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Early appearances by Charlie Chaplin, Buster Keaton, Fatty Arbuckle, Ben Turpin, Oliver Hardy, Stan Laurel, and others demonstrate the gradual emergence of the popular personalities (like Chaplin's Little Tramp) that would dominate silent comedy at its peak, establishing timeless screen icons and forever altering Hollywood's way of doing business. But the real strength of this set is its wide scope, unearthing neglected talents ripe for rediscovery (like Charley Bowers and Larry Semon), and allowing the viewer to witness the evolution of gags from simple improvisation to the elaborately planned chase-oriented routines that emerged in the early 1920s. With print quality ranging from good to pristine, and original musical accompaniment by six of the world's leading silent-movie musicians, this 18-hour, 50-film laugh-athon is surely one of the finest DVD sets ever produced. --Jeff Shannon
| CATEGORY: | DVD |
| THEATRICAL RELEASE DATE: | 20 May, 1911 |
| MANUFACTURER: | Image Entertainment |
| MPAA RATING: | Unrated |
| FEATURES: | Box set, Black & White, Full Screen, NTSC |
| TYPE: | Classics (Silents/Avant Garde), Comedies & Family Ent., Comedy Video, Gift Set, Movie |
| MEDIA: | DVD |
| # OF MEDIA: | 5 |
| UPC: | 014381069921 |
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Customer Reviews of Slapstick Encyclopedia
The best introduction to silent comedies. I agree with all of the rave reviews. <
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>But I give this set only 4 stars because of the poor presentation of Laurel & Hardy. For some reason we are given edited TV cut-downs that are not up to the current restorations on the Lost Films of Laurel & hardy DVD sets. They are cut to where there is no sence to what is happening and are a waste of time to watch. <
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>Another small disappointement is the Charlie Chaplins, they are not the current restorations on the new Chaplin DVD sets from Warners. They look acceptable, but not up to the the New restorations. <
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>I also wish some attempt was made to re-create original looking title cards & end titles for the shorts that were missing them. The LostFilms of Laurel & Hardy and the Kino Comedy Classic sets do this.
Sure to entertain for hours on end.
The Slapstick Encyclopedia is chock full of entertaining, rare movies from the earliest days of silent movies. Charlie Chaplin, Fatty Arbuckle, Stan Laurel without Oliver Hardy, Oliver Hardy without Stan Laurel, Bustard Keaton, Hal Roach comedies, Harold Loyd in Haunted Spooks, Harry Langdon, Will Rogers, Keystone cops...all the unforgettable greats, you may have only read about in books, and rarely seen, doing the antics that once made movies so special. Included is the rarest of rare, a 1916 film starring Great black entertainer Bert Williams doing some of the comic routines that made him famous and part of America's conscience for decades after his death. Sure to entertain for hours on end.
Back to Silents...with Raucous Laughter
There are some great and not-so-great items in this set, but all are of interest, if you like silent comedies. I recommend the 3 shorts each by Harry Langdon and Harold Lloyd (with one caveat to be discussed for "Haunted Spooks"), the rare version of Buster Keaton's "The Boat," some of the solo efforts by Stan Laurel (of later Laurel & Hardy fame), the "Hairbreadth Harry" short entitled "Danger Ahead" (based on a 1920's comic strip and one of the most ridiculously inspired things I've ever seen), the teaming of Charlie Chaplin and "Fatty" Arbuckle in "The Rounders" (where they each try to top one another on screen), and the delirious short by Charley Bowers (the only successful comedian/animator in film history--who incorporates his bizarre animation into his film shorts).
You can see so much here, as to the development of the careers of famous silent comedians. See Buster Keaton's crying and mugging hysterics while with "Fatty" Arbuckle develop into his more familiar stoic "Great Stone Face." See Stan Laurel go from frenetic nasty idiot on screen to playing the more sublime "Stanley" in the Laurel and Hardy shorts. See early Harold Lloyd shorts where his character has a bit more of an edge. Wonder why Ben Turpin had a career at all. All along marvel at the wonderful, appropriate musical accompaniment, sometimes on the odd "Fotoplayer."
The caveat? Well, nothing and I mean nothing has been censored and some very politically incorrect moments also make the cut, a few of which can make for some startling viewing for modern sensibilities. Then again, these films are 75 to 90 years old, and that should be borne in mind. In particular, I'm thinking of "The Detectress" and "Haunted Spooks" and parts of the Bert Williams short as rather blatant offenders. Also, while the prints included are some of the best surviving, a small number have some nitrate decomposition, sprocket jump, discoloration, and the like. As an example, the quality of "The Garage" with Keaton/Arbuckle's a little disappointing compared to some other prints I've watched. However, these are often very rare films, and rough prints can be better than none.
I'd recommend this set both as a tremendous resource and a great bargain for any seasoned silent movie fan as well as any novice fan who wants to learn more in a hurry.