Most Helpful Customer Reviews
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37 of 38 people found the following review helpful:
4.0 out of 5 stars
Good collection of classic Keaton at his best !!!, April 9, 2005
I recently bought this two-disc collection of classic Buster Keaton films and two-reel shorts from my local Hastings store and for only $ 8.00,I was suprised that it wasn't really that all bad.This collection,produced by Brentwood/BCI Eclipse,contains the following three features,two of which are classic silent features such as Keaton's 1926 masterpiece THE GENERAL and his 1927 effort COLLEGE.It also includes Keaton's third sound film made at MGM,the 1931 feature PARLOR,BEDROOM,AND BATH.But perhaps another great deal for this DVD is the inclusion of six Keaton two-reel classic shorts such as THE BOAT,THE PALEFACE,THE PLAYHOUSE (all released in 1921),THE ELECTRIC HOUSE,THE FROZEN NORTH,and COPS (all released in 1922).Picture quality on THE GENERAL is the same transfer that has appeared in the Alpha Video,Goodtimes,Delta,and Navarre DVD releases as it's presented at 18 fps rather than the normal,more fast-paced 24 fps with some appearances of grain and dirt,but doesn't affect the film.It's presented with a more appropriate,Hal Roach-esque jazzy musical score which at times doesn't reflect the action on screen,but in my opinion a better fit than a orchestral classical score on previous incarnations,remember "Pomp and Circumstance" ? The audio on the soundtrack isn't up all the way so you may have to turn the volume up a few notches to hear the score.COLLEGE looks okay,but it doesn't quite live up to the other films in this set as it was transferred from a 16mm print complete with newly digitally created title cards as well as an entertaining,lively,jovial piano score that accompainies the film very well.But the Kino release,which I also have,has a much better,entertaining,and fast-paced pipe organ score by John Muir is that of much-better quality and restored from original 35mm elements.Disc two's PARLOR,BEDROOM,AND BATH has so-so,but good picture quality,but since I didn't really care much for that feature that there's no reason to mention about picture quality,etc.Surprisingly enough,the transfers for the six two-reelers that are on here are that from the laserdisc releases produced by the late,great film preservationist David Shepard for Kino as it contains energetic newly-created scores by Robert Israel and the late,great organist Gaylord Carter.THE BOAT is perhaps the worst-looking film in the collection as it was nearly destroyed and almost considered lost for many years.Despite these fixtures and flaws,this set is OK for your money,but for those very,very serious about quality,the Kino and Image editions of these classics for nearly ten dollars more are the definite way to go for your library of classic comedy.Not a bad deal for serious Buster Keaton fans !
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9 of 11 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
"On the sunkist slopes of the Pacific", May 8, 2006
I don't usually review these things. I'd never seen Keaton before this. I bought this with considerable uncertainty. And I'm.. here to say that it was well worth it.
The only thing I find remotely irritating about this set is the packaging. No booklet. Gotta read the print on the discs. And flip 'em over.
But the films are actually great fun. I actually like them. Not bad quality transfer either. So if you're new to his stuff, this may be something you want to watch.
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4.0 out of 5 stars
Start here if you're unfamiliar with Keaton, July 9, 2007
For the low price, this is a great introduction to the comedy of Buster Keaton. The video quality is OK, and if you really like this set you can think about investing in the mega-expensive "Art of Buster Keaton" from Kino that has his finest works from the 1920's on 11 discs in the best video quality available. Then you can give this duplicate set to some other possible future Keaton fan. This set has two of his best features, IMHO, "The General" and "College". The third feature, "Parlor, Bedroom, and Bath" from 1931 is not very funny during the first half, but the last half shows quite a bit of the old Buster, even within the constraints of the MGM studio system. Plus you get to hear his voice which, contrary to popular myth, was not the reason his career went downhill in the 1930's.
As for the shorts included - The Boat, The Paleface, The Playhouse, The Electric House, The Frozen North, and Cops - some are great Keaton shorts and some are just good. The funniest are Cops and The Playhouse, with my personal favorite being The Playhouse. In it, Keaton plays a custodial employee at a vaudeville house who dreams of being in the show - actually he dreams of being the entire show AND the audience. Cops has Buster trying to prove he can be a success in business and instead he winds up inadvertently stealing some furniture, being falsely accused of disrupting a parade, and ultimately being chased by every cop in town. The Electric House shows you what happens when a wealthy family hires a newly graduated botanist (Keaton) instead of an electrical engineer to modernize their house by wiring it for electricity. The Frozen North may not make much sense because much of it has been destroyed, and there are no intertitles telling you anything about the relationships between the characters or their motivations. Keaton plays an evil character for a change in this one. The video in The Boat is not as bad as you would think for a film that was almost completely destroyed. Unlike The Frozen North, the entire story is simple but clear as Buster takes his family for an outing in their new boat that just happens to have a humorous name that figures into several of the gags. Definitely worth it for the price.
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