The General (1926) | Directed by Clyde Bruckman/Buster Keaton - Full Movie

When Union spies steal an engineer's beloved locomotive, he pursues it single-handedly and straight through enemy lines

The General is a 1926 American silent comedy film released by United Artists. It was inspired by the Great Locomotive Chase, a true story of an event that occurred during the American Civil War. The story was adapted from the 1889 memoir The Great Locomotive Chase by William Pittenger. The film stars Buster Keaton who co-directed it with Clyde Bruckman.

At the time of its initial release, The General, an action-adventure-comedy made toward the end of the silent era, was not well received by critics and audiences, resulting in mediocre box office returns (about half a million dollars domestically, and approximately one million worldwide). Because of its then-huge budget ($750,000 supplied by Metro chief Joseph Schenck) and failure to turn a significant profit, Keaton lost his independence as a filmmaker and was forced into a restrictive deal with MGM.

Directed by: Clyde Bruckman, Buster Keaton
Screenplay by: Al Boasberg, Clyde Bruckman, Buster Keaton, Charles Henry Smith, Paul Gerard Smith
Based on The Great Locomotive Chase by William Pittenger
Produced by: Joseph Schenck, Buster Keaton
Starring: Buster Keaton, Marion Mack
Cinematography: Bert Haines, Devereaux Jennings
Edited by: Buster Keaton, Sherman Kell
Music by: William P. Perry (1926), Carl Davis (1987), Robert Israel (1995), Baudime Jam (1999). Joe Hisaishi (2004), Timothy Brock (2005), Angelin Fonda (2017)
Production companies: Buster Keaton Productions, Joseph M. Schenck Productions
Distributed by: United Artists
Release date: December 31, 1926 (Tokyo) February 5, 1927 (New York City)
Running time: 75 minutes (8 reels) (times vary with different versions)
Country: United States
Languages: Silent film, English intertitles
Budget: $750,000
Box office: $1 million