Reelin' In The Years -- Our Hospitality (1923), directed by Buster Keaton & John G. Blystone

The Trailer

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The Appropriate Tune: "Hatfield", by Widespread Panic

       Our next stop on the Reelin’ in the Years brings us to the year 1923, and the man who defined the sad boi aesthetic for generations to come, Buster Keaton. Admittedly I know little about Keaton or his work: Aside from a half-remembered film of his I saw years ago, all I knew about him was that he was, along with Charles Chaplin, one of the preeminent comedians of the silent film days. I didn’t know why he was so popular, I didn’t know what made him so influential, that folks almost a century or so later would still be lauding his name and taking such great care to preserve his body of work. At least cinema nerds are, so if I’m aiming for that prestigious label I suppose it’s about time to sit down and get to know him too. Plus Destiny was kind of a bummer, so we need to lighten the mood a bit.

       Released in 1923, co-directed by Keaton and Jack Blystone and written by Clyde Bruckman, Jean Havez and Joseph A. Mitchell, Our Hospitality was the second film by Buster Keaton Productions, which would later go on to put out such films as The Navigator and The General before closing its doors in 1928. Buster Keaton stars as Willie McKay, the last living member of the McKay family after his father was shot and killed by a member of the Canfield family, and a not-so-subtle reference to the real life feuding families the Hatfields and the McCoys. Having been raised in New York City for the past 20 years Willie doesn’t care about any feuds, but a letter of inheritance for his dad’s estate brings him running back to the old stomping grounds, where it turns out the Canfields are still very much interested in stamping out the McKays once and for all. The Canfield men at least, the lone Canfield women just so happens to be the same young woman who befriends Willie on his train ride over, and she just might prove to be his salvation. Because the Canfields may be unrepentant potential murderers, but the one thing they are not are bad hosts, and guess who just got invited to dinner?

       I guess what surprised me most about Our Hospitality while watching it was just how well the gags hold up. There’s this expressiveness to it, this absurdity that feels more timely than I was expecting from a movie a few years removed from World War I. A train in Our Hospitality that happens to run through a forest doesn’t need a clear path for example, the tracks simply run over any logs or rocks in the way. A loaded gun simply refuses to fire until its intended victim shoots it, at which point it works perfectly. Suddenly all that talk of Keaton being so influential starts to make sense, because in these moments you see the foundations of how comedy is built on a visual level. Looney Tunes, Mel Brooks, The Simpsons, all those Zucker/Abrahams movies, it would seem they all share a common ancestor in Buster Keaton. Kinda like how every one in sixteen people is related to Genghis Khan, or whatever that phrase is.

       Along that same track I was also rather surprised and impressed by Buster Keaton as a performer. He has excellent body language, you’re never confused over whether he’s sad or confused or what have you, and yet it feels like he rarely ever emotes locked as he behind this meek, almost vacant expression. At the same time he doesn’t need to, as his tired, sad clown expression asks the perfect mask for whatever the character needs. Willie can be heroic, he can be cowardly, he can be smart, he can be dumb, and it all works, it all makes sense with this chameleonic persona Keaton has created. The rest of the cast is okay, Natalie Talmadge is a decent enough leading lady, Joe Roberts has a nice mustache, but it ain’t called a Buster Keaton Production for nothing.

       Aside from the comedic aspects, I’ve got to give Keaton and Blystone credit for the cinematography as well. For whatever reason they decided this goofy rom-com needed some breathing room, so they start putting in these expansive shots here and there, especially by the end. Huge cliff sides, giant waterfalls and so on, which we just stumble into for no reason other than big dramatic set-pieces. Seems a bit excessive, almost as excessive as what feels like 15 straight minutes of train-related gags in the beginning of the film, but as it was with Keaton’s performance it feels so natural that you just accept it. ‘Buster Keaton falls off a cliff and 2 minutes later has hijacked a locomotive? Sounds about right’.   

       I’ve also got to give a hand to Robert Israel, who composed the score to this release. Very well done, not only appropriate for the time Our Hospitality was made but syncs up well with and enhances the emotional weight of the film as well. A noticeable improvement over Destiny, in my opinion, and a good showing by Kino Lorber. This is probably not the last time we’ll be seeing their name pop up on this list, so we’ll see if they can keep this up.

       My first experience with Buster Keaton and it was a pleasant surprise! There are probably better films to showcase his talents, I know The General is supposedly one of the best films ever made, but as a gateway film I think Our Hospitality did a splendid job. It gets the recommendation, and the official Reelin’ In the Years tour bus rolls on...