Battling Butler

Battling Butler (1926) : Brief Review -

Buster Keaton hits all the punches right without even entering the boxing ring. This feels like an another influential stuff from Keaton which might not have been remade or adapted as it is but surely has inspired many comedy and rom-com films over the years. A love-struck weakling must pretend to be boxer in order to gain respect from the family of the girl he loves which takes him to fight the real boxing match. Battling Butler, the title refers to two personalities in the film of the same name getting mixed up. So, it creates that certain types of laughing situations which will leave you with enough gags. Although, it isn't completely hilarious, Battling Butler is more about comic situations than comedy scenes. Some of the one liners (intertitles i mean) are too good, see one says this, "Do you think you could learn to love me?" And she says, "I have." And he tores the paper apart. I don't know why those so many rom-coms of talkies era didn't use this line ever? Buster Keaton as the Battling Butler is in top form like always. Not just physical comedy but he performs some difficult stunts also and that too without fumbling. Snitz Edwards as his Valet is typically funny while gorgeous Sally O'Neil as his love interest plays the part fine. Keaton had already made Cult comedies like 'Our Hospitality', "Sherlock Jr.', 'The Genral' and other which had lot of mind-blowing adventurous stuff and Battling Butler doesn't match those films. Nevertheless, it is a great entertainner anyday. The short runtime helps it to remain engaging throughout without leaving any loops and boring moments. The best part is, those boxing sequences are damn funny which highlights some major comedy skills of Keaton. Overall, another fine comedy by King Of Comedy.

RATING - 7/10*

By - #samthebestest.

Sybil Seely, Marceline Day, Brown Eyes: All of Buster Keaton's best on-screen partners were female. All but one. Snitz Edwards here plays Buster's faithful valet, a gnomish, gentle character whose eagerness to arrange whatever his master wants lands him in trouble.

Buster is Alfred Butler, rich and so passive he lets Snitz tap the ash off his cigarette. While on a camping trip, he meets a girl (Sally O'Neil) who strikes his fancy. Her father and brother disapprove of her going off with a "jellyfish." Snitz to the rescue: He tells them this is the same "Battling Butler" who just won the lightweight boxing crown. Alas, the ruse works too well.

You can argue that Snitz plays the title character here as much as Buster or Francis McDonald, who plays the boxer Butler. Whether laying out a ridiculously ornate table at Buster's camp site or laboring to keep up with his boss during an arduous run through the mud, there's no give-up in the guy.

"I'd like to marry that pretty little mountain girl" Buster says.

"Shall I arrange it?" Snitz answers. Buster nods, setting the plot in motion.

Like a lot of silent comedies, this is a film of pieces. The first half, of Buster and Snitz roughing it in the outdoors, could be a clever short all by itself. Buster's idea of duck-hunting is to row up to one wading in the water, and then lean out of the boat to point a shotgun at it at point-blank range. You expect him to fire and roll off from the gun's kickback, so naturally that's the one thing that doesn't happen.

The transition to the boxing comedy is well done, helped along by Snitz, McDonald, and O'Neil, really a cutie with her Zooey Deschanel eyes. It's O'Neil's desperate desire to see her man in the ring duking it out that forces Buster and Snitz to scramble in the last half-hour or so, coming up with all sorts of ruses. The comedy wears a bit thin at times with some protracted workout scenes in the boxing ring, yet Buster goes a long way to selling them with his amazingly elastic physicality.

Buster doesn't wear a porkpie in this film, and his pampered lifestyle distances you a bit more than his inexpressiveness usually did, but he has that dogged quality of classic Keaton heroes. He may not be the champion boxer his girl thinks he is, but he'll not give her up without a fight. "I'm going back and tell her the truth," he tells Snitz. "I'd rather lose her that way."

It's funny how "Battling Butler" doesn't really engage a lot of Keaton fans. Perhaps there's some resentment there because it was a hit for Buster right before "The General" flopped. Taken on its own merits, "Battling Butler" is a clever and engaging comedy with a likeably different lead role for Buster and a surprising double-twist ending, in which Buster (and the audience) have the wool lifted from their eyes one minute, only for Buster to do the same with us the next.

