Neighbors

Being one of Keaton's earliest and most recognised short film, Neighbours is full of passion, fast-paced, frantic and at times even romantically touching. It's innocent, light-hearted and airy, and just about sums up Buster's earliest work, going from slapstick nonsense to refreshing (for the time) character-driven gags that deliver just as well. Sure enough the feature is not without its drawbacks which do hinder the overall pacing and breezy feeling present in the short's best moments. Much like The Balloonatic, the greatest parts here lie in acts one and three, with the middle section giving way to fine moments of zany antics, but with plenty of superfluous additions to boot.

The plot here follows a young man and woman madly in love as they attempt to bring themselves together against their begrudging families. What follows is a piece of hilarious and wild twenty minute entertainment full of laughs and great images. Keaton himself is truly captivating as always, and delivers some of his most inspired and tricky stunts here which do well to thrill and bring up a laugh or two out of the sheer spectacle of what is going on. Throw in a beautiful supporting actress, and a whole host of very vivid personalities backing Buster, plus troublesome trousers, quarrelling families and you have a film that is sure to stick with you, despite its obvious inconsistencies and less successful moments.

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This Buster Keaton short has some outstanding and breathtaking stunts. You have to see it to believe it.

Buster is in love with his neighbour. They send notes through a hole in the fence. Their respective fathers disapprove of the romance.

Buster is determined to marry his girl even though he goes through a series of mishaps involving both families and the police.

The plot itself is frothy and silly. Buster constantly gets detained by a policeman and then escapes. At one point he is blacked up when escorted by a policeman and then runs away for the policeman to arrest a black man who walks past.

Given that this short was made in 1920. This is still the early days of cinema. Some of the physical acrobatic stuff Buster does is impressive, including three men standing on top of each other which happens at the end. A few times I had to rewind it and watch it again.

Neighbors (1920)

*** (out of 4)

Buster Keaton does the Romeo and Juliet storyline as he falls in love with his neighbor but it'll be hard to get married since the families hate one another. There are plenty of good gags here including the human fly swatter gag and the stuff dealing with Keaton trying to avoid the police. Keaton also delivers one of his best stunts and three people on one another's shoulders try and walk from house to house with Keaton being three stories up.

Available on Kino's The Art of Buster Keaton Collection, which is one of the greatest box sets out there.

Buster is in love with his next door neighbor, but her father hates Buster and won't allow them to see each other. As a result, again and again, Buster does a lot of crazy stunts in order to see her--as well as eventually kidnap her so they can elope. The stunts are amazing and this is a very good movie. However, if it weren't for all his better brilliant films, I might have scored this a bit higher. But films such as STEAMBOAT BILL, JR., COPS, OUR HOSPITALITY and THE PLAY HOUSE (among others) are simply better than NEIGHBORS. So, I would recommend you try watching these other films and then come back to it. Still, it's enjoyable and fun.

"Neighbors" is a very entertaining Buster Keaton short comedy featuring some hilarious slapstick and some good stunts. It takes place in a tenement complex, with Buster and Virginia Fox playing young lovers who live in buildings separated by a wooden fence. Their families don't like each other, and do what they can to undermine the romance, but without success. It's very funny right from the beginning, with Buster and Virginia slipping love notes through a knothole in the fence, and having them intercepted by one parent after another. There are lots of slapstick antics, and one of the funniest wedding scenes you will see. There are also some good stunts and brief chase scenes - in other words, a little bit of everything that Keaton was known for. It would probably be best appreciated by those who are already fans, but if you enjoy Keaton, don't miss this one.