Directing: Clyde Bruckman, Buster Keaton
Screenwriting: Buster Keaton, Clyde Bruckman
Starring: Buster Keaton, Marion Mack, Glen Cavender
Review:
Not only is The General “considered Buster Keaton’s greatest film, it is also widely recognized as one of the true masterpieces of American cinema.” FS It may be “the finest silent comedy of them all” T98 “and arguably the greatest screen comedy ever made.” T95
“The visually-stunning silent film” FS has “ everything one could wish for: witty, dramatic, visually stunning, full of subtle, delightful human insights, and constantly hilarious.” T95 It features “non-stop physical comedy and sight gags, shot almost entirely aboard moving trains.” FS It “flopped, critically and financially, when it was released. This resulted in Buster Keaton losing his independence as a filmmaker and the signing of a restrictive deal with MGM.” MSN
“The two things devoted Confederate engineer Johnny Gray (Keaton) loves most in the world are his Southern belle sweetheart (Mack) and his beloved locomotive named The General.” FS The humor begins when Keaton tries to get his train back after it is stolen by Union soldiers during the Civil War. “Keaton created this great comedy out of an authentic episode of American history…though in real-life the locomotive was stolen by the Confederates.” FS
What Keaton “doesn’t know is that his girlfriend Annabelle is aboard.” A07 “He hijacks another locomotive, pursues them, and single-handedly takes on the entire Union army in order to rescue both of his loves.” FS “Filmed against a backdrop of magnificently photographed Civil War battle scenes” FS “Keaton saves the day” A07 in “one of the great chases in movie history.” FS It features “one of the silent era’s most iconic images, Keaton seated on the moving wheels of The General.” A07 “Keaton amazingly did his own stunts.” VD
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