The Paleface (1922)

A tribe of Red Indians are cheated out of their land by unscrupulous white oil speculators. Their chief makes a vow that the next white man they see shall be scalped. In walks a blissfully unaware butterfly collector played by Buster Keaton.This comic western is full of elaborate chase sequences and funny moments where Keaton tries to outwit the Indians. There are several scenes where he shows his gift for physical comedy and some like the bridge scene where he undertakes some of his customary dangerous stunt work. The film is notable too for its sympathetic portrayal of the Indians. They are clearly shown to be the innocent victims of corrupt white men. This was fairly unusual in a film so old.

This Keaton short has hilarity, acrobatics, and true silliness of course. But also a type of transfigured social justice. That is elevated justice found out west even in the 19th Century. Keaton knew about evil oil barons and so on from his private experience. I hold him to be higher than Lloyd or Chaplin.It's prognostication of the future of Oklahoma Cherokees which came true long after this so-called silly film short was released. How do I know? My now-deceased parents worked as chief-cooks-and-bottle-washers for a man who did cheat the Cherokees and found himself in terror of revenge in Oklahoma in the early '30s. Also I witnessed children where I live receive the benefits due them as Cherokees. Friends of mine. What the silliness in this short does is warn its fans that bad things happen to good people. And they still do as seen in this short silly film. Keaton acts as a willing peacemaker and is made a blood brother as later occurs in other films and even a classic '50s TV show which I watched as a kid. What about empathy here? There were no Indian reservations anywhere when Keaton was born, but he saw what was happening around him. Yes,folks here in so-cal now want to be known as Indians instead of PC crap. OK?

In the early days of silent films Indians were inevitably the all purpose villains. For those who think that it was not until such post World War II films as Devil's Doorway, Broken Arrow, and Fort Apache that the Indian point of view was filmed, The Paleface, a comic short subject by Buster Keaton was the granddaddy of those other classics.In fact the villains are really modern ones, would you believe oil company executives interested in the almighty profit at the expense of everything else. But oil was shortly to be cast in infamy with the American public in the form of the Teapot Dome Scandal which would break a couple of years later. Even then there was a stench emanating from Wyoming and people were asking questions.The oil company has discovered oil on Indian land and has summarily ordered them off. The Indians are naturally upset and the chief Joe Roberts promises to kill the next white man who sets foot on the reservation. Who should it be, but poor innocent butterfly collector Buster Keaton, as innocent here as his comic rivals Harry Langdon or Stan Laurel. The great stone face leads the Indians on quite the merry chase and with a little help from asbestos, survives a burning at the stake. With what we know now, one also shudders at the mesothelioma Buster acquired from that experience. Knowing this man is something special, The Paleface becomes a leader of the tribe and they successfully battle oil company encroachment. By the way one of the vignettes in the James Stewart film The FBI Story deals with just this question, Indians being cheated out of their land by oil company speculators. Of course it was dealt with a bit more seriously than in The Paleface.Not too much similarity between this and the Bob Hope-Jane Russell feature film classic, The Paleface. Hope also nearly got burned at the stake, but his escape was different, one classically different method from another great comedian.The Paleface is a real good introduction to the comic art of Buster Keaton.

I saw this on KINO Video and I was far from being impressed by the company because the film alternated from running too fast to running too slow---and the soundtrack, as a result, was really annoying. Perhaps it was a defective tape. If you can, you might want to find another brand if it's available.Now on to the film. It's a silly and fun little film about some irate Indians and how they are about to take out their frustrations on the first White man they see--and it just happens to be Buster. However, after spending a lot of time trying to kill him, he is miraculously saved and the Indians think he's been send by the gods. Buster, being a nice guy, didn't hold any grudges for almost being roasted alive and agrees to help the Indians. It turns out that greedy oil barons are trying to take the land and so Buster leads the Indians on the attack. All in all, not the most important film Keaton ever made, but the sight gags are good and its a brisk little film sure to please anyone willing to watch a silent comedy.