Hello, my friends and welcome to a look at some of the great short films from the master himself, Charlie Chaplin. While it may seem like an obvious choice, Charlie Chaplin may be my favorite filmmaker. His films (both feature and short) have had an incredible effect on me and continue to do so every time I watch them.
The Fireman (1916) is the second of the short films, Chaplin made for Mutual. Today's Chaplin's Mutual films are considered to be some of the best comedy shorts ever made. During this era, Chaplin successfully combined strong characterization and pathos to his physical comedy. However, The Fireman feels more like one of Charlie's earlier Keystone or Essanay comedies. That is to say, this is a pure knockabout slapstick comedy with little regard for either characterization or pathos. As such it tends to get overlooked among Chaplin's other films for the studio. However, this is unfair as this is a delightful little comedy in its own right. This comedy also benefits from a wonderful supporting cast. Charlie's favorite heavy at this time, Eric Campbell played the captain. Enda Purviance (the leading lady in most of Chaplin's films at this time) played the captain's sweetheart. Future director (of such movies as 42nd Street (1933), Footlight Parade (1933), A Slight Case of Murder (1938), Action in the North Atlantic (1943)) Lloyd Bacon played Edna's father. Leo White played the householder. Albert Austin, James T. Kelly, John Rand and Frank J. Coleman played the other firefighters. Chaplin biographer John McCabe wrote about a letter Chaplin received from a fan in the Midwest regarding this film. The fan enjoyed the film but felt that Charlie was becoming a slave to his public and making the type of film, he felt his fans expected of him. The letter even said, "Whereas in most of your pictures the audiences were a slave to you. The public, Charlie, likes to be slaves."
Moving Picture World, 1916
A Busy Day (1914) is a Chaplin comedy that does not feel like a Chaplin comedy at all. Charlie does not play the little tramp here but instead spends the whole film in drag. What follows is a pure knockabout comedy with little at all the resembles a story. One can spot Mack Swain in this film. Around this time Mack Swain was in plenty of films for the Keystone studio (where this short was made). At Keystone he appeared in quite a few films with Charlie Chaplin including Caught in the Rain, His Trysting Place, The Fatal Mallet, Laughing Gas, His Musical Career, Getting Acquainted, Gentlemen of Nerve, His Prehistoric Past, The Knockout and the feature length Tillie's Punctured Romance (all 1914). However, the role Swain is best remembered for today is in Chaplin's feature length The Gold Rush (1925).
Easy Street (1917) is often times considered to be one of Chaplin's best short films and with good reason. This film is not only very funny, but it is also beautifully constructed. The drama and social commentary here are masterfully combined with the slapstick comedy, in a way that never sacrifices any of these elements. Many film historians believe that the environment in this film is heavily based on the run-down poor streets of London, where Charlie grew up as a child. Even the name Easy Street is very similar to East Street, which is believed to be his birthplace. This short film also features Charlie's greatest movie villain, Eric Campbell, with one of his best roles. Also appearing in this film is Enda Purviance (as the mission worker), Albert Austin (as both a minister and a policeman), James T. Kelly (as a missionary), John Rand (as a drunk and a policeman), Janet Miller Sully (as one of the members of the congregation) and Loyal Underwood (as a policeman). This is a cast that should mostly be familiar to Chaplin fans as there are many Chaplin regulars here. Charlie Chaplin and Albert Austin had even worked together before Charlie entered the movies as the two both worked for Fred Karno's troupe when they toured the U.S.A. Austin appeared in many Chaplin films for Mutal. He would later play a thief in Chaplin's feature length, The Kid (1921). He would also be credited as an assistant director on what is considered to be Charlie's masterpiece City Lights (1931) (he also has a brief role in that movie). Outside of Chaplin films, he would co-star with Mary Pickford in Suds (1920).
Next comes the definition of a knockabout comedy, The Fatal Mallet (1914). The slight storyline here is simple an excuse for as much slapstick violence as possible. Chaplin's costars are Mabel Normand, Mack Sennett and Mack Swain. Mabel Normand has been called the female Chaplin and is often considered to be one of the finest female movie comedians of the silent era. The latter is something I full heartedly disagree with.
Pay Day (1922) was Charlie Chaplin's last short film and is one of his best (Chaplin reportedly considered this one of his personal favorites too). Like The Fireman this film was made at a time when many Chaplin films were mixing the slapstick comedy with sentimentality and drama. Also like The Fireman, this film completely abandons these elements and the short is a pure slapstick comedy with its only intention being to make you laugh. When it comes to this, the short works brilliantly. This short film has as many laughs as you could ever want from a short comedy and many of them are laugh out loud funny. Though Chaplin is often criticized for his straightforward and simple visual filmmaking, this film has a lot of very sophisticated filmmaking. The scenes are night are especially well shot and a use of trick photography (something not common in Chaplin's films) is simply wonderful. As carefree and fun as this film is, the making of it seems to have been just as happy. This was a very trouble-free shoot and (in a time when Chaplin's films were taking longer to make) was shot in only a month. Enda Purviance has surprisingly little to do in this film, probably because there was no need for a young pretty love interest in this story. The female character with the most screentime is instead Charlie's domineering wife played by Phyllis Allen. Phyllis Allen had previously worked on Charlie's films for the Keystone Studio (where Chaplin got his start in the movies). They had appeared together in such films as Caught in a Cabaret, The Property Man, Gentlemen of Nerve, Tillie's Punctured Romance, His Trysting Place, Getting Acquainted and The Rounders (all 1914). Another often co-star at the Keystone studio, Mack Swain also appears in this film as Charlie's boss. Charlie's fellow workers include Chaplin regulars Henry Bergman, Allan Garcia, John Rand and Loyal Underwood as well as Charlie's brother Syd Chaplin.
Moving Picture World 1922
Thanks for joining me. Be sure to join me again soon on this blog for more Charlie Chaplin Carnivals.
Resources Used
The Chaplin Encyclopedia by Glenn Mitchell.
https://lantern.mediahist.org/
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