Safety Last! (1923)

92% of critics liked it
(13 reviews)
92% of users liked it
(2,740 ratings)

After Charlie Chaplin and Buster Keaton, the silent film era's "third genius" was Harold Lloyd, who stars in this Horatio Alger-style story of an average country boy trying to make good in the big city. The Boy (Lloyd) leaves his sweetheart, The Girl (Mildred Davis, later the real-life Mrs. Lloyd)… More After Charlie Chaplin and Buster Keaton, the silent film era's "third genius" was Harold Lloyd, who stars in this Horatio Alger-style story of an average country boy trying to make good in the big city. The Boy (Lloyd) leaves his sweetheart, The Girl (Mildred Davis, later the real-life Mrs. Lloyd) in Great Bend while he pursues his fortune in a teeming metropolis. The Boy lands a job as a clerk at a fabric counter of DeVore's, a huge department store, but he lies in his letters home to his beloved, pretending to be the store's manager and spending his earnings on lavish gifts. The Boy's roommate, The Pal (Bill Strother) makes money as a "human fly," performing attention-getting stunts. Promised $1,000 by DeVore's real manager if he can devise a publicity gimmick, The Boy convinces his friend to climb the 12-story establishment and split the winnings with him. On the day of the event, however, The Pal is busy dodging The Law (Noah Young), forcing The Boy to make the arduous climb solo. Dodging a variety of obstacles, The Boy climbs higher and higher, eventually dangling from the store's clock tower, in the film's most memorable image. ~ Karl Williams, Rovi

Rating, Runtime: Unrated, 1 hr. 20 min.
Directed By: Fred C. Newmeyer, Sam Taylor
Genres: Action & Adventure, Classics, Comedy

In Theaters: Apr 1, 1923 Wide

Critic Reviews

Phil Hall, Film Snobbery
Harold Lloyd at his very best.
Steve Crum, Video-Reviewmaster.com
One of Harold Lloyd's funniest comedies, and silent.
Peter Canavese, Groucho Reviews
In packed movie houses, with audiences invariably gasping and giggling on every cue, it's a near-religious experience.
Dennis Schwartz, Ozus' World Movie Reviews
Might be the best film of acclaimed comedian Harold Lloyd's silent film days.
Ken Hanke, Mountain Xpress (Asheville, NC)
Lloyd's most famous film with the great building climbing climax.
John A. Nesbit, Old School Reviews
Combining the heart of Chaplin and the physical dexterity and daring of Keaton
Tim Dirks, Tim Dirks' The Greatest Films
Safety Last (1923) earned Harold Lloyd, the bookish, horn-rimmed glasses-wearing comedian, his nickname "the King of Daredevil Comedy."

Read all 7 critic reviews

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Fresh (60% or more critics rated the movie positively)

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Featured Audience Ratings

Anthony L

Classic Harold Lloyd, in what is probably his best known film. I can't get enough of it!
Stella D

harold lloyd is so cute :)
Luke B

Enjoyable slapstick comedy with a lot of inventiveness that still impresses. Simple shots such as the hiding on the coat hanger scene are still great to watch and it is the idea that amazes more than the stunt itself. The first shot was genuinely laugh out loud funny, and many moments… More
Enjoyable slapstick comedy with a lot of inventiveness that still impresses. Simple shots such as the hiding on the coat hanger scene are still great to watch and it is the idea that amazes more than the stunt itself. The first shot was genuinely laugh out loud funny, and many moments after continued to bring a grin. If you are in the mood for a live action Looney Tune then this could be it. Suffers from a climax that is overlong and it is disappointing to see such a strong film lose the comedy towards the end.
Daniel H

Brilliant, perhaps the finest and most famous of the silent-era comedies. Technically amazing, and hilarious to boot.
Walter M

[font=Century Gothic][color=blue]I have seen plenty of silent comedies starring Charlie Chaplin and Buster Keaton before but I really do not think I had seen one starring Harold Lloyd before I saw "Safety Last" yesterday. At least in this picture, Lloyd has a mild-mannered… More
[font=Century Gothic][color=blue]I have seen plenty of silent comedies starring Charlie Chaplin and Buster Keaton before but I really do not think I had seen one starring Harold Lloyd before I saw "Safety Last" yesterday. At least in this picture, Lloyd has a mild-mannered demeanor. In this film, he has gone to the big city to make it big, only to end up working behind the counter at a department store. This is only the set-up for some hilarious gags. "Safety Last" combines the best of sight gags with some amazing physical derring-do to make for a truly excellent silent comedy.[/color][/font]
Matthew Y

Swing and a miss. One iconic frame does not a movie make. Harold Lloyd will forever be thought of as the poor man's Chaplin/Keaton. Safety Last! is supposed to be the one film where he broke free of that distinction and rose to those film legends heights. I didn't see… More
Swing and a miss. One iconic frame does not a movie make. Harold Lloyd will forever be thought of as the poor man's Chaplin/Keaton. Safety Last! is supposed to be the one film where he broke free of that distinction and rose to those film legends heights. I didn't see it. The movie is relatively boring for most of its run time and the jokes don't really pick up till the famous final scene. A headscratcher of a supposed 'classic'. I guess movie critics wanted to throw a lil' love Lloyd's way.
Lauren D

It was ok. I didn't find it funny at all, but it was ok.