Sidewalks of New York

Believe it or not, this is most commercially successful film Keaton ever starred in. From todays point of view it's average at best. Most of the gags are reused from Keaton's silent films (boxing, fights, stage-play), and the drama is very primitive.

Buster Keaton translates quite well to modern pictures (as apposed to the silent films he's most known for). his hilarious antics are at the very least amusing, but much of the time actually made me laugh. the movie's got an intriguing and entertaining plot, with depth, that ties into his brand of humor perfectly. the only bad thing i have to say is that the transition between parts was less than seemless.

This film deserved an Oscar for sound recording, though that award didn't exist until 1934. The sound quality is really impressive, crisp and clear. Unfortunately the film is quite average. Keaton's pratfalls are extremely basic, nowhere near the calibre of his self-directed shorts. The few spoken jokes are not particularly amusing either, and the editor didn't have great comic timing. The actors are game, but none really shine. A waste of time considering Buster Keaton's brilliant other films.

Anita Page is the star of this.

Buster Keaton could still go in the early sound era. While he lost creative control, he was still an versatile performer from his experience in vaudeville and could perform other peoples material well. While this movie was not up there with the silent classics he made, it's one of his best sound ones. He's got the physical comedy down with excellent timing and keeps up verbally too. A real good comedy from that time. Director Jules White would reuse some of the material later with The 3 Stooges.