Free and Easy

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Haunted by H Buster Keaton makes his talkie debut in an odd, but otherwise good offering. What I love most about this film is that FREE AND EASY is a Hollywood-on-Hollywood film that offers a few cameos by a few MGM stars at the time. Some of the jokes are still relevant today. It also has an ending that won me over when I first saw it (on the big screen). I should point out that this film was a box-office success when it was initially released. And it is far better than his next film DOUGHBOYS. What you get is slapstick, singing, dancing, and moments of surreal set-ups. A curio for those who love seeing flashes of Old Los Angeles/Hollywood and for those who enjoy seeing films within the Hollywood-on-Hollywood genre. As a genre piece, it is better than average. Rated 3.5/5 Stars •  Rated 3.5 out of 5 stars 08/04/24 Full Review Audience Member Free and Easy is probably one of the most depressing movies I've ever watched, and not because of the film itself, but because of all the missed opportunity. In Buster Keaton's first talkie there's little to no slapstick. Yeah, one of the best slapstick artists in history has a movie with none of the craft. Even with some great scenarios, like a train and several movie sets, no one gives him any good gags. Buster wasn't just slapstick though, he also had a lot of other good qualities too, so maybe those will rise here. Nope, each attempted joke falls flat, and sometimes it seems like it's not even a comedy. The lack of Buster's energetic tone doesn't help either, the whole thing's just boring. As you might have noticed, Buster Keaton's talents are very underused here, along with the man himself. Most the time it seems like they're trying to keep him out of his own movie, then we're left with some truly boring and annoying characters. Our female protagonist is wishy washy and honestly doesn't do anything in the plot, and her mother is loud and irritating, not the cast you'd want to stay with for about 90 minutes. The other male protagonist is just as bad, and pretty darn generic, I honestly can't think of anything to say about him except he's the typical jerk in these films. Overall Free and Easy is a dreadful experience, and is made even worse by a terrible misuse of Buster Keaton. The only good thing I can say about it is the title musical number isn't that bad, but it's at the end and is rather short. Just go watch a good Keaton picture like The General, Steamboat Bill Jr., or The Navigator, and avoid this one at all costs. Rated 1/5 Stars •  Rated 1 out of 5 stars 01/14/23 Full Review Audience Member keaton talks! this is his first talkie Rated 3/5 Stars •  Rated 3 out of 5 stars 01/21/23 Full Review Audience Member It's kind of a shame, because it's the most heartbreaking Keaton film I've seen and the end shot is brilliant and perfect but what kills this film for me is the obscene amount of dance and musical numbers that don't do anything for the film except increase it's overly long running time. It's definitely my least favorite of Keatons and was probably his first big flop. Rated 3.5/5 Stars •  Rated 3.5 out of 5 stars 02/27/23 Full Review Audience Member Keaton's first talking feature has some funny moments, offset with some odd musical interludes. Rated 2.5/5 Stars •  Rated 2.5 out of 5 stars 02/27/23 Full Review Audience Member I believe that Buster Keaton tried his best to give a good performance in this movie. He talked, he danced, he even sang- and I think it was a good effort- but the film is weak (not because of Buster). I didn't think the writing was very good in the first place; it was not a very good concept/script/story. You can tell that Buster Keaton is out of his element. Rated 2.5/5 Stars •  Rated 2.5 out of 5 stars 02/10/23 Full Review Read all reviews

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