A railway engineer with dreams of facing off in the American Civil War, Johnny Gray (Buster Keaton) is disappointed when he's turned away from service. It isn't long until service finds him: when union spies steal his beloved locomotive 'The General' (along with his girlfriend), he sets out to pursue them doggedly across enemy lines.
Containing one of the most memorable chase sequences in the history of filmmaking, The General is widely considered to be Keaton’s masterpiece, a seamless blend of action and comedy that laid the tracks for many of cinema's most daring feats to come.