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The Buster Keaton Collection - Volume 1 (The General / Steamboat Bill, Jr.) [Blu-ray]
Additional Blu-ray options | Edition | Discs | Price | New from | Used from |
Blu-ray
May 14, 2019 "Please retry" | Blu-ray | 1 |
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| — | $24.99 |
Genre | Kids & Family, DVD Movie, Steamboat Bill Jr., Steamboat Bill, Jr., Military & War, Blu-ray Movie, Comedy, Buster Keaton, The General, Steamboat Bill Junior See more |
Format | NTSC |
Contributor | Marion Mack, Ernest Torrence, Carl Harbaugh, Charles Reisner, Marion Byron, Jim Farley, Buster Keaton, Glen Cavender, Clyde Bruckman, Joseph M. Schenck, Frederick Vroom See more |
Language | English |
Runtime | 2 hours and 30 minutes |
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From the manufacturer

The Buster Keaton Collection: Volume 1 (The General / Steamboat Bill, Jr.)
New 4K restorations of two of Buster Keaton's greatest works, both featuring orchestral scores by Carl Davis. Many critics consider The General to be the last great comedy of the silent era, and it consistently ranks as one of the greatest films of all time on international critics' polls. Set during the Civil War and based on a true incident, the film is an authentic-looking period piece that brings the scope and realism of Matthew Brady-like images to brilliant life. Keaton portrays engineer Johnnie Gray, rejected by the Confederate Army and thought a coward by his girlfriend (Marion Mack). When a band of Union soldiers penetrate Confederate lines to steal his locomotive, Johnnie Gray sets off in pursuit. And in Steamboat Bill, Jr., as the son of a steamboat captain, Buster falls in love with the daughter of a rival steamboat owner. When a cyclone rages, Buster proves himself a hero by rescuing his love and her father from a watery grave.
Product Description
New 4K restorations of two of Buster Keaton's greatest works, both featuring orchestral scores by Carl Davis. Many critics consider The General to be the last great comedy of the silent era, and it consistently ranks as one of the greatest films of all time on international critics' polls. Set during the Civil War and based on a true incident, the film is an authentic-looking period piece that brings the scope and realism of Matthew Brady-like images to brilliant life. Keaton portrays engineer Johnnie Gray, rejected by the Confederate Army and thought a coward by his girlfriend (Marion Mack). When a band of Union soldiers penetrate Confederate lines to steal his locomotive, Johnnie Gray sets off in pursuit. And in Steamboat Bill, Jr., as the son of a steamboat captain, Buster falls in love with the daughter of a rival steamboat owner. When a cyclone rages, Buster proves himself a hero by rescuing his love and her father from a watery grave.
Bonus Content:
Disc 1 - The General:
- Reflections on The General
- Buster Keaton: The Luminary
- Restoration Trailer
- Restoration Trailer
Product details
- MPAA rating : NR (Not Rated)
- Product Dimensions : 0.7 x 7.5 x 5.4 inches; 2.4 Ounces
- Director : Charles Reisner, Buster Keaton, Clyde Bruckman
- Media Format : NTSC
- Run time : 2 hours and 30 minutes
- Release date : May 14, 2019
- Actors : Buster Keaton, Marion Mack, Ernest Torrence, Glen Cavender, Marion Byron
- Producers : Joseph M. Schenck
- Language : English (Dolby Digital 5.1), English (DTS-HD Master Audio 5.1)
- Studio : Cohen Media Group
- ASIN : B07Q8Q6WNJ
- Writers : Carl Harbaugh, Buster Keaton, Clyde Bruckman
- Number of discs : 1
- Best Sellers Rank: #50,410 in Movies & TV (See Top 100 in Movies & TV)
- #276 in Military & War (Movies & TV)
- #1,036 in Kids & Family Blu-ray Discs
- #2,657 in Comedy (Movies & TV)
- Customer Reviews:
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Top reviews from the United States
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"I thoroughly enjoyed this Blu-Ray disc. I had not yet seen a full Buster Keaton film and am all the more impressed to see the physciality AND actual story & characters hold up well throughout, and over the years. I was also amazed at the picture quality: if I did not know better I would have assumed both films were relativey recent based on the quality as well as how clear and clean the picture is. I also appreciated that Buster did not feel the need to caption every bit of dialoge... even where you did not know exactly what was said you could tell without the actors hamming it up or exaggerating.
...and the disc and packaging arrived in perfect condition."
This Cohen release is simply beautiful, with straight black and white. The film details are the clearest I've ever seen them. And it has the Carl Davis score. Nothing not to love, in my mind. And pure paradise to watch.
As for Steamboat Bill, Jr., I have the Lobster/Kino Classics blu-ray release, and was quite satisfied with the look of it and its musical choices. I was buying for The General, and so I might not have double-dipped for a standalone of Steamboat Bill, Jr. However, when I saw that Carl Davis had done the score for this release, I became very excited. As I mentioned above, I love his music for The General—and for Our Hospitality as well.
Unfortunately, I was somewhat disappointed in his score here. In terms of melodic themes and apt musical accents, he doesn't rise to the level of his work for Keaton's other two films. At once point, in the prison scene, he even uses a wailing electric guitar. It's irritating in a big way. There are a couple of nice themes - such as for the film's sweetheart (Kitty/Marion Byron); but to me, Davis fell short of expectations here.
I did not mark down this release because of that, though, as even the worst scored Buster film is excellent. You can always turn down the music. The basic film is Buster's, and I used to enjoy his films even on old VHS tapes where music sounded cranked through a tin can and you could barely make out Keaton's amazing face.
Viewing Buster's work has come a long way, and there are few films greater than The General, and to my mind, no release better than this one. I can't wait to follow it up with Cohen's Volume 2: Sherlock Jr. & The Navigator!
As Orson Welles himself noted the General may be the greatest comedy, the greatest Civil War movie, and even the greatest film of all time.... and I agree it is that good. The bonus film , Steamboat Bill Jr is no throwaway and in fact a stone cold classic which features likely the single greatest comedy stunt in film history.
This company Cohen does things right and unlike Kino is getting the Keaton films to a level we buffs can only dream about. The fact this set is labeled Vol. 1 may be the second best news of all.
If you are wondering it this is worth a "double dip" as DVD and Blu Ray collectors call it .. YES YES YES! If you have not seen this film or have only seen previous editions... buy buy buy... my strongest recommendation.
The quality of this restoration is as good as I believe any silent restoration could ever be. It really is like seeing the film for the first time again. It is almost eerie how good it looks. It looks like it could have been filmed yesterday.
Do not hesitate to buy this Blu Ray, as good as the Kino version is this is leaps and bounds better in quality.
This version of The General should be the standard by which all silent restorations are measured.
I thought the Chaplin criterion Blu Ray's were really something, this beats those in restoration and picture quality. Bravo team.
Top reviews from other countries

Not my machine as I tried another one too.
Please send another copy.