Hindsight

Classic kids, or 100 films that the kids in your life have to see by 13 or else!

Day 76:  The General (1927)

There is something just so lovely about Buster Keaton.  His dead-pan expressions, his stoic  persistence against multiple odds.   The General is special for multiple reasons.  There are the numerous sight gags, and time to the exact second stunts.  Unlike some of Keaton's films, The General actually builds on a strong storyline of a man enlisting in the confederate army during the civil war.  As a soldier he may be brave but Keaton's character is continually inept in doing the most basic military job.  Much of the film takes place on a train ("the General") where his character encounters numerous calamities.  One of the key joys of the film is watching Keaton use a range of machines and objects to help him adapt to a plethora of obstacles.   

This movie really moves.  One of the best of the Hollywood silent films, and certainly Keaton's masterpiece.

Themes:  Civil War, Trains, Bravery, Coincidence, Luck

Media Literacy Questions for kids:  How can you tell that the General was made at the end of the silent movie era?  Which one of Keaton's perfectly timed gags did you find funny and why?  What is it about Keaton's character that makes him seem so calm?  What did the filmmakers do to achieve the effect of a Civil War battle?  How did the film conform to stereotypical views of gender and race?  Do you think a film can still be funny when it does?