Top 10 Silent Films

Now that my silent film marathon has come to an end, I think it is only fair that I now make a top 10 list of them. With so many great films, and not one bad one and there barely are any 'bad' silent films. From the silent films I have learnt the birth of cinema in a way. How some directors started, how the characters behaved and how the early concepts would be used repeatedly in films of the future. They are truly glorious no doubt. Not only are they fascinating to watch, but they are ultimately entertaining. Not as many people watch silent films today, among my age group or even any age group, but I say firmly that several of the silent films are in my top 20 films of all time list. So much has come from silent films, and from the ones I have watched it shows that cinema goes further than I thought. I have watched several international silent films from Germany and  France and all over the place, and now I think I will check out more modern international films. silent films are what made cinema today and they won't be forgotten. Enjoy my countdown of my top 10 favourite silent films. Just click the title to read my review of the film.

10. Le Voyage Dans La Lune (1902)

My Rating: 8.8/10
It may only have a runtime of14-16 minutes but it's beautifully crafted, wonderfully designed and it's worth every minute of viewing. Georges Mêliés is often considered the first cinema wizard, and in a way he really is. Being a film from 1902, it's way of storytelling is surprising and it's fantasy set designs are very interesting.

9. City Lights (1931)
 
My Rating: 9/10

Many call this Chaplin's best work and being one of his final silent films, it holds out as one of my favourites. We see Chaplin's iconic character The Tramp in a romance kind of story and it truly is a beautiful film. No favourite silent film list (or even film list in general) would be complete without a Chaplin film in there. The Tramp gets up to so much mischief in this film and alongside he finds love, which makes City Lights a fine drama as well as a comedy. Overall City Lights is funny, charming and heart-warming.

8. Nosferatu: A Symphony of Horror (1922)

My Rating: 9/10 
From one of my favourite directors because of his great silent films, Nosferatu is one of the earliest horror films and is full of suspense and horror. F.W Murnau proves himself as a brilliant director and is clearly very influential. So overall, whether you’re a film enthusiast, huge film fan or the casual movie watcher, you’re likely to enjoy this film because of it’s expressive content, wonderful performances and just plain creepy atmosphere. It's simply one of the finest silent films there is.





7. The Gold Rush (1925)
 

My Rating: 9.1/10

Many people will not consider this one of Chaplin's best films, but I absolutely love it. It is clever, funny and has that hint of simplistic romance like several of Chaplin's films have. The story is full of pathos, emotion and slapstick comedy satisfying enough for the modern day film viewer and is highly enjoyable. Overall The Gold Rush stands as one of Chaplin’s finest films and is humorous as it is heart-felt.

6. Metropolis (1927)
 

My Rating: 9.2/10

Many probably expect this film to be higher in the list, but while it is still an amazing film, I don't love it as much as the others in the list. Fritz Lang’s long Sci-Fi masterpiece stands as an amazing film even today with it’s surprising visual effects and futuristic set designs and is another silent film not to be forgotten. The film is important in cinema history because of it’s overall message an overall the film is wonderfully entertaining, suspenseful and very thrilling. When watching Metropolis it’s a very different film experience and anyone that watches the film will agree.

5. The Kid (1921)
 

My Rating: 9.2/10 

This is the first feature film Chaplin made and despite it's short runtime, it is one of my favourite Chaplin films. It so beautifully made and every minute is golden. The wonderful thing is how Chaplin has created such a simple plot it creates the depth for itself.  For a 68 minute silent film, this one has sincere emotion, brilliant comedy and delightful characters. With it’s simplistic nature, all the slapstick is clever, inventive and very funny.

4. Greed (1923)

My Rating: 9.3/10

For a four hour silent film, it is worth it. Greed has such a huge, but easy to understand, story that is full of so much characters and happenings, making it one of the finest silent films there is. The film is historically significant, aesthetically brilliant and most of all, it is entertaining. Many people will not be able to sit through a 4 hour picture, but Greed has to be an ultimate exception. It’s full of drama and story enough to keep you satisfied for it’s length and is definitely worth it all. It is undeniably a dramatic story, filled with the spirit of its film title, without a hero or a heroine.

3. Modern Times (1936)
 

My Rating: 9.5/10

This film will not be forgotten the history of cinema because of the crafted beauty. The film leaves our tramp character very well with him and the gamin walking down the street together, ready to face anything that comes up to make ends meet. Modern times is my favourite Chaplin film and there are so many reasons why. It makes you laugh, it makes you give a warm smile and even bring a tear to your eye. It is comically genius, masterfully written and is full of wonderful characters. Overall this is one of the highlights of his career and is a film that should not be forgotten…ever!

2. Sunrise: A Song of Two Humans (1927)
 

My Rating: 9.5/10

This film just blew me away.  I had no true expectations for the film and it just shocked me how brilliant it was. Sunrise was one of the last films F.W Murnau ever made, and died only four years after this film at the age of 42. It is a pity he died so young for his career could have ventured on into the world of sound. Sunrise was made in Hollywood and Murnau brought his German Expressionism with him in this gorgeously filmed production. It is by far one of the greatest films of the silent era and even holds out as one of the best of all time. Film fans new or old are going to love this film and are in for an experience to remember. The film is a cinematographic masterpiece no doubt and is a film that will definitely leave you with a smile.

And the one you've been waiting for!!!!

