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Safety Last

Play trailer Poster for Safety Last 1923 1h 14m Comedy Action Romance Mystery & Thriller Play Trailer Watchlist
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97% Tomatometer 78 Reviews 93% Popcornmeter 2,500+ Ratings
A boy (Harold Lloyd) moves to New York City to make enough money to support his loving girlfriend (Mildred Davis), but soon discovers that making it in the big city is harder than it looks. When he hears that a store manager will pay $1,000 to anyone who can draw people to his store, he convinces his friend, the "human fly," (Bill Strother) to climb the building and split the profit with him. But when his pal gets in trouble with the law, he must complete the crazy stunt on his own.
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Safety Last

Safety Last

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Critics Consensus

Persuasive enough to give audiences acrophobia when they aren't laughing at Harold Lloyd's antics, Safety Last! is a marvel of visual effects and slapstick comedy.

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Critics Reviews

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Inez Cunningham Chicago Tribune Feb 22, 2023
Why [people] should be supposed to find entertainment and not torture in seeing another human on the point of falling to certain death is a mystery to what intelligence I possess. However, there are six reels of it, and it proved vastly entertaining. Go to Full Review Grace Kingsley Los Angeles Times Feb 22, 2023
As for Lloyd, we always knew he was funny, but we never realized how funny until this one. It isn't only that he does funny stunts; his comedy method Itself is perfect of its own original kind. Go to Full Review P.W. Gallico New York Daily News Feb 22, 2023
As photocomic entertainment it is in a class by itself. We have rarely heard people laugh and shriek in a theatre as they did yesterday. Go to Full Review Matt Brunson Film Frenzy Feb 2, 2026
4/4
Long before Safety Last! reaches its exciting climax, it has made its mark as a screen classic. Go to Full Review Dennis Harvey 48 Hills Nov 30, 2023
Lloyd is generally considered the most prosaic of the era’s comedic “big three,” lacking Chaplin’s poetry and Keaton’s deadpan genius. But his movies were, and are, great mainstream entertainment... Go to Full Review Jennie Kermode Eye for Film Aug 21, 2023
5/5
There are some brilliant slapstick sequences and there’s also great character work which emphasizes that, for truly skilled actors, spoken dialogue is far from a necessity. Go to Full Review Read all reviews

Audience Reviews

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Jarod H. @JustJarod Mar 8, 2026 Legendary achievement in comedy. The physical prowess of daredevil comedian Harold Lloyd is on full display in this hilarious film. The ingenious grin behind the glasses will win over any audience. See more Garrett B @gmoney637 Mar 4, 2026 A little slow and less comedic than I thought albeit still engaging. See more Stephen C @bob25009 Jul 3, 2025 Funny in 1 hour and 14 minutes!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! See more Kalissa H @kali_416 May 27, 2025 Very funny silent film. The behind the scenes information I read about the film was interesting too. See more Emma F @MovieFan97 Mar 12, 2025 Safety Last! is a hilarious and visually stunning slapstick comedy that will leave you in stitches! See more Joel H @786Joel Dec 5, 2023 I had seen the famous scene of Harold Lloyd hanging from a clock many times before, but I wanted to understand the full context of it, so I gave Safety Last! a shot. That climbing part is very impressive, and stands as a monument of how stunt work, visual effects, acting & editing can create a highly memorable movie moment. However, the story does take its time getting to that scene, and the laughs, while there, weren't as plentiful as I anticipated during this comedy. I don't regret watching Safety Last at all, and I would recommend others watch it, but it's just not one of my favorite silent films. See more Read all reviews
Safety Last

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Cast & Crew

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Fred Newmeyer

Director

Sam Taylor

Director

Harold Lloyd

The Boy

Mildred Davis

The Girl

Bill Strother

The Pal

Noah Young

The Law

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Safety Last

Safety Last (1923) View more photos

Movie Info

Synopsis A boy (Harold Lloyd) moves to New York City to make enough money to support his loving girlfriend (Mildred Davis), but soon discovers that making it in the big city is harder than it looks. When he hears that a store manager will pay $1,000 to anyone who can draw people to his store, he convinces his friend, the "human fly," (Bill Strother) to climb the building and split the profit with him. But when his pal gets in trouble with the law, he must complete the crazy stunt on his own.
Director
Fred Newmeyer, Sam Taylor
Producer
Hal Roach, Jeffrey Vance, Kevin Brownlow, David Gill
Screenwriter
H. M. Walker, Tim Whelan
Distributor
Continental Home Vídeo [br], Pathé Exchange Inc.
Production Co
Pathé, Hal Roach Studios Inc.
Genre
Comedy, Action, Romance, Mystery & Thriller
Original Language
English
Release Date (Theaters)
Apr 1, 1923, Wide
Release Date (Streaming)
Mar 17, 2017
Runtime
1h 14m
Aspect Ratio
Flat (1.37:1)
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