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Reviews of silent film releases on home video.
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One Week
(1920)

Buster Keaton and his new bride are gifted a kit home and Buster builds it with predictable results. The film features the first of Buster’s daredevil gags with a falling wall and an open window (modeled after a similar gag in an earlier 1919 Arbuckle/Keaton film Back Stage), which led to the same gag in Steamboat Bill, Jr. (1928).

This first release from Buster as a solo comedian was actually preceeded by the production of The High Sign (1921), which was held from release in an to attempt to present an even better film for his freshman effort.

Kino International
2011 Blu-ray Disc edition

Buster Keaton: The Short Films Collection 1920-1923 (1920-1923), black & white, 390 minutes total, not rated,
including One Week (1920), black & white, 24 minutes, not rated.

Kino Lorber, K756, UPC 7-38329-07562-0.
Three single-sided, dual-layered, Region 0 Blu-ray Discs, 1.33:1 aspect ratio image in pillarboxed 16:9 (1920 x 1080 pixels) progressive scan AVC (MPEG-4) format, SDR (standard dynamic range), ? Mbps average video bit rate, ? Mbps audio bit rate, Dolby Digital 48 kHz 2.0 mono sound, English language intertitles, no foreign language subtitles, 2 chapter stops; three slimline BD keepcases in cardboard slipcase; $49.95.
Release date: 12 July 2011.
Country of origin: USA

This remastered Blu-ray Disc collection has been mastered from the best 35mm print materials available. Not all of the source prints are of 35mm quality, however. Some prints are of only good quality as the surviving material is either contrasty and blurred from multiple print duplications or preserved from 16mm reduction prints.

For material that is quite scuffed or otherwise of distracting state, Kino offers viewer-selectable versions that have been digitally cleaned by computer processing.

Among the supplementary content created for this collection are 15 visual essays featuring contributions from Jack Dragga, Ken Gordon, David Kalat, Bruce Lawton, Steve Massa, Ben Model, David B. Pearson, R. Emmet Sweeney and Patricia Eliot Tobias, a series of alternate and deleted shots from Keaton shorts, a presentation of exerpts from comedy films influenced by Keaton, and Keaton cameos in short films of the late 1920s.

USA: Click the logomark to purchase this Region 0 Blu-ray Disc edition from Amazon.com. Your purchase supports Silent Era.

Canada: Click the logomark to purchase this Region 0 Blu-ray Disc edition from Amazon.ca. Your purchase supports Silent Era.

United Kingdom: Click the logomark to purchase this Region 0 Blu-ray Disc edition from Amazon.co.uk. Support Silent Era.

Kino International
2011 DVD edition

Buster Keaton: The Short Films Collection 1920-1923 (1920-1923), black & white, 390 minutes total, not rated,
including One Week (1920), black & white, 24 minutes, not rated.

Kino Lorber, K755, UPC 7-38329-07552-1.
Three single-sided, dual-layered, Region 0 NTSC DVD discs, 1.33:1 aspect ratio image in full-frame 4:3 (720 x 480 pixels) interlaced scan MPEG-2 format, SDR (standard dynamic range), ? Mbps average video bit rate, ? Kbps audio bit rate, Dolby Digital 48 kHz 2.0 mono sound, English language intertitles, no foreign language subtitles; 2 chapter stops; standard three-disc DVD keepcase in cardboard slipcover; $34.95.
Release date: 12 July 2011.
Country of origin: USA

Ratings (1-10): video: 8 / audio: 8 / additional content: 7 / overall: 7.

This remastered DVD collection has been mastered from the best 35mm print materials available. Not all of the source prints are of 35mm quality, however. Some prints are of only good quality as the surviving material is either contrasty and blurred from multiple print duplications or preserved from 16mm reduction prints.

For material that is quite scuffed or otherwise of distracting state, Kino offers viewer-selectable versions that have been digitally cleaned by computer processing.

USA: Click the logomark to purchase this Region 0 NTSC DVD edition from Amazon.com. Your purchase supports Silent Era.

Canada: Click the logomark to purchase this Region 0 NTSC DVD edition from Amazon.ca. Your purchase supports Silent Era.

United Kingdom: Click the logomark to purchase this Region 0 NTSC DVD edition from Amazon.co.uk. Support Silent Era.

Kino on Video
2000 DVD edition

The Saphead (1920), color-toned black & white, 77 minutes, not rated,
with One Week (1920), black & white, 19 minutes, not rated.

