STEAMBOAT BILL, JR. (1928)

The Golden Age of Comedy (Post 11 of 12)

Steamboat Bill Jr.

Steamboat Bill Jr. really shows off the common Buster Keaton film theme of Buster having to prove himself. In Steamboat Bill Jr., he has to prove himself seaworthy to his seadog father and worthy of marrying the girl he loves.

My favorite bit in the movie has Buster trying to sneak some tools in a loaf of bread so his father can escape from the local jail. There's also a lot of fun bits with the acrobatic Keaton almost falling off the ship into the water time and time again.

But as with many of his films, the highlight of Steamboat Bill, Jr. is the final chase or action sequence. This time, we have a cyclone that destroys everything around Buster, and the special effects are...well, how the hell did they do all that in 1928?

I'm a little sad to see the last of the Keaton films on my list. (I do realize I can see others that aren't on the sacred 1001 movie scrolls, however!). It's been fun to have a reminder just what a special talent he was.