Friday, June 7, 2013

Steamboat Bill, Jr. 1928:


     Willie Canfield is the smaller than expected son of a rough steamboat captain.  Steamboat Bill Canfield runs a very worn out steamboat on the river by River Junction, Mississippi.  He meets his son at the train from Boston with his engineer, he is looking for a big rough guy with a white carnation in his jacket lapel.  At first he can’t find him but they see the luggage tag and his son is not at all a rough guy.  Bill starts to try to make a “man” out of his son but he’s having trouble on the river with the wealthy owner of a fancy new boat, the King.
     This is funny and many seemingly impossible things happen in this film, some were dangerous and Keaton could've been killed.  I don’t know how many people fall into the river and how man times Keaton falls down.  A huge cyclone comes though the town causing destruction in its paths and many amazing sights.  This seems long and you wonder how anyone would be able to play the music accompaniment for this length of time in a theater.  3 ½* (I liked this movie)

111 min, Comedy directed by Charles “Chuck” Riesner with Buster Keaton, Ernest Torrence, Tom Lewis, Tom McGuire, Marion Byron, Joe Keaton.

Note:  Blockbuster 4 ½*, 7.9 out of 10, 100% critic 91% audience on Rotten Tomatoes.

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