Seven Chances (1925)

In terms of Buster Keaton’s independent features, this one is on the lower end of the totem pole but still quite enjoyable.  It’s an unusual picture for Buster, a bit farcical (he didn’t come up with it – it’s based on a play, and it was essentially assigned to him.)  Still, he works pretty well within a rather different genre, and he of course infuses it with his trademark Buster-ness.

Buster plays Jimmie Shannon, a down-and-out businessman on the verge of bankruptcy who discovers he’s the recipient of an extraordinary inheritance, provided he’s married by 7 p.m. on his 27^th birthday.  As generally happens in these kinds of movies, he receives notice of the inheritance on his 27^th birthday, so time is of the essence.  After bungling his proposal to Mary, the girl he’s loved for ages – it turns out women don’t like it when you tell them you just have to married to somebody by the end of the day – Jimmie is convinced by his business partner to try his luck elsewhere.  It’s a race against the clock down the altar.

Quibbles first.  The initial misunderstanding that comes between Jimmie and Mary is a thin basis on which to found all the hijinks that come after, and it’s stretched thinner still by the contrivances that keep them from speaking to each other and clearing the air.  I’m usually willing to give some leeway to “if these people would just have a two-minute conversation, all their problems would be gone” plot finagling, but when it strains credibility too much, I start to roll my eyes.

That being said, Buster does a fine job making something that’s not his sort of film.  Jimmie’s varied, increasingly outlandish attempts to secure himself any sort of bride are very funny, and pretty impressive from a cinematic perspective.  I imagine the original stage farce is very dialogue-heavy, talking its way through each disastrous proposal, but Buster deftly avoids most of that.  Instead, after the first couple of brief conversations, he tells his story visually.  No need to repeat what we already know he’s saying, so he keeps the story rolling with amusing sight gags and priceless reactions.  The most memorable proposal is probably with the woman driving alongside Buster, but I’m also a fan of the written proposal and the hatcheck girl.

The most Buster-y element, though?  This film is about half chase scene.  Seriously – assorted escalating complications ultimately result in Buster running pell-mell down the street while being pursued by a horde of women in white veils, and in perfect Buster fashion, the whole sequence is filled with inventive touches and terrific gags.  He employs clever taxi tricks, a crane, and a tour de force comic scene running from over a thousand fake boulders.  And, since he’s also fleeing under a severe time crunch, there’s a delightful gag of Buster surrounded by broken time pieces in a clock repair shop trying to figure out if it’s after 7 yet.  So, certainly not his best, but a good time for Buster Keaton fans nonetheless.

Warnings

Slapstick violence and a bit of unfortunate racial humor.