The Navigator
Live music by Mont Alto Motion Picture Orchestra
Keaton’s pampered rich boy Rollo Treadway books a honeymoon cruise to Hawaii and then proposes marriage to his equally pampered neighbor Betsy O’Brien (Kathryn McGuire) who turns him down, much to his surprise. Disconsolate, Rollo decides to take the trip anyway but in the dark of night boards the wrong ship, The Navigator, that Betsy’s father has just sold to a small country at war! When the ship is sabotaged by enemies, Betsy boards to rescue her father, but of course he’s not there. Rollo and Betsy drift out to sea unaware that the other is on board the empty ship—hilariously just missing one another—until they come together and grapple with living without servants. How does one boil an egg?
The Navigator contains some of the funniest bits in any of Keaton’s films and that is saying something!
Restored by The Museum of Modern Art and Lobster Films with support from The Celeste Bartos Fund for Film Preservation.
Live music by Mont Alto Motion Picture Orchestra
Now celebrating more than 30 years together, Mont Alto Motion Picture Orchestra revives the tradition of silent-film orchestras, scouring 1920s-era music libraries to create their signature witty, vibrant, and historically appropriate scores. Since their first performance in 1994, Mont Alto has recorded and toured widely and, all told, has compiled scores for more than 144 films. Led by composer and pianist Rodney Sauer, recipient of the Denver Film Festival’s 2023 David Shepard Career Achievement Award, the ensemble also includes Britt Swenson (violin), Brian Collins (clarinet), David Short (cello), and Dawn Kramer (trumpet).
Details
Director
Buster Keaton and Donald Crisp
Country
United States
Year
1924
Cast
Buster Keaton, Kathryn McGuire, Frederick Vroom, Noble Johnson
Runtime
60 min.
Source
Museum of Modern Art
Format
DCP