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Buster Keaton’s classic films return: Kenneth Turan’s DVD pick

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New DVD releases allow viewers to look at all aspects of Buster Keaton’s filmmaking career, even the lesser-known ones.

Two-reel short films are where Keaton honed his craft, and ‘Buster Keaton -- The Short Films Collection’ from Kino presents all 19 of his solo shorts, created between 1920 and 1923.

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Keaton’s silent features are considered the peak of his career, and Kino has just released one of the best, 1925’s ‘Seven Chances,’ where Keaton is under a deadline to get married if he wants to inherit $7 million. The climactic chase scene is a classic.

Keaton lost his independence as a filmmaker when sound came in, and the early talkies he did for MGM are the least seen of all his films. Until now. The hard-working folks at Warner Archives have released three of them: ‘Doughboys,’ ‘Sidewalks of New York’ and ‘What! No Beer?.’ See them and decide for yourself.

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-- Kenneth Turan, Los Angeles Times film critic

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