Battling Butler (1926)

A love-struck weakling must pretend to be boxer in order to gain respect from the family of the girl he loves.

Director:

Buster Keaton

Writers:

Paul Girard Smith (adapted by: from the stage success of the same name), Al Boasberg (adapted by: from the stage success of the same name),

Stars:

Sally O'Neil, Walter James, Budd Fine

1 nomination.

Cast

Complete credited cast:
Sally O'Neil	...	The Mountain Girl
Walter James	...	Her Father
Budd Fine	...	Her Brother (as Bud Fine)
Francis McDonald	...	Alfred Battling Butler
Mary O'Brien	...	His Wife
Tom Wilson	...	His Trainer
Eddie Borden	...	His Manager
Buster Keaton	...	Alfred Butler
Snitz Edwards	...	His Valet

Storyline

Alfred's father wants him to make of a man of himself so sends him off on a hunting and fishing trip. He doesn't catch or shoot anything, but he does fall in love with a mountain girl. When her father and brothers laugh at this they are informed that he is Alfred "Battling" Butler, the championship fighter. From there on the masquerade must be maintained.

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Plot Keywords:

boxing | kicked in the butt | character name in title

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Genres:

Comedy

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Certificate:

Not Rated

Details

Country:

USA

Release Date:

19 September 1926 (USA)

Also Known As:

Box por Amor

Filming Locations:

Bakersfield, California, USA

Company Credits

Production Co:

Buster Keaton Productions

Technical Specs

Runtime:

77 min

Sound Mix:

Silent

Color:

Black and White

Aspect Ratio:

1.33 : 1

Did You Know?

Trivia

The close-up of Alfred Butler's hands as he opens the box with the wedding ring inside was shot with a hand double, since Buster Keaton was missing the tip of his right index finger.

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Crazy Credits

The "THE END" test is shown on a boxing bell.

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Connections

Featured in Sports on the Silver Screen (1997)

User Reviews

very good story, not quite as many laughs

This is a very good Buster Keaton film. However, some might be put off by the scarcity of pratfalls and belly laughs compared to many of his other efforts. That's because this film is much more plot driven and character driven than most silent comedies--and that works well for me, though you might miss the more acrobatic and violent character he plays in his shorts and in some of his full-length ones.

Buster plays a spoiled rich young man who really needs to be toughened up--so his dad tells him to go camping. The next segment is probably the funniest, as it cuts to a "wilderness" scene--complete with a butler, tub, poster bed, and all the other modern conveniences (that's the way I'd like to camp!). While "camping" he meets a nice girl and he is smitten. Instead of Buster going to propose, he sends his butler--who immediately knows her dad will say "no" because he wants a virile, more "studly" son-in-law. So, the butler panics and says that Buster is the famous boxer Alfred "Battling" Butler! Now, the two men do have the same name and are roughly the same size--but that's about the only similarity. Daddy gives his hearty approval and Buster is married. But, when the real Butler wins the title, Buster has a hard time pretending any longer. Later, the real Butler retires and Buster takes his place--going to training camp and working for a title defense! You'll have to tune in to see what happens next, as this only takes you through about half the film--watch it and enjoy.