The Cameraman (Silent Comedy, 1928)

"The Cameraman" is a 1928 silent comedy film directed by Edward Sedgwick and an uncredited Buster Keaton, who also stars as the lead character. This film is considered one of Keaton's last great silent masterpieces before his transition to sound films and loss of creative control at MGM.
The plot follows Buster, a tintype street photographer played by Keaton, who dreams of becoming a newsreel cameraman to impress Sally (Marceline Day), a secretary at a newsreel company. After trading his tintype camera for an old, beat-up movie camera, Buster tries to break into the business, but his lack of experience leads to a series of comedic mishaps. He films unusable footage, accidentally causes chaos at a Yankees game, and struggles to win Sally’s affection amidst competition from a slick rival, Stagg (Harold Goodwin).
The film is packed with Keaton’s signature physical comedy and inventive gags, like a sequence where he pantomimes a baseball game alone on an empty field or a chaotic Tong War in Chinatown where he captures rare footage while dodging danger. A memorable scene involves Buster and a mischievous monkey (who becomes his sidekick after he accidentally kills its organ-grinder owner) teaming up to save the day. In the climax, Buster heroically rescues Sally from a boating accident, only for the monkey to steal the credit by filming the event.
Known for its blend of slapstick humor and heartfelt romance, "The Cameraman" showcases Keaton’s deadpan style and meticulous stunt work. It’s often praised as a love letter to filmmaking itself, with a meta-layer about the art of capturing reality on camera. The movie was a critical and commercial success at the time and remains a classic of silent cinema, highlighting Keaton’s genius before MGM began reusing its script as a template for other films, much to his frustration.