Quick Take: The Navigator (1924)

Directors: Donald Crisp, Buster Keaton. Starring: Buster Keaton, Kathryn McGuire. Release: Blu-ray.

I know these are dark times. I also know it can sometimes be hard to pull yourself together and watch a black and white silent film from 1924.. But trust me on the this: You won't regret checking out The Navigator.

Buster Keaton plays a man who prematurely books a honeymoon cruise, only to end up adrift at sea on the ship with the very same girl who turned down his proposal. They're both spoiled and clueless rich folks, so they're in for quite an ordeal as they try to survive alone on the enormous boat.

I like the premise right off the bat. It seems ripe with opportunities, the kind of crazy antics and daredevil stunts Keaton is so famous for. And sure enough. Keaton find comedy everywhere. In everything from cooking breakfast, to finding a quiet place to sleep, to fixing a leak in the ship by breaking out a diving suit. The ship is attacked by cannibals (they're chased off using fireworks, since you ask), there's a sword fight, with a sword fish, and there are countless other inventive and amazing gags I won't spoil here.

This is not a laugh-out-loud kinda film, but the kind that generate a delightful non-stop chuckle from start to finish. The casual sight-gag humor is utterly delightful, and the elaborate stunt-action sequences impress even today. And best of all: It's all over in an hour! I guarantee you'll find it more delightful than any hour of almost any modern blockbuster.