Buster Keaton had reason to dislike this comedy -- his character, Homer Van Dine Harmon, was clearly a rip-off of the rich milksops he played in his excellent silent films The Navigator and Battling Butler. In fact, he gets in the ring and dukes it out, repeating some of the jokes from Battling Butler. But the truth is that Sidewalks of New York isn't anywhere near as bad as he later insisted. The story -- Homer attempts to reform a young tough (Norman Phillips) in order to win the boy's sister (Anita Page) -- isn't worth much, but Keaton's comic abilities are still in top form. His timing is as sharp as it was during his silent heyday and he's always amusing to watch, even if he does lay on the pratfalls a bit too much. Cliff Edwards, on the other hand, is pretty much wasted -- as Homer's sidekick, he has very little to do. It is Keaton, and Keaton alone, who carries this film, and, while it is disappointing compared to his silent films, it nevertheless has its moments. In spite of its less-than-stellar quality, Sidewalks of New York made a pile of money for MGM -- mainly because of a knowledgeable distribution staff, who shipped it off to markets where Keaton was strong. The studio was able to use the film's profits as proof that they knew how to handle the comedian. Keaton knew better, and his already rocky relationship with MGM continued its downslide.