The Gold Rush
Starring: Charlie Chaplin, Mack Swain, Tom Murray, Henry Bergman, Malcolm Waite, Georgia Hale
Directed by: Charlie Chaplin
Rating: Not rated
Genre: Adventure, Comedy
1925

Times Seen:
Tim: 1

Summary: The Tramp (Charlie Chaplin) goes to Alaska to try his hand at gold prospecting. It proves to be more difficult- and deadly than he imagined.

Review:

Tim: The Gold Rush is a pretty fascinating film. It is a comedy on an epic scale. Many regard it as one of Charlie Chaplin's best. It is certainly memorable and features some classic, hilarious scenes. However, adding it all up, I wanted just a bit more. Maybe it's unfair to compare it to Buster Keaton's The General, but that movie set the silent movie comedy bar for me. Compared to that film, I felt like this one missed out on greatness.

I am not trying to be overly harsh. This film is pretty spectacular in its own right. Chaplin the director creates a beautiful, incredible image when he restages a long row of prospectors climbing over the Chilkoot Pass in Alaska. This is the opening scene of the film, and its sweeping majesty and natural beauty never leaves our minds. It's an incredible shot.

Throughout the film, Chaplin gives us a number of hilarious physical gags. The three men in the cabin battling the ferocious winds is pretty amazing. I loved the hijinks that ensued and how Chaplin framed them. While funny, they do run on a bit too long- after a certain point, we get it- and it's time to move on. The cabin also features an incredible scene of Chaplin eating his boot to stave off starvation. His comic timing was pitch perfect.

One of my biggest complaints of this film involves the abrupt change of pace. We go from a wilderness survival story in the first half to a romantic comedy in the second half. These two aspects to the film felt disjointed and disconnected. While there are a few ties to bind them together, the transition doesn't happen smoothly. It made me feel like I was watching two different films.

The scenes in the Alaskan town are also not nearly as funny or memorable as the ones in the wilderness. There are definitely humorous moments here and there, but I felt like the quality was markedly lower. The one exception is Chaplin's "dancing rolls" scene. This is perhaps the most iconic image from The Gold Rush and represents my favorite moment. Chaplin creates something so absolutely brilliant here. His timing is perfect, his body movement and the movement of the rolls happens in unison. It stops being just an easy sight gag and becomes lasting, enduring image. I could watch that scene over and over again.

So, while this film features several incredible scenes and funny moments, I felt like the two different halves never connected well enough. The movie felt disjointed and it hurts the overall quality. Many people regard this movie as one of the greatest comedies of all time. I'm not necessarily disagreeing. However, I personally believe there were opportunities here to make the second half as good as the first, and the movie falls short in that regard. I really, really liked this movie. I just didn't love it.


Rating 1-10
Tim's Rating: 7.5



If You Enjoyed This Movie, We Recommend: The General, City Lights, Modern Times, The Great Dictator