The films kickoff — the first 15 minutes or so — had me exceedingly apprehensive. The slapstick was easy and uninspired, and to top that off, was shot and edited awkwardly; the Keaton that I knew was unrecognizable. Very worried was I at the thought of the first feature film of Buster's that I'd see, going on to be the first bad one as well. Perhaps that level of anxiety is what caused the eventual, stretched sigh-of-relief, I let go of, to be *so* heavy.
The exact point where the dispassionate- faced, insecure, and unwittingly suave Buster that I've quickly grown to love, done with his stretching, came to play, was at the scheduling of the walk. That second onwards: smooth sailing! Whatever the task was — slips, slides, and falls, to something as elementary as running — Keaton performed it to perfection, and all, *impressively*, topped, and perhaps made, with his facial expressions (or lack thereof). *This*, and his creative touch are what were missing in those drab 15 minutes.
The, as always, inventive gags, while each being funny, steadily improved. Beginning at the simple and grin-inducing stairs sequence, and ending at the invigorating spectacle that was the Tong War — where, unlike the muddled parade scene at the start, it was able to be chaotic/hectic while simultaneously being comprehensible.
If you've seen the picture, you've probably realized I've gone without speaking of the final 10 minutes. I wish I could say that because its predecessor (Tong) was such an exhilarating experience, the ending just couldn't follow and ultimately underwhelmed me. But the sad truth is that it simply felt tacked on. I'd like to think that there wasn't enough room in the budget, rather than them just not knowing how to end it. But whatever the reason, it's a bummer. That the film's edges were both disappointing is, well...disappointing; the scenes linking the two were such a delight however, that in the end, the film won me over.
The exact point where the dispassionate- faced, insecure, and unwittingly suave Buster that I've quickly grown to love, done with his stretching, came to play, was at the scheduling of the walk. That second onwards: smooth sailing! Whatever the task was — slips, slides, and falls, to something as elementary as running — Keaton performed it to perfection, and all, *impressively*, topped, and perhaps made, with his facial expressions (or lack thereof). *This*, and his creative touch are what were missing in those drab 15 minutes.
The, as always, inventive gags, while each being funny, steadily improved. Beginning at the simple and grin-inducing stairs sequence, and ending at the invigorating spectacle that was the Tong War — where, unlike the muddled parade scene at the start, it was able to be chaotic/hectic while simultaneously being comprehensible.
If you've seen the picture, you've probably realized I've gone without speaking of the final 10 minutes. I wish I could say that because its predecessor (Tong) was such an exhilarating experience, the ending just couldn't follow and ultimately underwhelmed me. But the sad truth is that it simply felt tacked on. I'd like to think that there wasn't enough room in the budget, rather than them just not knowing how to end it. But whatever the reason, it's a bummer. That the film's edges were both disappointing is, well...disappointing; the scenes linking the two were such a delight however, that in the end, the film won me over.