Our Hospitality

In 1810, a long-running family feud came to a head when John McKay and James Canfield, the patriarchs of their respective clans, killed one another. Not wanting to subject her son Willie to the same insanity, McKay's widow took the baby to be raised in New York. Upon reaching maturity, Willie learns that he has inherited his father's old homestead. The overeager sap finds a rundown shack instead of an opulent mansion, but there is one benefit: he meets a pretty girl, Virginia, who invites him to dinner at her parents' house. Willie doesn't suspect that Virginia is a Canfield, and has several adenoidal brothers who would love to see his head on a platter. Can Willie escape the Canfield house with his life - or will the long-running family feud claim its latest victim?

A comedic take on the legendary Hatfield-McCoys feud, Our Hospitality was an important step in the progression of Buster Keaton's career. While his earlier feature, Three Ages (1923), was almost like a compilation of the 2-reelers he had done for First National, Our Hospitality weaved an involving, semi-dramatic storyline around the usual spectacular Keaton gags. It was this formula that would be used to great effect in Buster's best films, including Sherlock Jr. (1924), The Navigator (1924) and The General (1926). Keaton's love of vintage trains, so evident in The General, had its first inklings here, with the use of a faithful recreation of Stephenson's Rocket, an early steam locomotive. During the scene where Buster is swept towards the waterfall, the cable holding Keaton broke, causing him to be caught in the rapids. Battered by the rocks, he only survived by grabbing an overhanging tree branch (amazingly, this footage remains in the finished film!) Our Hospitality was a family affair for Buster - his wife, Natalie Talmadge, played his love interest, his father Joe played a locomotive engineer, and his son, Buster Keaton Jr., played him as a baby! (1923)

Upplagd i sortimentet: 4 januari, 2025