An appreciative, uncritical look at silent film comedies and thrillers from early in the century through the 1920s.

Starting in 1927 when the first film, The White Sheik, was made there, Elstree Story features excerpts from over forty productions – including Hitchcock’s Blackmail, the first feature-length British talkie ever shown – with early appearances by some of cinema’s greatest stars; it is a most memorable and evocative journey through the years.

Laurel is a Scottish reporter suspected of being a spy by police detective James Finlayson. Although trailed by the latter, Stan, who is reporting on the movie world, manages to be hired by Mack Sennett. He makes his debut in Nevada, in the middle of gold diggers. After managing to clear his name he becomes, with Oliver Hardy, a big comedy star.

Major Joppolo and his men are assigned to restore order to the war-torn Italian town of Adano. He has to manage getting supplies into town without interfering with troop movements, all the while dealing with colorful citizens of the town. One of his quests is to replace the bell which orders the town's life.

Bullfighter Juan Gallardo falls for socialite Dona Sol, turning from the faithful Carmen who nevertheless stands by her man as he continues to face real danger in the bullring.

Comedy set in Switzerland. An estranged honeymooner, mistaken for an ice- hockey champion, helps England to win an international ice hockey match.

A lancashire singer buys a pub in Clydebank and hits money troubles when the shipbyards are closed. She takes a petition to London to try to get them reopened.

A woman prevents a popular stage performer getting arrested for drunk driving, though has to pretend to be a rich benefactor when she next meets him.

Love blossoms after a young man rescues a pretty girl who attempted to drown herself.

The owner of a small Italian restaurant in central London is left a million pound inheritance, the only stipulation to the will being that he cannot speak or write anything for a period of one month.

When a meek secretary goes to work for her new boss, she becomes a sophisticated lady.

British comedy. It was released in the United States the following year under the alternative title Trouble Ahead.

A rich American businessman in London makes believe he's lost all his money so that his daughter will marry a composer.

A model inherits a great deal of money and pretends to be a movie star.

The owner of a professional help agency poses as a poet at a wealthy patron's ball and prevents a necklace from being stolen by thieves.

A useless secretary and his private detective friend try to help an heiress from being swindled by her guardian.

Slapstick comedy in which luckless slate club treasurer Bill Smithers is sent to prison for three years after being mistakenly accused of stealing funds.

A heavily fictionalized version of the RMS Titanic story.

A recently engaged girl invites her parents to meet her fiance. They learn that he also loves another woman.

A lawyer spends the weekend with a married actress at the same hotel as his wife and her lover. This British silent film exists in an abridged 2-reel (32-min) format.

An American on his honeymoon in Paris, organises the kidnapping of his interfering mother-in-law.

Monty Banks gets involved in tracking down a stolen fortune, his adventures culminating in a whirlwind, gag-filled climax at sea.

A naive young man joins the Army in order to become a pilot.

Virginia Craig will become super-wealthy and gain sole control of her factory, unless insubordinate schemers can trick her into marrying one of their clique. Unfortunately for them, she loves Monty, one of her employees. When the schemers' plot is discovered, a chase starts away from the factory and onto a runaway train.

A Monty Banks comedy that includes the 'Undressing in the Upper Berth' routine

A gang of bad guys menace a feller's gal. She hides in a freight car and a misstep sends the otherwise-empty train out of the station with the lever pushed to full speed. As the train gains speed, the captive's boyfriend must board the runaway train, repel the pursing gang, get his girl out of the box car, and somehow get the two of them to safety. Tunnels, a water tower, a steep grade, and a frayed rope complicate the hero's task.

Monty Banks becomes a car salesman and is shifted to Africa to sell one to King Obogeegee.

The Boy, involved in a maritime disaster as a child, suffers from hydrophobia. He invents a life preserver that automatically inflates when it hits the water, using it to save the life of Rose Ryan, the daughter of a steamship magnate.

Golf with Monty Banks and pals.

Monty is trying to collect rent from a couple of tough deadbeats who have made a sport of beating rent collectors.

Monty Banks plays a groom who is about to get married. In fact, he has the marriage license just about in hand. Apparently, he's had a bachelor party the night before and when his fiancée rings him, he can't find the phone, but there's several other guys sleeping it off. The landlady suspects that some hijinks have gone on and looks to investigate. Monty figures things out pretty quickly. Luckily for him, one of the gentlemen sleeping it off is in a policeman's uniform and Monty has him pretend he's arrested everybody in the room.

