The Balloonatic

The Balloonatic (1923) is a 22-minute Buster Keaton silent comedy you can watch online on iFILM. Keaton drifts off on a runaway hot-air balloon and drops, alone, into the middle of the wilderness.

What follows is camping gone wrong. He fishes, fends off a bear, paddles a canoe, and ends up racing a river straight toward a waterfall. Sharing the chaos is Phyllis Haver, alternately his rival and his rescuer. Keaton co-directed with Edward F. Cline and did every pratfall himself — no doubles, no nets. The balloon that strands him early becomes the gag that saves the day. A nimble slice of physical comedy and a fine first taste of Keaton's shorts. Stream The Balloonatic online on iFILM.