Maybe "Battling Butler" isn't as inventive as Keaton fans are used to, but it has its share of arresting visuals and a solid mix of varied comedic moments that still connect. Plus it works as a story all the way through. Finally there's the winning chemistry of Buster and Snitz, The Great Stoneface and The Great Cragface.

While it's a cut below Keaton's best features, "Battling Butler" has some good comic material and an amusing, if lightweight, story. There are some good performances from the supporting cast, a wide enough assortment of gags, and the story-line also gives Buster a chance to demonstrate a few of his many acrobatic talents.

The first few minutes contain lots of good visual gags as we are introduced to Keaton's hapless character. Then, when his identity gets tangled up with that of a prize-fighter, "Battling Butler", from there on in Buster finds himself in some increasingly complicated and tricky situations. As his character's physical ineptness is emphasized, Keaton's own agility and versatility are displayed in various antics. (The same is true to some degree of his character in "College".) Most of the specific stunts, though, are relatively routine compared to those in his best work.

In lesser hands, the fragile premise would run out of steam quickly, but here things keep moving along steadily, and there are some very good moments. It doesn't ever really hit high gear, though, and it's missing the kind of top-notch climactic sequence that distinguishes Keaton's best films. Thus it will probably be of interest primarily to those who are already fans of Keaton, but most such fans should find it worth a look. While there's nothing spectacular, there is more than enough good material to make it worthwhile as light entertainment.

In 1926, before the world knew what Buster Keaton sounded like when he talked, he played a rich, spoiled dandy in Battling Butler. While "camping" on his own in the forest, his valet takes care of his every need, including hot meals, dressing him for dinner, and drawing his bath. Buster sees Sally O'Neil and sends his valet, Snitz Edwards, to propose for him and arrange the marriage. Sally's family think Buster is a weakling, but to impress them, Snitz lies and says Buster is actually "Battling" Butler, a prizefighter with the same name.

For the rest of the movie, Buster is caught up in the lie he didn't even tell. He pretends to be the boxer, and even switches places with him and prepares to fight in the ring! There are some pretty cute scenes and jokes, as well as some very entertaining boxing scenes. Even though he comes across as a weakling at the start of the movie, we all know that he's going to show off and use his muscles when he gets into his boxing shorts. This isn't the movie to watch if you're looking for death-defying stunts, but if you liked Danny Kaye's reluctant character in The Kid from Brooklyn, you'll probably love this one.

Buster Keaton stars as Alfred Butler, spoiled young man from rich family. His father sends him into mountains for hunting and fishing trip to 'make a man' out of him. Unfortunately, Alfred is not quite weakling, but he is very used with comfortable life where everything is done before and after him (in the opening scene we see Alfred smoking, and his valet taking cigarette out between his lips, shaking ashes into the tray and placing cigarette back between his lips), so he decides to take his valet (Snitz Edwards) along. The life in the forest isn't much different for Alfred, as the tent is luxurious like a mansion, and his valet still preparing his clothing and meals. After meeting a girl, Alfred falls in love with her, but the girl's father and brother are against the marriage because they think Alfred is a weakling. Alfred's valet lies him to be a prize fighter who happens to bear the same name, Alfred Butler. One little lie leads to another, until Alfred is forced to take up the part of the boxer he pretended to be for real.

'Battling Butler' is more situation comedy than Keaton's usual physical action packed movies. Besides Keaton's time spent in the ring the film contains very little stunt work. But one shouldn't worry about that thing, as Buster Keaton's subtle performance is enough to compensate that. The high point of the whole movie is definitely the climatic fight between two Butlers (Buster Keaton and Francis McDonald). Not comparable with 'The General' or 'Sherlock Jr.' but sweet movie nonetheless. Like Martin Scorsese himself said - Keaton is the only person who had the right attitude about boxing in the movies. And 'Battling Butler' is one boxing comedy with attitude.