Eureka Entertainment is releasing three Buster Keaton classics in March, each of which will be available for the first time on Blu-ray in the UK from 4K restorations.
Presented as part of The Masters of Cinema Series, Buster Keaton: 3 Films contains The Navigator, Seven Chances and Battling Butler and includes a host of extras including archive interviews.
The Navigator (1924, dir. Buster Keaton & Donald Crisp) – Wealthy Rollo Treadway (Keaton) suddenly decides to propose to his neighbour across the street, Betsy O’Brien (Kathryn McGuire), and sends his servant to book passage for a honeymoon sea cruise to Honolulu.
When Betsy rejects his sudden offer however, he decides to go on the trip anyway, boarding without delay that night. Because the pier number is partially covered, he ends up on the wrong ship, the Navigator, which Betsy’s rich father has just sold to a small country at war.
Keaton was unhappy with the audience response to Sherlock Jr., and endeavoured to make a follow-up that was both exciting and successful. The result was the biggest hit of Keaton’s career.
Seven Chances (1925, dir. Buster Keaton) – Jimmy Shannon (Keaton) learns he is to inherit seven million dollars, with a catch.
He will only get the money if he is married by 7pm on his 27th birthday, which happens to be that same day! What follows is an incredible series of escalating set-pieces that could only have come from the genius of Buster Keaton.
Battling Butler (1926, dir. Buster Keaton) – A rich, spoiled dandy (Keaton) pretends to be a champion boxer, “Battling Butler”, to impress the family of the girl he loves.
When the real Butler shows up, he decides to humiliate the imposter by having him fight the “Alabama Murderer”!
Special features include:
- 1080p presentations of all three films from the Cohen Film Collection’s stunning 4K restorations, with musical scores composed and conducted by Robert Israel
- The Navigator – Audio commentary by silent film historians Robert Arkus and Yair Solan
- Seven Chances – Brand new audio commentary by film historian Bruce Lawton
- New and exclusive video essay by David Cairns covering all three films
- The Navigator – A short documentary on the making of the film and Keaton’s fascination with boats as sources of comedy, by film historian Bruce Lawton
- Buster Keaton & Irwin Allen audio interview from 1945 [6 mins]
- Buster Keaton & Arthur Friedman audio interview from 1956 [32 mins]
- Buster Keaton & Robert Franklin audio interview from 1958 [56 mins]
- Buster Keaton & Herbert Feinstein audio interview from 1960 [48 mins]
- Buster Keaton & Studs Terkel audio interview from 1960 [38 mins]
- What! No Spinach? (1926, dir. Harry Sweet) [19 mins] – Rarely seen comedy short by American actor / director Harry Sweet, that riffs on a number of elements from Seven Chances
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