Silent Era : Home Video Reviews

Silent Era Home Page > Home Video > Character Studies

Reviews of silent film releases on home video.
Copyright © 1999-2026 by Carl Bennett
and the Silent Era Company.
All Rights Reserved.

Character
Studies
(1923)

This novelty short film stars Carter De Haven, with appearances by Roscoe Arbuckle, Jackie Coogan, Douglas Fairbanks, Buster Keaton, Harold Lloyd and Rudolph Valentino.

Mackinac Media
2005 DVD edition

The Forgotten Films of Roscoe ‘Fatty’ Arbuckle (1913-1932), black & white and color-toned black & white, 625 minutes total, not rated, including Character Studies (1923), color-tinted black & white, and color-toned black & white, 6 minutes, not rated.

Mackinac Media, MM0006D, UPC 6-89076-96352-7.
One single-sided, dual-layered, Region 0 NTSC DVD disc (four DVDs in the set); 1.33:1 aspect ratio picture in full-frame 4:3 (720 x 480 pixels) interlaced scan image encoded in SDR MPEG-2 format at 7.0 Mbps average video bit rate (capable of progressive scan upscaling to 60 fps); Dolby Digital (AC3) 2.0 stereo sound encoded at 224 Kbps audio bit rate; English language intertitles, no subtitles; no chapter stops (within the film); 36-page insert booklet; double-wide four-disc DVD keepcase; $49.95.
Release date: 24 May 2005.
Country of origin: USA

Ratings (1-10): video: 4 / audio: 7 / additional content: 7 / overall: 7.

This DVD edition has been mastered from a fair but worn 16mm reduction print. Dust, speckling, filmbase wear, frame jitters, emulsion scrapes, and other print flaws are present in the picture. While the other editions noted below have sourced prints of similar low quality, this edition presents a video transfer with a slightly sharper and less-contrasty picture.

The film is presented with a music score composed and performed on piano by Philip C. Carli.

Supplemental material includes audio commentary of selected films including Character Studies, A Flirt’s Mistake, Leading Lizzie Astray, Leap Year, The Waiters’ Ball and Wished on Mabel; an image gallery of Arbuckle cartoons drawn by Tom Bertino (16 images); and a 36-page insert booklet with film notes, images and notes on the musical accompaniment.

For information about other films in this collection, see our The Forgotten Films of Roscoe ‘Fatty’ Arbuckle on home video page.

This is our recommended home video edition of the film. As of 2008, this four-disc collection is out-of-print and can only be found as a used item.

This review was updated in 2026.

This Region 0 NTSC DVD edition has been discontinued
and is . . .

Mackinac Media
2006 DVD edition

Industrial Strength Keaton (1917-1965), black & white and color, 330 minutes total, not rated, including Character Studies (1923), color-tinted black & white, 6 minutes, not rated.

Mackinac Media, MM0083D, UPC 0-94922-50386-2.
One single-sided, dual-layered, Region 1 NTSC DVD disc (two DVDs in the set); 1.33:1 aspect ratio picture in full-frame and windowboxed 4:3 (720 x 480 pixels) interlaced scan image encoded in SDR MPEG-2 format at ? Mbps average video bit rate (capable of progressive scan upscaling to ? fps); Dolby Digital (AC3) 2.0 stereo sound encoded at ? Kbps audio bit rate, and Dolby Digital (AC3) 2.0 mono sound encoded at ? Kbps audio bit rate; English language intertitles, no subtitles; no chapter stops (within the film); 20-page insert booklet; standard two-disc DVD keepcase; $24.95.
Release date: 17 January 2006
Country of origin: USA

Ratings (1-10): video: 4 / audio: 8 / additional content: 6 / overall: 6.

The film is presented with a music score composed and performed on piano by Philip C. Carli.

Supplemental material includes audio commentaries for the silent films and selected sound films by Andy Coryell, Paul E. Gierucki, Bruce Lawton, Steve Massa, Ben Model and Richard M. Roberts; a photo gallery of Keaton’s Beverly Hills Italian style villa (16 images); an audio interview with commercial director Bob Olds (7 minutes); an image gallery of the preesbook for An Old Spanish Custom (1935) (7 images); an image gallery of a promotional pamphlet for “The Devil to Pay” (1960) (5 images); and a 20-page booklet featuring essays by Paul E. Gierucki, Ken Gordon, Bruce Lawton, Steve Massa, David B. Pearson, Richard M. Roberts, and Patricia Eliot Tobias.

