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This being a comedy directed by Jules White, the first thing we establish is that Buster Keaton's character is a half-wit. This is a basic problem with his sound studio pictures. The real Keaton character is not an idiot triumphing over fate by luck, but a dreamer, out of step with the chaotic world, who triumphs -- or sometimes sinks --by stoic perseverance. He learns his lesson in the school of hard knocks. But this is 1940, not 1927, and Buster is toiling in the Columbia short subjects department, not building features with his hand-picked crew. And he's got Jules White, who thinks that sheer pain frequently applied is the only source of comedy. So there is a constant struggle between Keaton, backed by his co-director from THE GENERAL, Clyde Bruckman, as writer, and Jules White as producer-director. Unhappily, Jules White wins. People get sat on, people get hit on the forehead by shoes with loud sound effects. But Keaton wins a few battles. He still takes a fall beautifully and he has a nice little sequence trying to undress in an upper berth. So don't expect a classic, but do expect some wonderful little bits.Just ignore the parrot.
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