Film Review:The General (1926)

“The General” is an American silent comedy film released by United Artists in 1926. It was starred by Buster Keaton and co-directed by himself and Clyde Bruckman. The movie was inspired by ‘The Great Locomotive Chase’, which occurred during ‘The American Civil War’. 

The ‘General’ highlights the uplifting story of a low-life engineer. Johnnie Gray (Buster Keaton) tries to enlist for the South. However, they don’t take him in, as they value him as an engineer rather than a soldier. Johnnie Gray (Buster Keaton) tries out ways to try to get him enlisted, using unimaginable ways to create comedic effect. However, he still fails. He painstakingly returns home, only to be given the impression of a ‘coward’ by his wife, Annabelle Lee (Marion Mack) for not enlisting. Johnnie Gray (Buster Keaton) tries to explain himself, but his wife (Marion Mack) only believes he’s lying and leaves him stranded. Soon after, Annabelle Lee (Marion Mack) is kidnapped by the South on Johnnie’s train. In order to save his loved one, Johnnie Gray (Buster Keaton) pursues the kidnapping team from the North, alone. On a section of his train. As Johnnie Gray persistently pursues on saving her, he’s left stranded as he falls off his train. However, he realises he’s close to the enemy’s headquarters. He manages to save his wife. While indirectly, eavesdropping on the North’s plans on the South. The next day, Johnnie Gray (Buster Keaton) manages to escape on a train with his wife. Only to be pursued by the North. He manages to create diversions to slow the North down. Johnnie Gray (Buster Keaton) eventually arrives home, instantly informing the South about the attack from the North. The South ambush the north and they win the war. Johnnie Gray (Buster Keaton) is hailed a hero and lives a happy ending with his wife, Annabelle Lee (Marion Mack).

What interested me about the movie, ‘The General’, was the fact that it was a silent film that managed to give me a few chuckles. What also surprised me, was the fact that the movie managed to combine action, adventure and comedy all in one. It managed to cover the whole package. ‘The General’ was shot in black and white, this was used to highlight the the time period of the American Civil War and at that time, technology was not developed to a certain extent. They were only able to shoot in black and white. The use of black and white, was also able to allow the audience to focus on the importance and effective use of lighting. From the movie, I was able to observe the uses of backlighting, low-key lighting, high-key lighting, illumination, key light and base light. The movie was silent, this was used to allow the audience to focus more on the scenes than dialogue. However, there were captions occasionally that gave a narration to the audience.

Overall, I think that the movie was captivating for an ancient classic. As it managed to combine three genres in one, give a comic feeling to it, emphasise on set and lighting.