'The Navigator' Dated and Detailed for Blu-ray

The 1924 Buster Keaton silent comedy classic heads to Blu-ray in September.

In an early announcement to retailers, Kino is working on 'The Navigator' for Blu-ray on September 4.

Brilliantly exemplifying Buster Keaton's ability to mime rich humor from the inanimate, 'The Navigator' is a classic of the Golden Age of Comedy, centered on and about a single extraordinary prop: an immense five hundred-foot yacht.

In a return to the ''pampered youth'' role he had played in 'The Saphead' (and would return to in 'Battling Butler'), Keaton stars as Rollo Treadway, an inexperienced lad of extraordinary wealth -- and surprisingly little common sense -- who finds himself adrift on ''The Navigator'' with no one else on board except an equally naive girl (Kathryn McGuire). After discovering each other's presence in an ingenious ballet of unintentional hide-and-seek, the couple resourcefully fashion a home for themselves aboard the derelict boat, in spite of their unfamiliarity with the tools of domesticity.

They then embark on a series of misadventures on the ocean floor (where Rollo in a diving suit must parry the attacks of an aggressive swordfish) and upon the high seas, surrounded by a fleet of menacing cannibals, where the film reaches its explosively funny climax, with the aid of a crate of rocket flares. Beatifully remastered from new HD material.

The Blu-ray will feature 1080p video, a DTS-HD Master Audio 5.1 soundtrack, and supplements will include a featurette, written by film historian Bruce Lawton, about the making of the film and Keaton's fascination with boats as sources of comedy; an audio commentary by silent film historians Robert Arkus and Yair Solan; a photo gallery; and audio of a 1913 recording of "Asleep in the Deep", a popular song of the period referenced in the film.

Suggested list price for the Blu-ray is $34.95.

You can find the latest specs for 'The Navigator' linked from our Blu-ray Release Schedule, where it's indexed under September 4.