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Cast
Credits
Buster
Keaton. . . . . .Professor Post Studio
. . . . . . . . . . . MGM
Jimmy Durante.
. . . . James
Director . . . . . . .
. . .Edward Sedgwick
Ruth Sedgwyn. . . .
. .Pansy Peets
Cinematography.
. . . Harold Wenstrom
Thelma Todd . .
. . . . Eleanor Espere Edited
by . . . . . . . . William
LeVanway
Sidney Toler. . . .
. . . Stage Director
Set Design by. . . . . . Cedric
Gibbons
Run
Time: 80 minutes
The possible ratings are as follows:
Abysmal. Complete trash-- bad acting, writing, cinematography,
etc.
Bomb. One or two redeeming qualities, but inferior overall.
Average. Not outstanding in most respects, but worth checking
out.
I had a ball. Solid acting, writing,
cinematography, etc. Superior in many respects.
Excellent.
A true classic. Few, if any, flaws.
Speak Easily is one of Buster Keaton's sound films. It is no secret that Buster's sound films were not nearly as good as his silent films, and Speak Easily lives up to that reputation all too well. Keaton plays an introverted professor who has more book knowledge than you can imagine yet not enough common sense to to get a cup of coffee. He thinks he has inherited $750,000, so he decides to live it up a bit. While on his way, he meets up with a theater troupe experiencing money difficulties. Smitten by the female star, Peets (Sedgwyn), he agrees to finance a Broadway run for the rag tag group. He hires a director; rents a theater; secures the necessary costumes and props; hires a new leading lady (Todd), who tries to seduce him; before the actors realize he is broke. When a process server shows up to issue an injunction, comic piano player (Durante) tries to hide the professor so the show won't be shut down. The Professor gets mixed up in the play, and the crowd believes that he is part of a comic act. The show is a smash, and the Professor sells a share of the show to an investor to recoup his investment plus some. Oh yeah, he gets the girl too.
The plot for Speak Easily plays more like a vaudevillian sketch, or something more contemporary, a sitcom. There really isn't much story to it. Everything is just a set up to allow to display his brilliant physical comedic skills. The characters are cardboard cuts-outs moved about just as any other scenery, providing more opportunities for Keaton prat-falls. After about a half an hour or so, it becomes very old and boring as we await the inevitable opening night disaster. Everything is predictable, and for the most part, predictably boring.
The above criticism is directed only at the story; Keaton is very, very good as the Professor. His physical skills are as good as always. His lines are delivered in such a dry fashion that the mediocre dialogue is actually pretty funny. Even with his fine performance, however, one gets the impression that even Keaton is a tad bored with the story. Fortuanately, the latter half of the film is mostly Keaton doing his thing, and that is good for some genuine laughs.
The supporting cast is OK. Only Durante really displays any true star power. He shows that he is more than justa comic; he shows that he has real acting ability. The trouble is, too much of his part is simply a stand-up act. However, his scenes with Sedwyn display true potential. Personally, I would have liked to have seen the plot eveolve so that Keaton and Durante try to run the show themselves without the director. I think that would have had more laughs and better utilized both actors.
Overall, I was very disappointed
with Speak Easily. However, Keaton was very good. My rating:
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