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.

This is kind of a typical Buster Keaton story, except in reverse: the girl comes along earlier in the movie, the men are impressed with him earlier on, everything works out for him earlier on, and then the rest of the movie is him trying to maintain his luck versus trying to get the girl against all the forces of bad luck. It also goes in a couple surprising directions, which are noteworthy.I notice through the evolution of Keaton's movies that he did more and more acting and less and less physical comedy, with the exception of course of The Saphead, which was his first feature-length that was mostly drama-based, not slapstick-based. By now, 1926, Keaton knows what he's doing and knows where he's going, and thus this is a pretty clean and well-put together movie.Still, the stuff he does in the training-ring scene is amazingly original and marvelous. When watching this movie, one expects something more along the lines of Chaplin's moment in City Lights, where he dodges around limberly and almost succeeds. Not the case, this was more real and brutal. Marvelous stuff, really, and surprising in its own right.--PolarisDiB

While it's a cut below Keaton's best features, "Battling Butler" has some good comic material and an amusing, if lightweight, story. There are some good performances from the supporting cast, a wide enough assortment of gags, and the story-line also gives Buster a chance to demonstrate a few of his many acrobatic talents.The first few minutes contain lots of good visual gags as we are introduced to Keaton's hapless character. Then, when his identity gets tangled up with that of a prize-fighter, "Battling Butler", from there on in Buster finds himself in some increasingly complicated and tricky situations. As his character's physical ineptness is emphasized, Keaton's own agility and versatility are displayed in various antics. (The same is true to some degree of his character in "College".) Most of the specific stunts, though, are relatively routine compared to those in his best work.In lesser hands, the fragile premise would run out of steam quickly, but here things keep moving along steadily, and there are some very good moments. It doesn't ever really hit high gear, though, and it's missing the kind of top-notch climactic sequence that distinguishes Keaton's best films. Thus it will probably be of interest primarily to those who are already fans of Keaton, but most such fans should find it worth a look. While there's nothing spectacular, there is more than enough good material to make it worthwhile as light entertainment.

Keaton shows off his physical mimicry as a wealthy fop who must train as a prize fighter, but the climactic payoff doesn't deliver so great a punch: Keaton misses the Big Bout and fights the winner in the locker room! Good stuff, but a lesser effort.