Buster Keaton: A Hard Act to Follow

I use the phrase "America's greatest director" not ironically, not unqualified, & not because I admire or otherwise favor silents over "talkies." I use it because I honestly think it's true. & this biography reenforces that belief more than anything I've seen or heard with the exception of actually seeing Keaton's movies. But sometimes you need something to get people to see these movies, movies which may seem quaint or curious to people used to hearing dialogue & sound effects. This documentary does it.

You see, Keaton UNDERSTOOD. Sometimes his movies are corny, sometimes they aim high & hit low, but mostly they're amazing. Mostly they happily present a very scrappy & sympathetic (but not perfect) protagonist & the many foul-ups & challenges he faces. He doesn't fret or moan but simply takes his beatings & tries again. Unlike Chaplin's main characters, Keaton's hero is very often the least important figure in the shot - because the effect is far more important than some kind of identification with the protagonist. Gags & foibles are fluid; nothing seems contrived or extraneous because so

much thought has been placed into each shot, each moment, to render everything crucial to the story. There's a reason that silent comedies are valued (in general) more than silent dramas: comedies speak more to the human condition, & the outrageous in a comedy is accepted where the theatrics & overemoting of a drama seems downright quaint. Keaton knew this. Keaton thrived within this.

How his career was cut short & reduced to nothing is documented here (I'm giving nothing away; volume 2 is entitled "Star Without A Studio") as well as his own problems with alcohol. I am especially suspectible to people who have a sense of the successes & failings of their lives & come to a grateful, gentle end; Keaton, like Harpo Marx, felt blessed by the chances he was given & modestly rated his own body of work. But listen: if you see this documentary, you'll want to see the movies, even if the documentary does show most of his most spectacular stunts. Because for Keaton, context was important: the star can be shown running at the bottom of the screen while a hundred cops chasing him take up most of it. So too can a single stunt, even the best stunt of a movie, make little sense without the context of the film.

Find this. Buy or rent this. Watch critically, note the precision of every scene, the skill with which they are composed & shot & carried out, & then seek out the originals. You'll compare them with your favorite films, you'll find that somewhere in the silent age of movies someone was actually an artist, someone making *comedy*, & you'll understand why people today mention Keaton in reverent tones.

I adore so much cinema, but I am always, always impressed by the skill of Buster Keaton.

"A Hard Act to Follow" is probably the best documentary of its kind that could have been made. Three hours isn't long enough to document everything about a man's life but it is long enough to give a touching picture of Buster Keaton as a person, and a thoroughly insightful impression of his peculiar brilliance as a comedian and filmmaker.

The use of old film of Keaton's work is extensive and done in exactly the way it should be. It's not just B-roll thrown randomly behind narration or interview audio. Clips selected for that kind of use illustrate what is being talked about perfectly, and are timed and sped or slowed with great precision, probably just as Keaton would have wanted them. Longer extracts do a marvelous job of illustrating his greatest comedy moments, and -- best of all -- film is slowed or enlarged in ways that really illuminate, sometimes in stunning ways, new things about the comedies that even somebody who had seen them dozens of times would not have known. This is one of this documentary's biggest strengths.

Rare footage of Keaton is very generous and aptly introduced too, including home movies, candid shots of his directing, television kinescopes, commercials he created, and lengthy interview material from the man himself.

Another thing that makes this documentary special, and the thing that makes it really irreplaceable, is that, made a not-astronomical 21 years after his death, it is able to include illuminating interviews with Keaton's third wife and other people who knew and worked with him during his lifetime (and they all seem to have a boundless affection for the man).

I think anyone appreciates Keaton's work should see this documentary, and it would probably be an excellent introduction for those who don't already. It's made with an enormous amount of insight, skill, affection, and apprehension.

I fully concur with all the above. A wonderful film about a wonderfully talented and undersung human being we are lucky enough to have record of in his extraordinary movie clips. The first video is just plain fun and the third video is as satisfying and joyful as the second is painful. Truly a great documentary for anyone who enjoys biography. 10/10

Great subject; perfect execution. Brownlow (author of the wonderful THE PARADE'S GONE BY) has done his work here, and this is one of the best documentaries made so far. Keaton's genius is on full display here, and this history is so thoroughly stunning, fascinating, funny, and watchable that I've just run out of adjectives. Bears up tremendously under repeated viewings. One of two movies which I've noticed brings conversation to a halt in public and private, mesmerizing its audience (the other, funny enough, is THE KING OF COMEDY). Beautiful work.

This is simply a perfect documentary. I cannot find any fault in it or room for improvement, unless it would be to make it an even longer sampling of Keaton's skills. Buster Keaton was a unique master of physical comedy on film and this documentary is a worthy examination of Keaton's life. The music is wonderful. When I see Keaton's films now I wish the music from this documentary was playing with it. Everyone should see this documentary. Many would be surprised at what silent films had to offer.