The first half of the film is a bit dull--having many lackluster jokes and too much plot for my liking--and only rarely utilizing Buster's great style of physical humor. It all begins as Buster is trying to make a buck taking pictures of people using an old tintype camera. However, when he is stuck in the middle of a ticker tape parade and he watches all the newsreel men covering the event, he catches "the bug" and trades in his equipment for a motion picture camera. When he arrives at MGM's Newsreel department, he is pretty much snubbed by everyone except for a secretary who feels sorry for him.
Later, after screwing up every other time he tried, Buster learns about a gang war that is about to erupt in Chinatown. On the way, he appears to accidentally kill a monkey!! This is a horrible scene that fortunately ends well. The monkey is NOT killed but soon becomes Buster's constant companion. Frankly, I think that once the monkey appeared, the film improved dramatically--I LOVE that monkey! Why, well at the gang fight, it's more like a war--with constant gun fire, machine guns and stabbings galore. AND, the monkey constantly saves the day for Buster--both stabbing a guy who is about to do Buster in as well as using a crank-style machine gun on the gang! Now THAT'S a handy monkey! It's all actually pretty cute--though I'm sure to you reading this it sounds horrific!
Unfortunately, when Buster arrives with the film, it seems his camera was not loaded and his is fired. So, on his own, Buster goes to film a local speedboat race. Buster's love interest and a rival are in the race but they are thrown from the boat. She is on the verge of drowning when Buster springs to action--saving her. But, when she awakens Buster isn't there and the jerk rival claims HE saved her! Only later, when the gang war roll of film is discovered does the lady realize Buster risked his own life for her, as you see, the monkey filmed the entire rescue! I told you, that's SOME monkey!
Despite being an excellent film, when I watch this film, I always find myself feeling depressed. That's because this was Keaton's first film with MGM and it marks a decided change in his films--and not a good change. Up until then, Buster had maintained a lot of control over his films and worked on most of the gags. However, now that the huge mega-studio bought his contract, the films received polish and "the MGM touch" that spelled the death of his earlier work. Now this isn't to say that the CAMERAMAN is a bad film. It has excellent production values but it also lacks some of the energy and spontaneity of his earlier works--at least in the first half of the film. Plus, after this movie, it was all downhill for Keaton's career. For example, try watching 1930's THE DOUGHBOY or SIDEWALKS OF NEW YORK and you'll find that the films are just dull and limp with none of the usual Keaton energy. Then, in 1932, in one of the most bone-headed moves in Hollywood history, he was paired with the loud and obnoxious comedian, Jimmy Durante--whose style was the exact opposite of Keaton's and ruined what was left of Keaton's charm. THE PASSIONATE PLUMBER and the rest of their films together just stink.
So, if you are NOT nostalgic about Keaton's earlier films (such as THE GENERAL or OUR HOSPITALITY), then you'll probably love this film. But, if you are a sentimentalist and die-hard fan of the silent comedians, this film might just make you feel a tad disappointed. Sure, it improves greatly as the film progresses, but you can't help but notice the film is a tad less memorable or special than his independent productions before THE CAMERAMAN.
Now although I still greatly prefer some of his earlier films (which are true classics), this isn't to say that THE CAMERAMAN is bad--heck, I gave it a 9! But, his next movies only became more and more and more conventional as he lost control over the production.
By the way, when this film was recently shown on Turner Classic Movies, the new musical score was a major detriment, as the instruments used were way too modern, loud and obtrusive. I can't blame this on the film but on the recent restoration.
Later, after screwing up every other time he tried, Buster learns about a gang war that is about to erupt in Chinatown. On the way, he appears to accidentally kill a monkey!! This is a horrible scene that fortunately ends well. The monkey is NOT killed but soon becomes Buster's constant companion. Frankly, I think that once the monkey appeared, the film improved dramatically--I LOVE that monkey! Why, well at the gang fight, it's more like a war--with constant gun fire, machine guns and stabbings galore. AND, the monkey constantly saves the day for Buster--both stabbing a guy who is about to do Buster in as well as using a crank-style machine gun on the gang! Now THAT'S a handy monkey! It's all actually pretty cute--though I'm sure to you reading this it sounds horrific!
Unfortunately, when Buster arrives with the film, it seems his camera was not loaded and his is fired. So, on his own, Buster goes to film a local speedboat race. Buster's love interest and a rival are in the race but they are thrown from the boat. She is on the verge of drowning when Buster springs to action--saving her. But, when she awakens Buster isn't there and the jerk rival claims HE saved her! Only later, when the gang war roll of film is discovered does the lady realize Buster risked his own life for her, as you see, the monkey filmed the entire rescue! I told you, that's SOME monkey!
Despite being an excellent film, when I watch this film, I always find myself feeling depressed. That's because this was Keaton's first film with MGM and it marks a decided change in his films--and not a good change. Up until then, Buster had maintained a lot of control over his films and worked on most of the gags. However, now that the huge mega-studio bought his contract, the films received polish and "the MGM touch" that spelled the death of his earlier work. Now this isn't to say that the CAMERAMAN is a bad film. It has excellent production values but it also lacks some of the energy and spontaneity of his earlier works--at least in the first half of the film. Plus, after this movie, it was all downhill for Keaton's career. For example, try watching 1930's THE DOUGHBOY or SIDEWALKS OF NEW YORK and you'll find that the films are just dull and limp with none of the usual Keaton energy. Then, in 1932, in one of the most bone-headed moves in Hollywood history, he was paired with the loud and obnoxious comedian, Jimmy Durante--whose style was the exact opposite of Keaton's and ruined what was left of Keaton's charm. THE PASSIONATE PLUMBER and the rest of their films together just stink.
So, if you are NOT nostalgic about Keaton's earlier films (such as THE GENERAL or OUR HOSPITALITY), then you'll probably love this film. But, if you are a sentimentalist and die-hard fan of the silent comedians, this film might just make you feel a tad disappointed. Sure, it improves greatly as the film progresses, but you can't help but notice the film is a tad less memorable or special than his independent productions before THE CAMERAMAN.
Now although I still greatly prefer some of his earlier films (which are true classics), this isn't to say that THE CAMERAMAN is bad--heck, I gave it a 9! But, his next movies only became more and more and more conventional as he lost control over the production.
By the way, when this film was recently shown on Turner Classic Movies, the new musical score was a major detriment, as the instruments used were way too modern, loud and obtrusive. I can't blame this on the film but on the recent restoration.