RavePasteDana Stevens shows us she isn’t screwing around as early as page six by unpacking the year 1895 ... Coming from another author, this would perhaps undercut the celebration of Keaton’s name by reducing it. Coming from Stevens...parsing out Keaton’s beginnings in the shadow of great national change serves to brighten his star ... Stevens never hides her admiration for Keaton and his films—if she did, we’d have as little reason to read Camera Man as she would to write it—but in drawing her conclusions about the space he occupied in 20th century culture, that admiration gradually glows warmer. This is not the work of a fan, but an enthusiast and expert ... Camera Man deftly separates man from character and accomplishment from virtue. It may be that Stevens respects Keaton as much for his contributions to cinema as for his failings as a human being, though that judgment is for the individual to decide. What’s undeniable is the weight of Stevens’ knowledge coupled with the nimbleness of her prose. Together, these qualities make Camera Man a joy, eye-opening for casual and devoted moviegoers alike, and infectious in its adoration of Keaton’s filmography.
