Safety Last! is a 1923 silent comedy film starring Harold Lloyd and Mildred Davis. The film was directed by Fred C. Newmeyer and Sam Taylor, and it is famous for an iconic scene in which Harold Lloyd hangs from the hands of a clock on a skyscraper.
Director: Fred C. Newmeyer and Sam Taylor
Production Company: Hal Roach Studios
Distributor: Pathe Exchange
Cast: Harold Lloyd, Mildred Davis, Bill Strother, Noah Young
US Box Office: $3,750,000 ($143,600,000 adjusted for inflation)
Film Format: Black & White (Silent)
Genre: Comedy
Release Date: April 1, 1923
Plot Summary: Harold (Harold Lloyd) moves from a small town to the big city to make a name for himself, and promised that he would marry his girlfriend Mildred (Mildred Davis) once he made enough money. Needing money fast, Harold agrees to climb the building that he works at in exchange for $1000, and assumes that part way through the climb he can switch places with his friend (Bill Strother). However, after his friend gets into trouble with the law, Harold has to climb the entire building himself!
Production: Harold Lloyd first got the idea for Safety Last! while watching professional steeplejack Bill Strother climb the Brockman Building in Los Angeles as part of a stunt. Lloyd realized that a climbing sequence like this would be a good way to add both thrills and laughs to film. Lloyd introduced himself to Strother and later hired him to play a supporting role in Safety Last! Lloyd chose Mildred Davis, who had previously starred with him in several other films, to play the leading lady. Lloyd made Safety Last! with Hal Roach Studios who had produced several of Lloyd’s other comedy films.
Safety Last! was mostly filmed on location in Los Angeles, California from July to October of 1922. The building that Lloyd’s character climbs in the film was primarily represented in exterior shots by the International Savings & Exchange Bank Building in LA. Most of the climbing sequence in the film was accomplished by constructing sets that resembled the Bank Building’s façade on several buildings of varying heights. The film gave the illusion that Lloyd actually climbed the building by showing him in front of the same background at different heights. Lloyd did much of the hanging and climbing on the set by himself, though he did have a few stunt doubles in the more dangerous moments, including in the scene where he swings from a rope. In a few extreme long shots Bill Strother actually climbed the Bank Building wearing Lloyd’s clothes.
Fun Facts and Trivia: Harold Lloyd lost his right thumb and index finger during an accident involving a prop bomb in 1919. In all of his films afterwards, Lloyd wore a special white glove on his right hand to hide it. Thus, in Safety Last! Lloyd had to climb and hang from ledges, windows, and the clock using only eight fingers! Anna Townsend who played the elderly woman in the chaotic sales floor scene had previously played the grandmother of Harold Lloyd’s character in Grandma’s Boy (1922). Lloyd and Mildred Davis married in 1923, before the release of Safety Last!, and stayed together until her death in 1969.
Reception: Safety Last! received positive reviews from critics when it was first released. For example, the magazine Photoplay thought that Safety Last! was Harold Lloyd’s best film yet, and that it was destined to become a classic. The film was also very popular with audiences, and it was one of the the top ten highest grossing films of the year.
In modern times, Safety Last! has become a highly beloved classic. The film was one of the 400 films nominated by the American Film Institute for their list of the top 100 greatest American movies in both 1998 and 2007. AFI also nominated Safety Last! for their list of the top 100 funniest films, and it was ranked 97th on their list of the most thrilling American films.
Why You Should See It: Safety Last! is a very funny film that was also quite innovative for its time. The film does a very good job of combing comedy with thrills. The climb sequence is, at different times (and sometimes at the same time), both funny and terrifying. Lloyd himself is quite amusing through out the the film with his slapstick antics and the crazy situations that his character keeps getting into.