Comments on Screen Savour: Our Hospitality (1923)

Thanks all for the great comments. Sorry in the de...

2009-08-15T11:39:15.740-04:00

Thanks all for the great comments. Sorry in the delay — I've been vacationing!

It's amazing how fundamentally different the film feels, and even more amazing that Keaton (reticent that audiences wouldn't enjoy a feature from him) managed to pull off a film this good this early in his career. It demonstrates an inherent mastery of cinema on his part. Really a tremendous achievement, even if many don't consider it his best film overall. (But some do!)

Thank you for the very perceptive post. Our Hospit...

2009-08-13T08:40:50.295-04:00

Thank you for the very perceptive post. Our Hospitality is unquestionably my favorite Keaton movie, because it has the best of everything: the best narrative, the most astonishing stunts, the most hilarious gags, and one important further element: it's warmer somehow than The General or Sherlock Jr. It's a whole rounded planet of satisfaction.

Well, I would rank this behind SHERLOCK JR. and TH...

2009-08-12T11:17:40.053-04:00

Well, I would rank this behind SHERLOCK JR. and THE GENERAL, but it's a Keaton masterpiece nonetheless, and one of the great features of the silent era.

Fantastic point here:

"The film has an entirely different rhythm and pulse than anything Keaton had done before; it is mature storytelling, with a straightforward and occasionally dramatic and satirical narrative positioned first and the comedy serving as a successful buttress."

And how it comes off:

"More importantly, there's not a flat note in the film. Our Hospitality possesses a forward momentum in its narrative that is generally lacking from Keaton's shorts, which possess more of a circular narrative that takes a situation and mines it for all its comic gold rather than pushing it to another place."

The rushing river climax is one of the greatest in the Keaton arsenals of stunts, without question.

This is a desert island movie. Your passion, again, is palpable.

T.S., a review worthy of the movie. This and "...

2009-08-10T02:43:25.753-04:00

T.S., a review worthy of the movie. This and "Sherlock, Jr." are my two favorite Keaton films I've seen, even moreso than "The General," which I think is brilliant but a little on the dry side. I like the emphasis on plot over gags in this film. It more firmly places the gags in a narrative context than in other Keaton works I've seen, and that for me makes them all the more precious and effective. I also like this film so much because like "Sherlock, Jr." it seems to give Keaton more of a character to play than in some of his other films, and that character is a very winning and sympathetic one. Chaplin was very strong in this respect, and I think that may be one of the big reasons that those who prefer Chaplin over Keaton do so. I certainly agree with your 5-star rating. And I certainly appreciated the info on the train, which I found very amusing but didn't realize was a replica of the Rocket.

While not in the class of Sherlock Jr. or The Gene...

2009-08-09T14:51:57.416-04:00

While not in the class of Sherlock Jr. or The General, this is a deservely a five star classic as is your excellent review. I was never much of a fan for The Three Ages and agree this is Keaton's truly first feature. A brillant one it is.

"He finds himself dangling over the waterfall, a rope tied around his waist and attached to a log that has become jammed in some rocks. He is desperately trying to free himself and reach safety on nearby rocks when he is called into action to save the girl, who is caught in the current and headed toward the fall. Those who have seen it can't forget it, and those who haven't should as soon as possible."

This is what makes Keaton so amazing. Highly recommend!