For information about other films in this collection, see our Industrial Strength Keaton on home video page.

This review was updated in 2026.

This Region 1 NTSC DVD edition has been discontinued
and is . . .

Passport Video
2007 DVD edition

Smiles and Spectacles: A Harold Lloyd Treasury (1917-1947), black & white, and color-tinted black & white, 600 minutes total, not rated, including Character Studies (1923), color-tinted black & white, 6 minutes, not rated.

Passport Video, DVD-5160, UPC 0-25493-51609-8.
One single-sided, single-layered, Region 0 NTSC DVD disc (five DVDs in the set); 1.33:1 aspect ratio picture in full-frame 4:3 (720 x 480 pixels) interlaced scan image encoded in SDR MPEG-2 format at 3.8 Mbps average video bit rate (capable of progressive scan upscaling to 60 fps); Dolby Digital (AC3) 2.0 mono sound encoded at 192 Kbps audio bit rate; English language intertitles, no subtitles; no chapter stops (within the film); four-page insert booklet; double-wide five-disc DVD keepcase; $19.98.
Release date: 13 February 2007.
Country of origin: USA

Ratings (1-10): video: 3 / audio: 5 / additional content: 5 / overall: 5.

This DVD edition has been mastered from a low-quality digital file of a full-frame video transfer from a good 16mm reduction print. The picture will look OK on small screens but on large high-definition televisions a checkered pattern is clearly visible in the middle tones and highlights of the image. A “Smiles & Spectacles: A Harold Lloyd Treasury” digital watermark appears in the lower-right corner of the picture throughout.

The film is presented with a soundtrack compiled from preexisting music recordings performed on piano.

For information about other films in this collection, see our Smiles and Spectacles: A Harold Lloyd Treasury on home video page.

Not recommended.

This review was updated in 2026.

This Region 0 NTSC DVD edition has been discontinued
and is . . .

Flicker Alley
2007 DVD edition

Valentino: Rediscovering an Icon of Silent Film (1918-1922), color and black & white, 226 minutes total, not rated, including Character Studies (1923), black & white, 7 minutes, not rated.

Flicker Alley, FA0004,
ISBN 1-893967-32-8, UPC 6-17311-67329-0.
One single-sided, dual-layered, Region 0 NTSC DVD disc (two DVDs in the set); 1.33:1 aspect ratio picture in windowboxed 4:3 (720 x 480 pixels) interlaced scan image encoded in SDR MPEG-2 format at 5.6 Mbps average video bit rate (capable of progressive scan upscaling to 60 fps); Dolby Digital (AC3) 2.0 stereo sound encoded at 192 Kbps audio bit rate; English language intertitles, no subtitles; no chapter stops (within the film); 12-page insert booklet; standard two-disc DVD keepcase; $39.98.
Release date: 11 September 2007.
Country of origin: USA

Ratings (1-10): video: 3 / audio: 6 / additional content: 7 / overall: 5.

This DVD edition has been mastered from a fair 16mm reduction print, with dust, speckling, schmutz, bouncy frame jitters, and other print flaws present in the picture. The resulting image is not that pleasing.

The film is accompanied by a soundtrack presented from a music library orchestral music recording.

For information about other films in this collection, see our Valentino: Rediscovering an Icon of Silent Film on home video page.

Not recommended.

This review was updated in 2026.

This Region 0 NTSC DVD edition has been discontinued
and is . . .

Other silent era ROSCOE ARBUCKLE films available on home video.

Other silent era JACKIE COOGAN films available on home video.

Other silent era DOUGLAS FAIRBANKS films available on home video.

Other silent era BUSTER KEATON films available on home video.

Other silent era HAROLD LLOYD films available on home video.

Other RUDOLPH VALENTINO films available on home video.

Other SHORT COMEDY FILMS of the silent era available on home video.