Three Ages

A silent comedy set in three ages. The film tells the same story three times. In the Stone Age, in Rome and in 1920s America. Each time there is the same trio: a young man, a woman and a stronger rival. In the Stone Age transport is on the back of a dinosaur and rivalry is settled with a club. In Rome there is a chariot race, and when snow falls the wheels are swapped for a sledge. In the modern section there are cars, telephones and a police station. The narrative cuts between the parts and shows three versions of the same scene one after another. There is a reason for the structure: this was Keaton's first feature and it was not clear whether the move from shorts would work. The film was built in three parts so that, if it failed, it could be released as three separate shorts. The best known scene is a jump between buildings. Keaton leaps from one roof to another, misses and falls; the shot came from an accident and was kept in the film. Wallace Beery and Margaret Leahy are in the cast. Buster Keaton and Edward F. Cline directed. It was built as an open reference to another large film of the period that moved between historical ages. An interesting production for anyone who likes silent comedy. For a viewer looking for Keaton at his best, it holds together less well than his later features.