Orson Welles says Buster Keaton's The General (1926), made near the end of the "silent era", is one of the greatest films ever. However, upon its initial release, critics were ambivalent, and the greater public, who don't generally care what critics think, responded similarly.
The General lost money, and Keaton his independence as a film artist.
Keaton died in 1966, a couple years after the CBC documentary at the top of this post.
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