Often deemed to be the last classic film made by the great Buster Keaton, The Cameraman (1928) was the final time the silent legend would have anything close to full creative control over one of his own features... as he folded his independent studio to sign with Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer (MGM) – who promptly made him their third highest paid star. Though his future would soon turn very bleak, this first film with the new studio was his own idea.
The phrase "based on true events" is used a lot in films these days, but as we know, it is a very loose term. Though there are kernels of truth in most of these movies, it is usually just an idea that captures the screenwriters’ imagination which is then turned into his or her own fictionalized version of history. One movie that exemplifies this is the Jon Turteltaub (National Treasure, Last Vegas) Disney flick Cool Runnings.
For almost 100 years, Disney has entertained family audiences with their amazing live-action and animated films. One of my favourites is the oft forgotten 1968 pirate tale Blackbeard’s Ghost.
As you can probably tell from my other reviews, most of the films that I choose are not family friendly, which is why I have decided to change course and review what I feel is an often overlooked comedy, the 1989 John Hughes’ movie Uncle Buck.