The Silent World

[nightdog_barks]

Terrific video of Buster Keaton. Incredible stunts in a pre-CGI world. Just some amazing clips; I honestly don't know how he did some of this stuff.

"Holding out for a hero like Buster Keaton" (Watch on YouTube)

Comments

[silverjackal]

That was *cool*! I'd never heard of the fellow before, which is no surprise given the evident vintage of the film. As to how he did it -- the man was a talented gymnast and acrobat, but if you watch full screen you'll see where there was camera trickery without CGI. Different camera speeds, split screens, and hidden wires. Still magical though! :D

[nightdog_barks]

:D

I could tell there was some hidden wiring/trickery going on, but yes, still magical! I'd never seen that pole vault near the end, and some of the other feats were new to me. Indeed, some of his stunts are like "the birth of parkour," which is just amazing. He and Charlie Chaplin and Harold Lloyd were all contemporaries in the silent world.

Keaton was known as "Old Stone Face" for his calm, stoic expressions, no matter what insanity was reigning around him. One of his last film roles was in A Funny Thing Happened On the Way to the Forum, where he plays an elderly Roman gentleman named Erronius (heh) delighted to discover his long-lost children.