Watch College For Free

Too much of everything

Strong and Moving!

All of these films share one commonality, that being a kind of emotional center that humanizes a cast of monsters.

It is a whirlwind of delight --- attractive actors, stunning couture, spectacular sets and outrageous parties. It's a feast for the eyes. But what really makes this dramedy work is the acting.

"College" is essentially about Buster Keaton's efforts to win his lady fair (Anne Cornwall)....the hard way.The film opens at Buster's high school graduation (Keaton was actually a little too old to play an eighteen year old at the time). Buster it seems is an academic who condemns athletes. Buster's rival (Harold Goodwin) laughs at Buster's ideas.The next fall the trio enroll at Clayton College. Buster has vowed to impress his girl by trying out for various athletic teams. He "plays" baseball and enters several track and field events with disastrous results. Finally the Dean (Snitz Edwards) orders the rowing coach to install Buster as the rowing team's coxswain. Buster instills his own methods in the race and...........Although the story is a simple one, boy loves girl, boy loses girl, boy wins girl, there are several memorable comedic moments. When Buster and his mother (Florence Turner) attend the High School Graduation, they are soaked in a downpour. As Buster delivers his speech, his newly bought suit begins to gradually shrink. He takes on two jobs to help pay his way, first as a soda jerk where he pales in comparison to his fellow employee, and later as a "colored" waiter in black face. Remember, this was 1927 and many vaudeville performers of the day used black face in their acts, so it was not out of the ordinary for Keaton to do so as well.Buster's baseball antics are hilarious as he tries to play third base. In the track and field segments, he fails at shot put, javelin, pole vaulting, hammer throw, hurdles and racing with equal aplomb.Buster's rescue of his girl from his nasty rival is mile a minute entertainment as he races to her aid. The finale of the film based on the "'til death do you part" scenario was I thought, a little unusual.This was I believe, the first of Keaton's films in which he was not credited as Director on screen.

"In films that combined comedy with extraordinary physical risks, Buster Keaton played a brave spirit who took the universe on its own terms, and gave no quarter" (Roger Ebert) Among many silent movies which we are lucky to see these days (and which have not been lost after all), COLLEGE by James W. Horne and Buster Keaton was a real surprise for the audiences in my town's movie theater. Seeing silent comedies on the big screen exceptionally proves to be an uncommon experience. I think that there are hardly any viewers who may leave the cinema disappointed. Simply because the humor of COLLEGE seems to have stood a test of time combining comedy features with some notions of what a good movie entertainment is all about. What is it about? It is to amuse us, to bring relief, to educate a bit being at the same time not too tense. Roger Ebert, in the quotations that marks the beginning of my review, nicely observes that Keaton was able to execute tremendous physical abilities, which makes his films interesting even today. That is particularly noticeable in COLLEGE and calls our attention throughout. His character of young Ronald who does anything to make himself attractive to Mary (Anne Cornwall), the girl he loves, executes much of timeless humor. Combined with wit, the effect is outstanding: awe and laughter go in pairs and substitute each other. Who can forget the hilarious scenes on the sports field? How can you remain indifferent to his efforts? A lot of such moments when he moves like a true athlete do not allow you to concentrate elsewhere. That makes COLLEGE vibrant and surprising.Keaton's character is quite different than Charlie Chaplin's roles. He is quite a flamboyant young man who makes us laugh but ALSO makes us identify with his dilemma. Just to note what there is at the heart of his efforts: to win the heart of his 'sweetheart.' Consider the scenes with his mother (Florence Turner) when the humor is somehow directed towards his umbrella but also supplied with a clue of such a young man's personality, his dealing with the world and his dealing with simple situations. When he is in the arms of his Mary at last (the moment that he reaches thanks to extraordinary pains taken), it is a truly genuine moment, a moment of a dream fulfilled...expressed in the face of a performer.Among the supporting cast, Snitz Edwards is fabulously funny as the Dean, the old bachelor who only claims to be indifferent to a woman's love. To draw a humorous conclusion, COLLEGE is a light hearted entertainment which, though it is silent, does not let you resort to silence. Having seen it, you still feel a desire to share your thoughts with other people. A gem of its time!

The consensus seems to be that "College" is good, but it isn't up to the level of Buster Keaton's best other efforts from this era. Having watched it, I can't really disagree with that assessment. There's plenty of good material here and the star, of course but it's difficult not to compare it with Keaton's other work, and somehow it doesn't really feel like a Buster Keaton feature in certain ways.The line of the story is less unified and forceful than in his other films; Buster is a bookworm who goes to college and must pay his way while taking up sports to prove himself to a girl. Instead of the kind of logical sequence of events that drives "The General" or flight of stunningly bizarre imagination that marks "Sherlock Jr," "College" is more of an episodic series of sequences in which Buster tries out various new sports and jobs at his new school.This keeps the story from moving quickly or becoming as involving as it could be, but the upside is that these are mainly handled in a very funny way, with Buster showing off his seemingly innate ability to turn any setting (i.e. a soda jerk's counter) into a treasure chest of natural physical comedy. Probably the highlight of the film is the extended sequence where we get to see Buster have fun generating comedy from his and my favorites sport -- baseball. One can see the enthusiasm as he plays third base in catcher's gear and finds a way to make three outs for his team in one play.One could believe that Buster's character here is a younger version of his sheltered professor from "Speak Easily," and like that later film this one is funny even if it doesn't always make full use of his particular comedy abilities and style. It feels a little more typical than most of his best comedies, and doesn't feature many of the large-scale and involved mechanical gag sequences that he excelled at until the thrill ending in which Keaton gets the girl. Perhaps as a contrast to the more conventional nature of the story and some of the comedy in this feature, Keaton ends the film which a brilliant gag that subverts the typical "Hollywood ending" in just a few utterly logical and hilarious seconds.This is a good comedy and well worth a viewing for the comedy Buster Keaton brings to failure at the various sports and jobs at attempts in it, but as a film it has to be said that it is less than well-structured and dynamic.

I am not a HUGE Buster Keaton fan. I am, however, beginning to like his movies more and more. Even though the emotion on his face doesn't change, he is still a pretty damn good actor. I bought this movie on DVD from the 99 cent store. I have seen his most famous movie (The General) and i must say that this movie entitled "College" is a lot better. Every single scene had great entertainment. Very well filmed for that time. This movie really made me see how times have changed. In the scene where he plays a black waiter is something that would never make it into a movie these days. The ending was really original. Lots of laughs and of course, his physical comedy was excellent as usual.