Features / Festivals
Review: Slapstick – Passionate About Buster
The only thing better than a celebration of legendary silent comedian Buster Keaton is one accompanied by a live soundtrack. That’s exactly what noted Bristol venue St George’s provided on Saturday night as part of the Bristol Slapstick Festival, now in its twelfth year and one that, under the careful direction of Chris Daniels, continues to unite both fans and newcomers through the delightful magic of early cinema.
Hosted by Dad’s Army’s Ian Lavender (in-jokes were mercifully absent), after co-hosts Robin Ince and Rick Wakeman were both compelled to bow out, the evening saw screenings of two Keaton classics, The Paleface and Go West. Eloquently and enthusiastically introduced by self-confessed fan Lavender, the charming nuances of Keaton’s endearing persona had the audience in stitches, whether it was the slyly transgressive racial solidarity of the Native American-centred The Paleface, or the friendship between one man and his beloved cow in Go West.
But it was the music that completed the evening and ultimately stole the show. After all, what is a silent movie without a score? The terrific ensemble of The European Silent Screen Virtuosi, comprised of Guenter A. Buchwald, Frank Bockius and Romano Todesco, beautifully captured every pratfall, facial gesture and physical mannerism in all their glory. Buchwald’s delightfully intricate piano was the perfect distillation of Keaton’s mischievous spirit whilst percussionist Bockius accentuated the absent sound effects, from gunfire to people being clobbered over the head.
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Particularly memorable was the depiction of the sweeping America vistas in Go West, Buchwald’s exquisite fiddle and a guitar accompaniment from Portishead’s Adrian Utley speaking of the vast cattle plains. It was enough to evoke both smiles of joy and tears of wonderment; in other words, the Slapstick Festival in a nutshell. Next year’s instalment can’t come soon enough.
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