Buster Keaton on Blu-ray: THE SAPHEAD Review
By 1920, Buster Keaton was already a star. He'd had a series of successful shorts alongside Fatty Arbuckle, and had graduated to solo shorts with the success of One Week, which was a pretty damned ambitious piece for a first time outing. The Saphead was supposed to be his coming out party, and as successful as the film was financially, it was merely a brief glimpse of the magic to come.
The Saphead is an adaptation of two pieces, a play called The New Henrietta, and the novel The Henrietta, which was adapted from the play. In the story, Buster plays Bertie Van Alstyne, the pampered son of the wealthiest stock broker in New York, Nicholas Van Alstyne. When Dad gets tired of Bertie's freeloading ways, he decides that it's time to cut the cord and send Bertie out to make a living, something that Bertie is not too excited about nor particularly good at. When Nicholas' most trusted associate goes behind his back and threatens to topple the Van Alstyne empire, it's up to Bertie to set things right, whether he knows it or not. Throw in a love triangle and some other shenanigans and you've got yourself a movie, though it doesn't really hold a candle to Keaton's later work.
Watching Keaton's films out of chronological order has given me something of a skewed perspective. I'm so used to seeing massive production numbers, huge special effects, and death defying stunts from The Great Stone Face, that the drama of The Saphead feels pretty staid. It's interesting to note that a lot of Keaton's greatest gags, the ones he used in his more famous features, were developed either by he and Arbuckle, or more often by him in the series of shorts between 1920 and 1923, when he made Three Ages, his next feature. The Saphead only has one really crazy sequence that felt like Keaton to me, and it is right at the end of the film, so it was a bit tough hanging in through the less exciting pieces hoping for something great.
If I were to talk to a Keaton newbie, I'd most definitely recommend that they save this one for later, after having seen some of the greater films, because The Saphead doesn't really represent Keaton oeuvre very well. It is an interesting marker in his career and has great significance as his first feature, but it is clear that he was not yet the master of his own destiny. The Buster Keaton that 1920 Americans knew may have been pretty great, but the Buster Keaton that 2012 cinephiles know has so much more and better performances to offer than The Saphead.
The Disc:
It's been a while since we've seen a Keaton feature on Blu-ray from Kino. The last one was Seven Chances, and that was back in December. I've become accustomed to these discs being great presentations of the films included, and while The Saphead's materials aren't exactly up to snuff with the later Keaton features, it isn't bad all things considered. The image is marred by frequent print damage, but with a film that is now 92 years old, some consideration must be given.
There are two versions of The Saphead on the disc, and they vary in quality. The "preferred" color tinted version is in the better condition of the two. The second version, made up entirely of alternate takes and angles, was prepared simultaneously for the export market, and features no color tinting and more damage. The tinted version has a DTS-HD MA 5.1 and Stereo audio accompaniment by Robert Israel, who has provided scores for many of the Kino Keaton releases. Israel's score is a bit too bouncy for the film in my opinion, as the film is largely pretty dramatic, which isn't supported by that score. The alternate version is scored by another frequent collaborator, Ben Model, who's work is more subdued in this case, and more appropriate for the film. Both sound lovely, though only Israel's score is lossless.
Kino never skimps on extras for Keaton's work, and though I've been missing commentaries for a while, The Saphead still manages to deliver in that arena. We get an 8 minute comparison between the two versions of the film, showing that both versions are completely separate, though definitely similar. We also get an audio recording of Buster holding court at a dinner party for a half an hour in which he sings and discusses his life in show biz and beyond, he is a consumate performer. Rounding out the bonus material is a photo gallery both from this film and from Buster's childhood in Vaudeville, as well as the frequently appearing "Why They Call Him Buster" promo reel that most of these releases have.
The Saphead isn't a great film, and it's barely even a Keaton headliner, but it is an interesting stop on his way to superstardom, and worth checking out for that reason. With the release of this film, I believe only The Navigator and College remain in Kino's Keaton collection for release, and they can't come soon enough! If you're a Keaton nut, grab it; if you're looking for a starting point, I might recommend Sherlock, Jr., Steamboat Bill, Jr., or The General.
