JohnHowardReid Cast: Buster Keaton, Sybil Seely (newlyweds), Joe Roberts (piano man). Screenplay and direction: BUSTER KEATON, EDDIE CLINE. Photography: Elgin Lessley. Technical director: Fred Gabourie.A Joseph M. Schenck Production. Copyright 2 September 1920 by Metro Pictures Corp. 2 reels. 19 minutes. COMMENT: One of Buster Keaton's best shorts, this delightful 2-reeler riot of continuously inventive mishap and fun is included on Kino's Saphead DVD. Expensively produced, it features one of the craziest houses ever erected (albeit temporarily) on a Los Angeles lot. Keaton's daring and dexterity is nothing short of amazing. A great partner, the super-attractive Miss Seely is also worth seeing.(DVD rating: 10/10).

MisterWhiplash So how does one build the foundations of a marriage? Hmm...In all seriousness, this is a prototype on how to stage gags and execute them with the kind of seemingly effortlessness that made Buster Keaton so endearing (and of course there was so much effort, and the sleight of hand quality to how he would, say, fall out of a window or have a space in the window in case part of a house fell on him, was all part of his trickery).In One Week, Buster gets married, and, due to some skulduggery from the wife's ex - he changes around the numbers in the order for the "Build a House" kit that Buster's uncle gives him - the house is a mess. No, this is not some figurative thing, the house looks like it was designed by Picasso! But the couple try to make it work, and yet the house sometimes does some odd things, like spinning uncontrollably on its really whacked axis, spinning the house-guests that Buster and his wife have over right out the door.The 'portable house', the kind of thing that seems ubiquitous for that time period and yet nearly 100 years later almost sounds rather promising as if it could still exist, is a wonderful vehicle to spring gags, and of course putting together a house (with the metaphor of putting together a film not lost on me) opens the door for so many gags and, believe me, Keaton and his collaborators go for all of them. There are some I just couldn't believe that involve breakneck physical dynamics involving parts of the house bending and how holes need to be laid just in place, and then of course the unexpected that gets the biggest laughs: when Buster tries to drive the house to another location - nailing the car's back seat to the house siding for good measure - the car keeps driving off as he and the seat stays put! What I liked a lot here is that underneath the frustration of putting this house together and the hazards of it, there's real love and affection between this couple. They're newlyweds, and for all the downs that come their way, through all of the moments where it looks like Buster's about to be down for the count (or he does just seemingly wild things like climbing down a ladder and *switching sides* from front to back while in mid descent), they show each other love and affection. There's this honest, serious bedrock, and all of the comedy is based on all of the obstacles that come in their way and that we want to see them overcome (the actress, Sybil Seely, is quite good too).This is filmmaking virtuosity on display, and to say it holds up is an understatement; it's stunt-work is remarkable (see how Buster goes from one car to another in that brief chase right after the wedding, and how the cars go off in ways that shouldn't work physically but it's still awesome), and I found myself laughing not because of how balls to the wall it gets. Also, more to the point, the gags *work*, and its all from incidents that build one on top of the other, to where it finally gets to the Picasso house spinning around. Genius.

SnorrSm1989 Although usually credited as Buster Keaton's first film as an independent artist, following his successful partnership with Roscoe Arbuckle who by this time had moved into features, ONE WEEK was in fact the second to be shot. Keaton did not consider his first two-reeler THE HIGH SIGN to be quite sure-fire enough to let it serve as his first release. This may reveal more than a tiny bit of Keaton's discipline as a comedian, as THE HIGH SIGN by any standards is a very funny film. However, Keaton may have been wise in his decision after all, as ONE WEEK provides such an extraordinary sparkle of energy, one clearly sees through that the people behind this film had great fun doing it, which made it impossible to ignore even in the stream of comedy films that came to life through the first year of the Twenties.The premise is simple enough, but one with inevitable possibilities for comedy; and it gets even funnier if you know its initial source. With ONE WEEK, Keaton is reported to have done a parody on a commercial he had seen (in a movie theater, of course), where it was demonstrated how a cozy house easily could be built in just one week, if one follows the instructions of a "build-it-yourself"-set. So much for that: newlyweds Buster and Sybil Seely (beautiful leading lady who would only appear in two more of Keaton's shorts) received said set as a wedding gift, but things turn out differently than predicted when "the one she turned down," Buster's rival, changes the packing crates. Day by day we follow the couple's struggles throughout the week, who refuse to declare their house inappropriate for living even when it clearly is a mess; that is, until the brutal ending which takes place on peaceful Sunday, which I won't reveal here.With ONE WEEK, Buster Keaton made it to the top-ranks among comedians in two-reelers almost overnight, and predestined an extraordinary career in the years to come. The characters may barely be explored, and end up appearing quite one-dimensional in the midst of all mechanical objects and "trick-property," but for pure fun and laughter, the film must rank among the best of all silent comedies. As a final mention, note that this film marks the first appearance of Joe Roberts, whom Buster had known since his years in vaudeville; though given only a minor role here, he would soon function as a Goliath-like creature to Keaton in his films, much like Eric Campbell did to Chaplin in the Mutual-period of the latter.

rdjeffers Monday September 26, 2005 7:00pm The Seattle Paramount Theater"Here's your house!""One Week" begins with church bells and happy guests throwing shoes and rice. The Groom (Buster Keaton) picks up a pair he thinks might fit then tries to kiss his Bride (Sybil Seely) in the back seat of their car. They are always kissing. If his rival, "Handy Hank" wasn't stuck to them like glue everything would be hunky dory. The newlyweds are given a vacant lot with a kit house for a wedding gift and Hank changes the numbers on the boxes. The result is a do-it-yourself disaster that spins like a top in a storm as house guests fly out the doors. "I've had a lovely afternoon on your merry-go-round. It'll be better when you put in your hobby horses." Don't forget the motion sickness pills. Seely is adorable, spinning on a piano stool in the storm, painting a valentine on the house and taking a bath. When she reaches for the dropped bar of soap a hand comes from behind the camera to cover the lens!