Roscoe "Fatty" ArbuckleThe Bell Boy (1918)

Fatty Arbuckle and Buster Keaton team up as hotel bellhops. Some interesting props, including a horse-drawn elevator. Decent gags, culminating with a classic chase scene. The movie is not a classic, but it's typical Arbuckle and Keaton and a good illustration of the kind of comedy they did together. The IMDb entry is at

http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0008874/

This item is part of the collection: Feature Films

Director: Roscoe "Fatty" Arbuckle
Producer: Roscoe "Fatty" Arbuckle
Production Company: Comique Film Company
Audio/Visual: silent, black and white
Keywords: Arbuckle; Keaton; silent; comedy; slapstick

Creative Commons license: Public Domain

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Reviewer: Cat Lady - - July 14, 2008
Subject: Pretty good!

Buster Keaton, Al St. John, and Fatty Arbuckle, with a cameo by Joe Keaton to reprise one of the stage skits with Buster. Not bad! The props include a moose's head at the Elks Head Hotel. The heroine is Ms. Cutie Cuticle, who puts Buster down because his hands are dirty. Just everything about this is funny. There are also some nicely coordinated stunts done by Al and Buster, and some very athletic work by each of them in the bank scene. St. John's routine with the horse is even funnier than Buster's similar work in "Cops." It's also surprising to see how lithe Fatty was, in spite of his girth; this shows especially in the bank and chase scenes.

Oh, and Buster is smiling and laughing in this one, only to get knocked on his keester. He did maintain the straight face in the scene with his dad, but the days of the "Great Stone Face" must have come a little later than this short.

The only thing missing here is a sound track. Wish I could write one -- that would make this a perfect little comedy.