The Great Buster:
A Celebration
Director:
Peter Bogdanovich
Year: 2018
Rating: 8.0
This is a wonderful tribute or celebration as they title it of the films
and life of Buster Keaton directed and narrated by Peter Bogdanovich. Bogdanovich
whose career went weirdly off the tracks (as did Keaton's once sound came
in) has made documentaries about other directors - Hawks and Ford - and took
on this project at the request of the person who owns the rights to Keaton's
films. It is a lovely piece of work using great clips and the usual cluster
of folks chiming in about how much they love Keaton's films - Mel Brooks,
Bill Hader, Richard Lewis, Dick Van Dyke and of course Quentin Tarantino
who seems to show up in all of these types of tributes. It isn't particularly
deep but if you like Keaton and I do a lot, it is very satisfying.
Keaton is often portrayed tragically - from being a great star to being nearly
forgotten in his life time to great recognition again near the end of his
life. But it never was to Keaton. After sound came in - Steamboat Bill in
1928 being his last sound film and his last classic - he moved to MGM which
took away his independence and put him in crappy films in which he had no
input - from there it was a long descent into a failing marriage and alcoholism.
But Keaton never gave up, kept working at whatever he could find - short
films, commercials, appearances on Candid Camera and guest appearances in
a few Beach films and such - Chaplin brought him in for a wonderful appearance
in Limelight.
And Keaton never complained about it. For writing gags for MGM he was being
paid $100 a week - when told that this was insulting to a great star, Keaton
replied they will pay me more when I deserve more. After a few bad marriages
he found a wife that was meant for him and they stayed married till he died.
Playing bridge which he loved. He stood up to deal the cards, sat down and
passed away. Almost a perfect way to go in silent comedy. I expect everyone
thought it was a joke. That was in 1966 at 70 years - nearly 40 years since
his last great film.
His comedy is timeless - much more so than any of the other silent comedians
- it always feels modern, amazing, clever, artistic and at times so beautifully
absurd and nearly surreal. Part of his timelessness is his face - it is a
remarkably interesting face that he quickly realized was best set in stone
- rarely expressive except with his eyes but his eyes expressed so much.
He rarely indulged in sentimentality or cruelty - most of the jokes were
directed at himself and his relations and portrayals of women were gentle
and sweetly funny. His shorts One Week and The Boat are lovely portrayals
of marriage and patience - something he never had in his first marriages.
I have been going through all of his comedy shorts with just a few more to
go before getting to the features and there are times I literally gasp at
his ingenuity and the risks he takes. Even when he was in his late 60's he
was doing his own stunts. So if you are a Keaton fan and especially if you
are not, this is a terrific glimpse at his life and work.
