Number, Please?

Typical of many of the better silent slapstick comedies, 'Number, Please?' is a highly entertaining, charming, and, simply put, FUNNY short. The gags are aplenty, and many of them take full creative advantage of the setting and the circumstances of the central characters. This short takes place largely within the realms of an amusement park, and this leads to many rather interesting cinematic moments (ex.: a gag taking place on a roller coaster in which some of the footage was shot on an actual roller coaster while it was moving, the placement of the camera on a carousel for a few shots in another fast paced slapstick sequence). The timing, choreography, etc. are all done near perfectly. It is also worth noting that the ending of the short is surprisingly bleak, as is the entire overall story it tells. It is full on comical slapstick, but at its very core is a theme of heartbreak and failure. However, Harold Lloyd is able to deal w/this heartbreak and failure w/a self deprecating and highly amusing smile.