The American Civil was has broken out and train engineer Johnnie Gray wants to enlist into the Confederate Army to impress his fiancée Anabelle Lee (can you think of more unoriginal Confederate names?). Unknown to him, he is deemed more essential as a train engineer and is rejected, bringing shame from his in-laws-to-be. Later, Union operatives steal a Confederate locomotive called "The General". They plan on destroying railroad tracks, bridges, and telegraph cables on their way back to the northern lines. Johnnie gives chase, unaware that Anabelle has been taken captive on board The General. Clumsy yet determined, he thwarts each Union attempt at sabotage through perseverance and dumb luck. In doing so, he manages to rescue Anabelle, retrieve The General, successfully avoid capture, and warn Confederates of the impending Union advance (...yay?).
"The General" sort of plays like "Speed" if Keanu was a more-serious version of an 'Inspector Cleseau' or 'Austin Powers'-like character. Though a silent film, the simple story is easy to follow and Buster Keaton's performance as Johnnie Gray was both slapstick and subtle. It's actually a very impressive action/adventure/war film (even by modern standards) with death defying stunts, enormous set pieces, amazing cinematography, and relatively large scaled army/battle sequences. It's clear that this film has inspired countless others, from "The Good, The Bad, and The Ugly", to "Back to the Future III"; or from any action-chase movie to the animated "Mulan" (I'm serious...LOL).
But while the film was large and fun—and Keaton was exceedingly clever, and inventive, and brave—I didn't really melt or laugh the way I have in (forgive the comparison) Chaplin films. I actually blame a part of this on the music. The version of the film I watched featured music composed in 1987 by Carl Davis. The score played heavily, sincerely, and as straight-faced and serious as Keaton was, and never played enough to the comedy to feel fun. It also leaned into the "Dixie"/Lost Cause"/Romantic-South narrative in a way I wasn't comfortable with. Which brings me to the "woke/no-fun-at-parties" part of the review—
I respect film as a moment in history and I can enjoyed compartmentalized, relatable facets of character (like an fiancé trying to earn the respect of his partner's family or serve his community). But I'm at a point where I can’t see the Hollywood, 'two brothers" take on a rebellion to sustain slavery as romantic. So while I can see through to the slapstick, and the stunts, and the vistas, and the characters, and the cinematic advances, I never fully bought into Keaton's character as an affable protagonist. Maybe that makes me a snowflake, or a prude, or just a stick in the mud, but a dishonest portrayal of an immoral cause—for no purpose of comedy or higher commentary (see: “Blazing Saddles”)—simply dampens my personal enjoyment of a flick.
Last year, I chose to end 2020 with a film from the 1920's because I hoped to emulate the energy and moxie I hoped these new '20s would bring. It ends up I picked a complicated, two-sided film perfect for the year we had.