The Gold Rush (1925)

Charlie Chaplin's little tramp character is probably the most recognizable image of silent cinema. Even many of those who have never seen a film with this character recognize the look of this character and his funny walk. After watching a movie like The Gold Rush, it is not at all hard to see why this character gained such popularity. After many films of the past have dated (heck even some movies from the 1990's and early 2000's have dated, and many of today's films will seem dated not too long in the future), a movie like The Gold Rush never will. This is the type of movie that so many of those who see it (even those who don't usually like silent movies or slapstick comedy), no matter what year it is, no matter how much movies have changed will continue to be enchanted by this movie. It is this that makes The Gold Rush never date, even when much more recent films are already doing so.

The Gold Rush marked Charlie Chaplin's first starring film for United Artists. United Artists was founded in 1919 by D.W. Griffith, Mary Pickford, Douglas Fairbanks and Charlie Chaplin himself. Though Chaplin had been on of the founders of the studio, he was still under contract to make films for First National. In 1923 Chaplin made his first film for Untied Artists a drama that he directed but only appeared as an uncredited cameo (and is very unrecognizable in that cameo). With The Gold Rush he would finally star in an United Artists film.

This film had an odd inspiration for a comedy, it was inspired by the story of The Donner Party, a group of pioneers who were stuck in a snow storm and had to resort to cannibalism. Making comedy out of something tragic or dark is something Charlie Chaplin excelled in as you can see in such films as Easy Street or Monsieur Verdoux. 

 This film has three of Chaplin's most famous set pieces, the eating of the shoe, the Tramp turning into a chicken and the dance of the dinner rolls. The shoe was made of licorice, and 20 pairs of these shoes were eaten to get the take just right. Mack Swain who would share the shoe with him in the movie, got to the point where he could hardly eat it anymore. In the scene where Big Jim hallucinated the Tramp as a chicken and tried to eat him, Charlie himself was in the chicken costume. Originally a painter was supposed to wear the costume, but Chaplin was not happy with his performance and felt he had to do it himself. This scene would inspire cartoon director Chuck Jones, who would use a similar bit in the 1943 Bugs Bunny cartoon Wackiki Wabbit. The dance of dinner rolls scene was not the first time this skit had been done on film. Roscoe "Fatty" Arbuckle had performed a very similar skit in the 1917 short film The Rough House. However it had never been done better anywhere than in The Gold Rush. All these set pieces are worthy of the praise they get, as all these scenes are fantastic.      

Georgia Hale played the part of Georgia. However this part was originally going to be played by Lita Grey. Lita Grey had previously been the angel that Charlie was tempted by in The Kid. However Charlie and Lita had an affair and Lita was now pregnant, and therefore couldn't play the part as she refused to get an abortion. Though The Gold Rush was the only Chaplin film Georgia Hale appeared in, she would be briefly considered to replace Virginia Cheryl in Chaplin's City Lights.    

This film is not only really funny, but quite dramatic as well. What is incredible about this movie is that the comedy and the drama work perfectly together. Neither ever gets in the way of the other, and instead they only seem to help each other. Both the comedy and the drama work near perfectly here, and neither ever feels forced. This is something no one else could do as well as Charlie Chaplin, and this film is the perfect example of why. The whole movie is simply a delight to watch and one of Chaplin's best films.

Charlie Chaplin would later rerelease this film in 1942. However in that version he would narrate the movie and cut about a reel from it. While that version is still quite good, to me at least, the 1925 silent version remains the best way to watch this movie.

-Michael J. Ruhland

Resources Used
http://www.tcm.com/tcmdb/title/5779/The-Gold-Rush/articles.html
DVD commentary by Jeffery Vance.