Monty Banks finds love and mischief at the amusement park, in this two-reel comedy

A wild taxi driver can't get ahead with his fares but he is still willing to help his sweetheart at the drugstore, especially when he figures out how to sell hair tonic

Monty Banks becomes a sailor in the hunt for his girl.

Set in the oil-soaked country of “Chilitina”—shot on location in San Diego’s Balboa Park—Oils Well! follows the travails of Monty, an everyman office clerk, who thinks only of his boss’s daughter. When Herbert Hester, an oilman “so crooked he cheats when counting his pulse,” schemes to cover up the company’s new gusher so he can claim it himself and get the girl, Monty swings into action. He eludes the hapless Chilitinan army, sidesteps the General’s amorous wife, thwarts Herbert, and saves the day.

After drinking all night, Monty and his friend try to get home, but it turns out to be not easy. The next day, Monty tries to win the heart of a theater actress.

Monty is chronically late. He comes to work late and loses his job, and then manages to miss his own wedding...

Brilliantino the Bullfighter (originally titled Flood and Sand) is one of the first spoofs of Blood and Sand, Paramount’s smoldering matador melodrama that set box offices ablaze. Like Mud and Sand, starring Stan Laurel, the Banks parody was rushed into theaters in November 1922, while memory of the Valentino vehicle was fresh. The concept of Monty Banks impersonating the passionate matador must have been innately hilarious to audiences who had seen the original picture.

Very hungry Monty chases a garbage truck all around town to retrieve a box lunch thrown away by a picky young lady.

Monty and his wife are newlyweds dealing with things like making breakfast that’s edible and dealing with a persistent book salesman. Only reel 1 survives, so a proper plot synopsis is difficult.

Lovable buffoon Monty Banks tries to relax, but ultimately spends his day worrying about who is keeping company with his wife.

A Monty Banks comedy short.

Monty Banks comedy produced by Warners.

Not one but two of Charlie Chaplin impersonators, Harry Mann and Monty Banks, a film directed by Charley Chase still under the name of Charles Parrott. They go driving around town experiencing various car theft problems.

Roscoe and Buster operate a combination garage and fire station. In the first half they destroy a car left for them to clean. In the second half they go off on a false alarm and return to find their own building on fire.

Big Ben has the largest store in the town of New Ralgia. His chief clerk is in love with the post mistress. The three of them get involved in a series of mishaps with their customers and with the town ladies' man, whose advances conceal a more sinister purpose.

Augustus Billings has a domineering mother-in-law, and to get away from both her and his wife, he takes a trip, claiming that he is going off to check on Mexican oil investments. But he's really going on a cruise with Mrs. Dathis, who has purchased his yacht. To throw everyone off track, he uses the name Mr. Johnson. When he decides to repeat the trip, however, all hell breaks loose -- the jealous Mr. Dathis is out to get his hands on this Johnson character, while a real Mr. Johnson shows up in Mexico, and Mrs. Billings shows up with her mother, and the confusion continues from there.

"Fatty", a poor good hearted farm boy is deeply in love with Winifred, a farmer's daughter. A rich neighbor offers the farmer a large plot of land if Winifred marries his slow witted son Al. "Fatty" has less then one day to save heartbroken Winifred from the rushed ceremony.

Camping Out is a 1919 American short comedy film directed by and starring Fatty Arbuckle. Fatty is the suffering spouse who comes home every night to an empty house and a neglectful wife. His wife is furious when she discovers Fatty is cheating on her with a neglected wife.

Roscoe Arbuckle plays a Douglas Fairbanks fan who becomes a rotund version of his hero. As "The Sheriff", he must rescue abducted schoolteacher Betty Compson.

Roscoe 'Fatty' Arbuckle confronts the Kaiser in his headquarters, and tells him that he will be be defeated by "scraps of paper," i.e. War Bonds.

Monty Banks plays a paramour who starts all sort of silly highjinks with Eva Novak and Carolyne Wright

A French perfume salesman is mistaken for a bootlegger. Partially missing two-reeler with 11 minutes surviving.

An industrious criminal plays his game so crookedly that he "double crosses" himself.

Cunard turns into The Queen of the Apaches, an outlaw who steals from the rich to gives to the poor, always leaving a purple mask behind as a trademark.