The Saphead is an adaptation of two pieces, a play called The New Henrietta, and the novel The Henrietta, which was adapted from the play. In the story, Buster plays Bertie Van Alstyne, the pampered son of the wealthiest stock broker in New York, Nicholas Van Alstyne. When Dad gets tired of Bertie's freeloading ways, he decides that it's time to cut the cord and send Bertie out to make a living, something that Bertie is not too excited about nor particularly good at. When Nicholas' most trusted associate goes behind his back and threatens to topple the Van Alstyne empire, it's up to Bertie to set things right, whether he knows it or not. Throw in a love triangle and some other shenanigans and you've got yourself a movie, though it doesn't really hold a candle to Keaton's later work.
Watching Keaton's films out of chronological order has given me something of a skewed perspective. I'm so used to seeing massive production numbers, huge special effects, and death defying stunts from The Great Stone Face, that the drama of The Saphead feels pretty staid. It's interesting to note that a lot of Keaton's greatest gags, the ones he used in his more famous features, were developed either by he and Arbuckle, or more often by him in the series of shorts between 1920 and 1923, when he made Three Ages, his next feature. The Saphead only has one really crazy sequence that felt like Keaton to me, and it is right at the end of the film, so it was a bit tough hanging in through the less exciting pieces hoping for something great.
If I were to talk to a Keaton newbie, I'd most definitely recommend that they save this one for later, after having seen some of the greater films, because The Saphead doesn't really represent Keaton oeuvre very well. It is an interesting marker in his career and has great significance as his first feature, but it is clear that he was not yet the master of his own destiny. The Buster Keaton that 1920 Americans knew may have been pretty great, but the Buster Keaton that 2012 cinephiles know has so much more and better performances to offer than The Saphead.
The Disc:
It's been a while since we've seen a Keaton feature on Blu-ray from Kino. The last one was Seven Chances, and that was back in December. I've become accustomed to these discs being great presentations of the films included, and while The Saphead's materials aren't exactly up to snuff with the later Keaton features, it isn't bad all things considered. The image is marred by frequent print damage, but with a film that is now 92 years old, some consideration must be given.
There are two versions of The Saphead on the disc, and they vary in quality. The "preferred" color tinted version is in the better condition of the two. The second version, made up entirely of alternate takes and angles, was prepared simultaneously for the export market, and features no color tinting and more damage. The tinted version has a DTS-HD MA 5.1 and Stereo audio accompaniment by Robert Israel, who has provided scores for many of the Kino Keaton releases. Israel's score is a bit too bouncy for the film in my opinion, as the film is largely pretty dramatic, which isn't supported by that score. The alternate version is scored by another frequent collaborator, Ben Model, who's work is more subdued in this case, and more appropriate for the film. Both sound lovely, though only Israel's score is lossless.
Kino never skimps on extras for Keaton's work, and though I've been missing commentaries for a while, The Saphead still manages to deliver in that arena. We get an 8 minute comparison between the two versions of the film, showing that both versions are completely separate, though definitely similar. We also get an audio recording of Buster holding court at a dinner party for a half an hour in which he sings and discusses his life in show biz and beyond, he is a consumate performer. Rounding out the bonus material is a photo gallery both from this film and from Buster's childhood in Vaudeville, as well as the frequently appearing "Why They Call Him Buster" promo reel that most of these releases have.
The Saphead isn't a great film, and it's barely even a Keaton headliner, but it is an interesting stop on his way to superstardom, and worth checking out for that reason. With the release of this film, I believe only The Navigator and College remain in Kino's Keaton collection for release, and they can't come soon enough! If you're a Keaton nut, grab it; if you're looking for a starting point, I might recommend Sherlock, Jr., Steamboat Bill, Jr., or The General.
Do you feel this content is inappropriate or infringes upon your rights? Click here to report it, or see our DMCA policy.
