriviaFilming was delayed when star Buster Keaton got his foot caught in the escalator and broke his ankle. During his recovery, Keaton released his previously shelved film, The 'High Sign' (1921), and filmed The Play House (1921). Upon his return to this short, he abandoned his original footage and started fresh. Little is known about the first version, and no scenes are known to still exist.
- Alternate versionsIn 1995, Film Preservation Associates copyrighted a version with new titles by Jeffrey Vance and a music soundtrack arranged by Robert Israel. The running time was 24 minutes.
- ConnectionsEdited into The Golden Age of Buster Keaton (1979)
Featured review
"And as it turns out, electrical engineering happened to be quite a talent of his."
A wonderfully inventive companion piece to The Scarecrow, this mechanical comedy by Keaton often makes me wonder if it isn't possible to go back in time and hire Keaton to design a house for me.
Due to a mix-up of diplomas, the young hair-stylist character of Keaton is asked to wire a mansion with electricity. Spending a moment with a book on "Wiring Made Easy" and the mansion owner's vacation time, Keaton devises escalators, train-propelled dishwashers, and all the neat little gadgets and tricks that "surprise" them (whether or not any of these flourishes are needed, of course, adds its own amount of humor to the equation).
Of course it's not like we can have everything just go well like that, so the rejected and jealous actual electrical engineer decides one fateful day to wreak vengeance upon the circuitry. It's then a trip of mayhap and mayhem as the hosting family tries to entertain guests, Keaton tries to figure out what's wrong, and bodies, dishes, and pool balls go flying amiss.
The appealing result is a good chuckle. It's definitely not as amazingly inventive as The Scarecrow (which is absolutely mind-boggling in its mechanical genius), but it does the job and does it well. It also doesn't really end the way you come to expect of Keaton. All in all, however, it's a pretty good time.
--PolarisDiB
Due to a mix-up of diplomas, the young hair-stylist character of Keaton is asked to wire a mansion with electricity. Spending a moment with a book on "Wiring Made Easy" and the mansion owner's vacation time, Keaton devises escalators, train-propelled dishwashers, and all the neat little gadgets and tricks that "surprise" them (whether or not any of these flourishes are needed, of course, adds its own amount of humor to the equation).
Of course it's not like we can have everything just go well like that, so the rejected and jealous actual electrical engineer decides one fateful day to wreak vengeance upon the circuitry. It's then a trip of mayhap and mayhem as the hosting family tries to entertain guests, Keaton tries to figure out what's wrong, and bodies, dishes, and pool balls go flying amiss.
The appealing result is a good chuckle. It's definitely not as amazingly inventive as The Scarecrow (which is absolutely mind-boggling in its mechanical genius), but it does the job and does it well. It also doesn't really end the way you come to expect of Keaton. All in all, however, it's a pretty good time.
--PolarisDiB
helpful•71
- Polaris_DiB
- Mar 3, 2006
Details
- Release date
- Country of origin
- Languages
- Also known as
- The Electrical House
- Production company
- See more company credits at IMDbPro
- Runtime23 minutes
- Color
- Sound mix
- Aspect ratio
- 1.33 : 1
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