Kino International, K134DVD, UPC 7-38329-01342-4.
One single-sided, single-layered, Region 0 NTSC DVD disc, 1.33:1 aspect ratio image in windowboxed 4:3 (720 x 480 pixels) interlaced scan MPEG-2 format, SDR (standard dynamic range), ? Mbps average video bit rate, ? Kbps audio bit rate, Dolby Digital 48 kHz 2.0 stereo and mono sound, English language intertitles, no foreign language subtitles, 4 chapter stops; snapper DVD case (reissued in standard DVD keepcase [retail] and in slimline DVD keepcase [boxset]); $29.99 (reduced to $24.95).
Release date: 11 January 2000.
Country of origin: USA

Ratings (1-10): video: 7 / audio: 7 / additional content: 7 / overall: 7.

This DVD edition of the brilliant One Week (1920), has been produced by David Shepard. The windowboxed video transfer utilizes a very-good to excellent 35mm source print.

The film is accompanied by an older music score performed on theater organ by Gaylord Carter.

For information on the other Keaton releases in this collection, see our The High Sign on home video page and The Saphead on home video page.

This edition of Buster Keaton’s first solo short film will please viewers with its quality picture image and pleasant musical accompaniment.

USA: Click the logomark to purchase this Region 0 NTSC DVD edition from Amazon.com. Your purchase supports Silent Era.

Canada: Click the logomark to purchase this Region 0 NTSC DVD edition from Amazon.ca. Your purchase supports Silent Era.

Film Preservation Associates
2003 DVD edition

Slapstick Masters (1917-1929), black & white, 87 minutes total, not rated,
including One Week (1920), black & white, 22 minutes, not rated.

Film Preservation Associates, distributed by Image Entertainment, ID1897DSDVD, UPC 0-14381-18972-8.
One single-sided, single-layered, Region 1 NTSC DVD disc (reissued on DVD-R disc), 1.33:1 aspect ratio image in windowboxed 1.20:1 (720 x 480 pixels) interlaced scan MPEG-2 format, SDR (standard dynamic range), ? Mbps average video bit rate, 224 Kbps audio bit rate, Dolby Digital 48 kHz 2.0 stereo sound, English language subtitles, no foreign language subtitles; 20 chapter stops; standard DVD keepcase; $24.99.
Release date: 15 July 2003.
Country of origin: USA

This DVD collection features an analog video transfer of the film that may have been previously released in the 2000 Kino Saphead release noted above. There is the typical amount of dust, speckling and other flaws present in the source print. The image is, at times, contrasty and a little soft in picture details.

The film is accompanied by a custom music score by The Alloy Orchestra and is the principal reason to own this collection (if you like their music).

As noted above, better-looking editions have subsequently been issued on Blu-ray Disc and DVD and this disc is not recommended. This edition was later reissued on manufactured-on-demand DVD-R disc and both the DVD and DVD-R editions are now out-of-print.

USA: Click the logomark to purchase this Region 1 NTSC DVD-R edition from Amazon.com. Your purchase supports Silent Era.

Canada: Click the logomark to purchase this Region 1 NTSC DVD-R edition from Amazon.ca. Your purchase supports Silent Era.

Nostalgia Family Video
2010 DVD edition

One Week (1920), black & white, ? minutes, not rated,
with The Balloonatic (1923), black & white, ? minutes, not rated.

Nostalgia Family Video, 5314D, unknown UPC number.
One single-sided, single-layered, Region 0 NTSC DVD-R disc, 1.33:1 aspect ratio image in full-frame 4:3 (720 x 480 pixels) interlaced scan MPEG-2 format, SDR (standard dynamic range), ? Mbps average video bit rate, ? Kbps audio bit rate, Dolby Digital 48 kHz 2.0 mono sound, English language intertitles, no foreign language subtitles, no chapter stops; clamshell CD case; $14.99.
Release date: 2010.
Country of origin: USA

This DVD-R edition was likely mastered from 16mm reduction prints. The disc has no navigation menu, chapter stops or package artwork and is sold in a clear clamshell case.

To order a DVD edition, you must enter “Replace My VHS Title with Standard ‘No Frillz’ DVD” in the comments section at order checkout.

NOSTALGIA FAMILY VIDEO has discontinued business
and this DVD-R edition is . . .