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Steamboat Bill, Jr. Blu-ray Disc Review

STEAMBOAT BILL, JR. (1928, Blu-ray released July 6, 2010 – MSRP $34.95)

Steamboat Bill, Jr. Blu-ray DiscSteamboat Bill, Jr. is the last of Buster Keaton‘s great indie films and one of his best ever. The film is a masterpiece of character work and comic timing – an absolute classic of the silent cinema era now available in a stunning new Blu-ray edition from Kino.

Keaton plays William Canfield, Jr., a Boston collegian who returns home to the deep south to assist his father (Ernest Torrence) with work on his Mississippi River steamboat, a job he’s clearly not cut out for. Willie quickly gets in over his head when faced with his father’s riverboat rival, John King (Tom McQuire) who also happens to be the father of his sweetheart, Kitty (Marion Byron). Physical comedy ensues, leading to one of the most awe-inspiring (and famous) slapstick sequences ever put to film, as Willie struggles against a tornado that’s devastating his town, literally bringing houses down upon him! If you’re a fan of the work of Jacques Tati, Guy Maddin or Rowan Atkinson‘s Mr. Bean you’ll easily fall under the spell of this silent gem.

And if you’re already a fan of Steamboat Bill, Jr. or just a fan of film in general, you owe it to yourself to add this Blu-ray disc to your collection. The transfer might not achieve the pristine perfection of Kino’s previous Keaton release, The General, but this is truly beautiful work. Created from a 35mm dupe picture negative, most likely a couple of generations from the original negative, the results here are stunning. I’m certain the film has not looked this good in generations! That said, there is some understandable damage present on the print, as well as moments when the whites are blown out to quite an extreme (perhaps due to the way the film was shot by Bert Haines and Devereaux Jennings, as posited by Kino producer Bret Wood) and instances of noise that could be due to compression. But outside of those slight observations, this is a detailed image, with surprisingly deep blacks and a gorgeous sheen of film grain. Steamboat Bill, Jr. looks amazing for its age!

There are a cornucopia of audio options to accompany the visuals on the Steamboat Bill, Jr. Blu-ray disc, including a robust sounding DTS-HD Master Audio 5.1 score by the Biograph Players. Tight and dynamic with a good amount of low end, the surround track sounds crisp and new in its presentation while maintaining an “old-timey” feel, appropriate for the content, through its composition. A 2.0 option is present for those who find the 5.1 immersion a little jarring while watching silent film. There is also a Dolby Digital mono vintage organ score by Lee Erwin.

The disc is not only a stunner when it comes to the presentation of the feature but it also manages to impress with its collection of worthwhile extras, chief among them being the complete alternate version of the film, comprised entirely of variant takes and camera angles! Known as the Killiam version (as the 35mm element originates from the Paul Killiam film collection now owned by Worldview Entertainment) this second look at the film is a rare treat for fans but might not be distinct enough to wow the casual viewer. The sole audio option for this version of the film is a Dolby Digital 2.0 piano score by William Perry. A 12-minute “Visual Essay” featurette highlights the differences between the two versions of the film.

The disc is rounded out by a stills gallery, a montage of Keaton pratfalls and stunts and a couple of versions of the folk song that inspired Steamboat Bill, Jr. – one by Edward Meeker and one by Irving Kaufman.

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