MUBI

Never has the Civil War been so exquisitely depicted, it’s a shock that such an authentic look would come from a straight-up insane comedy like Buster Keaton’s THE GENERAL. While Keaton has made movies that have a higher laughs-per-minute ratio, THE GENERAL seems like more of a complete package. Keaton’s graceful clumsiness combined with some of the most truly inspired comic set-pieces in the genre’s history along with a gorgeous period setting make it not only a comedy classic, but one of the very best silent films ever made.

Humorous, Innocent and ultimately groundbreaking…Ol’ Stoneface is at it again in one of his finest performances. Blending gorgeous cinematography with breathtaking stunts, Mister Keaton soars through the flickering screen and into our beating hearts. A man of daring and charismatic wit, very few actors to this day can hold a candle to this man and his genius. Surely his cinematic adventures are as funny today as they were almost a century ago, and rightly so.

A classic. Pure and simple. There are few movies out there that I enjoy watching endlessly, even after a hundred viewings and this is one of them. Keaton was at the peak of his creative powers here: the production design, set during the Civil War, is extraordinary; the compositions are tight, beautiful and seamless; and the action is plentiful. But the real star is Keaton. Keaton is a hilarious wonder as he desperately tries in vain to get his train and girlfriend back by performing death-defying stunts without losing his cool or being emotional. This is why Keaton’s movies have aged more gracefully than Chaplin’s. Chaplin may have been warm but Keaton was just cool. Watch this movie and you’ll realize why.

He was the superb craftsman of silent comedy. Chaplin may have been the more nakedly emotional genius, but Keaton was more interested in the medium of film itself. Pushing the limits of his body and the limits of stunts of the time, Keaton creates a sublimely funny and at times frankly astounding tour de force of physical comedy and slapstick sequences. Everything that is done in the film is done on the day, without the help of elaborate camera tricks, and the sheer audacity of Keaton’s drive to find the funniest set piece is breathtaking to behold.

One of those old classics that still lives up despite its age in view of non-academic/critical audiences. I remember sitting through this one with a large lecture hall of mainly younger undergrads unfamiliar and uninterested in film strongly expressing their enjoyment verbally. It was literally like sitting in on a viewing of a modern day Hollywood Blockbuster like the first Saw in regards to audience participation.

While this may not be a quantifiable quality cinematically, it is something to consider when the modern viewer cannot sit still through films that go past say….1-2 second shot averages anymore, not to mention this was silent. Regardless, it still stands as probably one of the first great examples of how a feature length film could work successfully.