probably buster keaton best film and and oddly enough and it not even a straightforward comedy it actually an action film and with clever dos of romance and comedy toss in for good measure . ` the general and which be set during the civil war and be about a train engineer name johnny gray ( buster keaton and of course ) who try to enlist in the confederate army . . . and be turn down because the army feel he would be much more valuable for the war effort a an engineer instead of a soldier . however and through a series of misunderstanding and both johnny family and his girl think he a coward and and they refuse to speak to him until he become a soldier . month pas and and johnny and sad and alone and be pilot his train the general when it be steal from him by the north . johnny effort to recover the general and to win back his girl love become an unbelievably funny and action pack series of event and a johnny try to go from be a sad sack buffoon to be a hero . if you haven not watch many silent film and they demand a great amount of attention than ` normal film there be no audio cue while and volume can be speak with a simple facial expression . buster keaton be amazingly expressive and a he fully capable of go from wildly happy to downtrodden and sad in the blink of an eye . while funny and keaton be much more than just a clownish figure he manage to evoke a lot of sympathy a well and and he genuinely become what can only be describe a an action hero as well . his timing and whether for a joke or for a tender moment and be absolutely impeccable . what also great about ` the general be the sheer amount of stunt and physical humor a movie like this couldn not be make today . no amount of insurance would cover it . keaton do all his own stunt and and manages to perform a number of feat that be simultaneously hilarious and dangerous he chase down ` the general with a bike and he sit on a move cattlecatcher and knock away railroad tie with a tie of his own . all these stunt be fantastic and but it scary to think that any one of these probably could have kill keaton if something even go slightly wrong . ` the general be a lot more than slapstick . personally and i think it one of the first film to push the envelope of movie it go for action and romance and and humor and and it pull all of those element together into a terrific movie . if you have never see buster keaton or and for that matter and a silent film go find this one and watch it . it a classic . a plus .