If you’ve ever wondered what a maritime carnival would look like were it choreographed by Buster Keaton’s anarchic cousin and lit only by a temperamental lighthouse, The Pirates is your answer—an effervescent 1920 oddity that sails so close to obscurity it nearly capsizes into legend. Lane, that rubber-jointed clown...
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Comparing the cinematic DNA and archive impact of two defining moments in cult history.
John G. Blystone
Reggie Morris
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" If you’ve ever wondered what a maritime carnival would look like were it choreographed by Buster Keaton’s anarchic cousin and lit only by a temperamental lighthouse, The Pirates is your answer—an effervescent 1920 oddity that sails so close to obscurity it nearly capsizes into legend. Lane, that rubber-jointed clown prince of British music-hall lineage, hijacks the silent frame with a gait that seems to mock gravity itself. Watch him skitter across a wet deck: knees akimbo, torso folding like..."
