Rollo Treadway, a pampered young millionaire, impulsively decides to propose to his neighbor, Betsy O'Brien, and immediately sends his servant to book a honeymoon cruise to Honolulu. When Betsy rejects his sudden offer, Rollo decides to go alone. But due to a partially obscured pier number, he boards the wrong ship—the Navigator, recently sold by Betsy's father to a small nation at war. In a twist of fate, Betsy also ends up aboard. Now stranded at sea with no crew and no practical skills, the two must learn to survive together—awkwardly navigating both the ship and their relationship.

The Navigator stands as one of Buster Keaton’s most successful and inventive comedies, blending slapstick brilliance with subtle social commentary. The film’s humor arises from the absurd contrast between high society’s helplessness and the mechanical complexity of modern life.

Rollo, used to servants and luxury, suddenly finds himself unable to perform the simplest tasks—lighting a stove, navigating a ship, or even opening canned food. As he fumbles through unfamiliar territory, the film builds a series of brilliantly timed gags that escalate from shipboard clumsiness to an underwater diving sequence that was groundbreaking for its time.

The idea for The Navigator came unexpectedly when Keaton’s art director Fred Gabourie discovered the decommissioned USAT Buford in a San Francisco shipyard. Keaton leased the vessel for $25,000, had it towed to Los Angeles, and converted it into a floating film set. Of the 60 crew members, half were real sailors hired to manage the ship during the 10-week shoot.

Though Variety offered a lukewarm review upon release, the film went on to become Keaton’s highest-grossing feature and is now widely regarded as a comedic gem. Critic Dennis Schwartz praised it as Keaton’s most effective use of his recurring theme: "man vs. machine", showcasing how modern tools complicate life when we become too dependent on them.

In 2018, The Navigator was selected for preservation in the U.S. National Film Registry for its cultural, historical, and aesthetic significance.

Of the 60 person film crew about half were real sailors hired to handle the ship. Filming onboard the Navigator took 10 weeks. 

Trivia

• Roughly half the film crew were professional sailors, ensuring the ship could be safely operated during filming.

• The film’s underwater sequences involved real diving suits and complex technical challenges, setting a new standard for aquatic cinematography in comedy.

• Keaton personally oversaw the design of several underwater props and diving suits to achieve both realism and visual absurdity.

• The ship used in the film, the Buford, had previously served the U.S. military during the Red Scare, deporting suspected radicals.

• The film is often viewed as a precursor to modern technological satire, influencing later works by Charlie Chaplin and Jacques Tati.

The Soundtrack

The Navigator allowed Brais González to combine in his score the traditional elements present in his compositions for slapstick comedies with other musical elements, such as sea songs, tribal music, and adventure film music from the 1950s.