General, The (1927)
Comedy | Romance | War | Action

Silent Film Onscreen Intertitles - English

Tagline: Love, Locomotives and Laughs -- "General" is the name of Keaton's cherished locomotive.

Consistently ranked among the best films ever made, Keaton's "The General" (1926, 75 min., stereo) is so brilliantly conceived and executed that it continues to inspire awe and laughter with every viewing.

Rejected by the Confederate Army as unfit and taken for a coward by his beloved Annabelle Lee (Marian Mack), young Johnnie Gray (Keaton) sets out to single-handedly win the war with his cherished locomotive. What follows is, without exaggeration, probably the most cleverly choreographed comedy ever recorded on celluloid. Johnnie wages war against hijackers, an errant cannon and the unpredictable hand of fate while roaring along the iron rails -- exploiting the comedic potential of Keaton's favorite filmic prop: the train. Insisting on accuracy in every detail, Keaton created a remarkable authentic historical epic, replete with hundreds of costumed extras, full-scale sets and the breathtaking plunge of an actual locomotive from burning bridge into a river. "Every shot has the authenticity and the unassuming correct composition of a Mathew Brady Civil War photograph," wrote film historian David Robinson, "No one -- not even Griffith or Huston and certainly not Fleming (Gone With The Wind) -- caught the visual aspect of the Civil War as Keaton did."

In The Playhouse" (1921, 23 min., mono), a technical tour-de-force in which Keaton plays every member of a stage company, the entire audience and an undisciplined chimp to boot! "Cops" (1922, 18 min., mono) is the quintessential chase film, with Buster tumbling into a series of marvelous mishaps while fleeing hundreds of uniformed policemen.

Storyline: Johnnie loves his train ("The General") and Annabelle Lee. When the Civil War begins he is turned down for service because he's more valuable as an engineer. Annabelle thinks it's because he's a coward. Union spies capture The General with Annabelle on board. Johnnie must rescue both his loves. Written by Ed Stephan

User Comment: hoserhound from Washington State, USA, 11 August 2004 • There aren't too many words to describe this film other than "amazing." I am embarrassed to admit that I am 23 and this is the first time I've seen this film, however now that I have I will be certain to go out and purchase any Buster Keaton film I can get my hands on. I was lucky enough to find this film packaged along with Steamboat Bill Jr. and two Charlie Chaplin films (The Kid and Tillie's Punctured Romance) at my local Wal-Mart for a measly $5.50 and decided to give it a try. Heck, a dollar can't even buy a popsicle now-a-days, but can purchase one of the greatest comedies I've ever seen. Go figure.

I won't bother you with a detailed plot, all you really need to know is what is expressed in the opening scenes, that this man loves only two things in life, his General (the train) and his woman (who is not very likeable but still drives Buster throughout the film.) When both are taken away from him he has nothing to do but to retrieve them at any cost which begins his amazing journey.

The plot alone is entertaining, however the obvious draw of the film is Buster Keaton's amazing stunts, including the famous (and dangerous) scenes of him riding in front of a moving train while attempting to dislodge large wooden planks that are blocking the tracks in front of him. However, the entire film is one large stunt, as he jumps back and forth from carts on the moving train as if it is no big deal (today a stunt double would certainly be used, and likely a blue screen as well). The best joke, which I don't want to give away, is another great stunt as he attempts to catch up with the runaway train as he is being chased by soldiers.

My only negative comment towards the film is the soundtrack. My copy was not digitally remastered (that's what you get for $1 a movie) and released by a company called "Quality" Special Products, so I cannot speak for any newer copies, but the soundtrack for this film was the worst I had ever heard in my life. Having seen a few dozen silent films in my life (with the best being The Passion of Joan of Arc) I learned quickly that I could better enjoy the film by hitting the "mute" button and I would recommend that to you as well. I wouldn't be surprised at all if many younger people are immediately turned off by the annoyingly repetitive soundtrack.

Well, when the only thing you can say negatively about a film is the soundtrack, you can trust that the film itself is great if not the greatest silent comedy of all time. Another commenter said that this comedy is much better than those which came in the talking pictures period, and while I don't agree with that (The Thin Man series are some of the greatest "dialogue comedies") I would certainly not call the man a liar.

Buster Keaton is a genius. I hope every parent forces their child to watch at least one of his amazing films before his legacy slips away and kids begin to think that Jackie Chan is the greatest "stunt actor" in the history of film. Films like Rush Hour have nothing on "The General". -- 10/10

Summary: Amazing.....

--- JOYA ---

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