The General

KidsBestFest, the antidote to boredom during school vacation week in February, begins with a bang this year. We keep Alloy Orchestra in town to play live to one of their all time favorite films, “The General,” starring Buster Keaton on Monday, February 21, 2011, 2pm at the Academy of Music Theatre, Northampton, MA.

The week is dedicated to films that you are unlikely to find on TV, including some great foreign films.

The General is a 1926 American silent comedy film released by United Artists based upon the Great Locomotive Chase from 1862. Buster Keaton starred in the film and co-directed it with Clyde Bruckman. It was adapted by Al Boasberg, Bruckman, Keaton, Charles Henry Smith (uncredited) and Paul Girard Smith (uncredited) from the memoir The Great Locomotive Chase by William Pittenger. The film was a box-office disaster at its original release, but is now considered by critics as one of the greatest films ever made.

“The General,” $5 per seat • Cash only at the door

KidsBestFest and YouthFilm are sponsored by Faces, Florence Savings Bank, Valley Advocate, and WGBY

Co-Presented by Northampton Arts Council and the Academy of Music Theatre, which is supported by Northampton Cooperative Bank and United Bank