Go West Rating: Release Date: 23 November, 1999 Retail Price: $24.95 OUR Price: $22.46 You SAVE: $2.49! Cast: Buster Keaton Roscoe 'Fatty' Arbuckle Joe Keaton

Go West Reviews

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Bizzare stuff from the Bus man
This is one of the Bus man's strangest films. Our man, for reasons never made clear, is known as "Friendless" and is so despised that when he puts his arm around a dog, the dog walks away in disgust. Following Horace Greely's famous saying "Go west young man," he does that and even though he can't milk a cow or saddle a horse, somehow gets a job as a cowhand. Still abused by all of mankind, he does an "androcles and the lion" bit (as he did in "Three Ages" with a lion) with a cow named "Brown Eyes" and and last finds a friend. I'll let you see the rest for yourself. But this is really strange stuff, and the ending ("I Want her." You'll see what I mean.) will leave a particularly odd taste in your mouth.

"Go West" not so hot, but the additional shorts are great!
"Go West" is one of Buster Keaton's more disappointing films. Shot on location outside Kingman, Arizona in 1925, "Go West" is one of the few Keaton movies that hasn't stood the test of time. It contains many gags that may have been revolutionary upon its initial release, but have worn thin to today's comedy standards.

Gone is the trademark chase, which was always a favorite of Buster Keaton fans. Gone is the cohesive storyline, as I get the feeling that 50% of this film was 'forced' on location. In all his films, Buster Keaton always battles the elements, be they man-made or natural, but as we discover in "Go West", there are truly a small, finite number of prop gags that can be accomplished in the barren desert. In fact, Buster's own review of "Go West" wasn't too encouraging; "Some parts I liked, but as a picture, in general, I really didn't care for it."

But this DVD has the saving grace of 2 very hilarious shorts: "The Scarecrow" and "The Paleface". Made in 1920 & 1921, respectively, these two shorts are perhaps some of Buster's best non-feature productions. They include many excellent chase scenes, many hilarious gags, and very inventive props & storylines. The 'High-Tech Dining' scene in "The Scarecrow" is maybe one of the funniest and most creative segments I've seen in the entire Buster Keaton catalog. "The Paleface" is equally entertaining, however today's audience will probably notice the blatant stereotyping of American Indians. It's a different world now.

"Go West" is a good DVD to have for 2 reasons: A) To enjoy 40 minutes of marvelous shorts and B) to complete your Buster Keaton collection. Newbies to Buster Keaton are better off starting with "The General" or "Sherlock Jr".

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