The Bell Boy

This is a film I would show to novices as an introduction to silent film. Yes, it has little plot, a few topical jokes that might need explaining, and a few bits that modern audiences might find slow (though hardly any of those). But there's nothing old-fashioned about Arbuckle, Keaton & St. John's jaw-dropping slapstick energy. (This is the first time I appreciated Al St. John, by the way.) I can understand how some people hate the Alloy Orchestra, but they really do get the zany spirit of this movie. I watched it 3 times in a row, and can't wait to buy the DVD so I can see it again.

I really don't see why IMDb is making me add more lines to my beautifully succinct review--I could describe my favorite bits, but why? You'll enjoy them much more if you discover them yourself.

This silent comedy short in which Roscoe Arbuckle and Buster Keaton play hotel bellboys and Al St. John plays the hotel desk clerk was the funniest of theirs I've seen yet. Plenty of hilarious gags of falling and slipping and missed targets not to mention getting a head stuck in an elevator and Buster getting into a fight with a top-hatted man who happens to be his dad, Joseph! There's also a girl and a bank robbery involved. That bank, by the way, is called "Last National Bank". Since I have to put a few more lines if I actually want this to be submitted, I'll just say how much Mr. Keaton has really come into his own as an accomplished movie comedian under the tutelage of Mr. Arbuckle and sown the seeds of his own solo career. Oh, and like many of these early appearances, he smiles and laughs which is so in contrast of his reputation as The Great Stone Face! So on that note, I heartily recommend The Bell Boy. P.S. The version I watched was on the Image Entertainment "The Best Arbuckle-Keaton Collection" DVD.

Fatty Arbuckle and Buster Keaton are bellhops at the Elk's Head Hotel. Buster's father Joe is also working at the hotel. As it says at the beginning, Third-rate service at first-class prices.

This is almost pure slapstick. A number of physical gags and a few straight jokes. Both Buster and his father Joe show their physical abilities. Almost all the gags work well and I laughed. That is almost. One scene went on too long and I didn't find funny. Another scene was funny for the first part of the gag but quickly became predictable.

This does show why Fatty Arbuckle was a star. It also shows that Buster Keaton had the potential that lead to his stardom. While a very good silent comedy, it just wasn't great.

There were parts of this movie I absolutely loved. The hotel elevator sequences were pretty original and funny--especially when poor Buster got his head stuck--it hurt just watching it! Plus, the amazing trolley sequence at the end of the film was amazing to watch. However, at the same time, the film relied too much on run-of-the-mill slapstick and lacked much of a story. In other words, there was, at times, too much slapping and falling. Also, because Fatty Arbuckle was at the time THE star of the film, many times Buster Keaton just looked lost and his talents were somewhat wasted.

Finally, this was from a video from KINO FILMS called ARBUCKLE AND KEATON Volume 1. The music from this short was particularly bad--just too loud and fast-paced. After a few minutes, I turned the sound off because it was just too distracting.

Now filming in Los Angeles, Fatty Arbuckle and Buster Keaton occupy familiar roles: twin slackers working menial day jobs, and doing so very poorly. In this instance, they're a pair of hotel clerks, responsible for scrubbing floors and toting luggage, but also trimming beards and operating heavy machinery. As always, there's a girl involved - object of immediate attention and intense competitive interest - who serves as spark to a set of climactic fireworks.

Arbuckle gives us an entertaining skit involving the barber's chair (transforming a ghastly bearded man into several famous political figures) while Keaton absent-mindedly humiliates an upper-class gentleman with his mop, but the story is scattered and disorganized until the closing moments. That's when the duo (along with their constant supporting man, Al St. John) get mixed up in a bank robbery and literally tear the place down. When it's all over and done with, we find that the bank's in ruins, the hotel ballroom is missing a wall, paper money is casually fluttering through the streets and one of our stars has finally, decisively scored the girl. A big finish for what had otherwise been a rather low-key, by-the-numbers effort.