1. The Cabinet of Dr. Caligari (1920)
 

My Rating: 9.5/10 

Truly it is a tie between the top 3. Modern Times is heart-warming while it is funny also, Sunrise is dramatic and touching and Caligari is suspenseful and mysterious. Overall though I have to put Caligari in number one because of the impact it had on me. With all the pointed architecture, wacky set designs and all the cinematographic jazz, Caligari is one of the best films around. The film was made so early in the silent film era, and was around the time it started becoming a real industry. The film is both fascinating and entertaining because of it's wonderful atmosphere and outstanding story.

Well there you have it. The list of my top 10 favourite silent films, and might I add from the marathon those are only silent films I have seen beside some Laurel & Hardy sketches I've seen. In the future I'll be sure to get to more silent films because some can be better than the modern pictures you see today (undeniably). Thanks for taking a look at my top 10 silent films list.

[Silent Film Marathon] 23# Modern Times (1936)

My Rating: 10/10

Directed & Produced by Charlie Chaplin

Written by Charlie Chaplin & Paulette Goddard

Genre: Comedy, Drama, Fantasy

Runtime: 85 Minutes

This film will not be forgotten the history of cinema because of the crafted beauty. This is the last time we see Chaplin’s iconic tramp character and he certainly left with a good exit. Modern Times is almost perfect in every way. It’s full of great characters, great set design, and a terrific story and with Chaplin doubling as a composer the music was outstanding. It’s 1936 and silent films are pretty much obliterated by the rise of sound pictures since 1928 with ‘The Jazz Singer’. All the action shows the insanity of the modern world and being 1936, it’s just when times are getting better for the suffering world of ‘the depression era’. It boasts great emotion and does the obvious thing of making you laugh all in one. Chaplin planned on this film actually being a talkie film, and I am glad that he didn’t because if he did, who knows if this film would be good. Both ways I think it would probably be great and it’s great that Chaplin stuck to his guns one last time. Although using small clips of dialogue and synchronised sound effects and music, it stands with it’s intertitles and marvellous story as a silent film and is definitely one of Chaplin’s greatest pictures.

The Tramp is an assembly-line worker driven insane by the monotony of his job. After a long spell in an asylum, he searches for work, only to be mistakenly arrested as a Red agitator. Released after foiling a prison break, Chaplin makes the acquaintance of orphaned gamine (Paulette Goddard) and becomes her friend and protector. He takes on several new jobs for her benefit, but every job ends with a quick dismissal and yet another jail term. During one of his incarcerations, she is hired to dance at a nightclub and arranges for him to be hired there as a singing waiter. He proves an enormous success, but they are both forced to flee their jobs when the orphanage officials show up to claim the girl. Dispirited, she moans, "What's the use of trying?" But the ever-resourceful Chaplin tells her to never say die, and our last image is of Chaplin and The Gamine strolling down a California highway towards new adventures.

The tramp inside the machine.

The Tramp is so simplistically one of the greatest characters in cinema and is 100% sweet, honest and most of all, lovable. Since his character rose millions of people have identified and connected with this character, and despite the fact initially he is a homeless character, he is an honest and sweet man. The creation of the tramp was when Chaplin was told to put funny make-up on and he basically grabbed a hat, large pair of shoes, a pair of baggy pants and a tight coat, and amazingly the character would come to be one of the greatest in cinema history. Many critics and film enthusiasts have identified this character as Chaplin’s social commentary on life and to some degree, it is. Chaplin's social commentary, while critical of the faults and excesses created by the capitalist system, also shows support and belief in the “American Dream”. In Modern Times, Chaplin creates a “portrayal consistent with popular leftist stereotypes of wealthy capitalists and oppressed workers in the 1930s. He is simply one of the finest characters there is and is 100% golden for sure.

The cast of characters included in the film was simply too good. Beside out little friend the tramp, we have a gamin (Paulette Godard), big bill the steel mill worker and several other small characters that make this film brilliant. To start with I’d like to talk about the gamin. The gamin is a homeless girl (around 16-17 I assume) who soon becomes an orphan when her father is shot in the street one day and soon becomes friend with the tramp after bumping into him. Paulette Goddard is simply one of the most beautiful actresses there ever was. With a heart-warming smile and a beautiful face that boasts emotion she is both a talented and beautiful actress.

Paulette giving a delightful smile.

Like in City Lights the music was done surprisingly good and gives a very different feel to the film like any other silent film. Being 1936 the quality was clearly better and synchronising sound was in there. So the music and sound effects where all very well synced and created terrific comedy. There was sometimes dialogue used but it’s never character to character. We first have the boss of the steel mill who talks through a video camera to one of the workers and then we have the feeding machine that introduces itself. We also have some dialogue from the radio at times, but other than this there is no real dialogue used.

Well Chaplin obviously knew this would be the last time his tramp character would ever get used, so he made him go out with a bang. In one of the film’s final moments The Tram must sing at the café. He forgets the lyrics so the gamin writes the lyrics on his cuffs, which when he is dancing come off. So he improvises in singing and for the first time we hear out tramp let out a voice, but not an English one. Not only was Chaplin a great writer, director and all that other stuff, but he could fairly sing too. The song was in an Italian spoken one and was outrageously funny and amusing.

The Tramp in the eating machine.

The first fine moment of the film is when the tramp is at the assembly line. It really shows the insanity of the assembly line which was something that was become largely used in industries. Another great scene is when the sellers of the feeding machine arrive at the factory to test out the product. The tramp is selected and the machine goes wild in this frantically comedic scene. Later in that day at the steel mill the Tramp goes absolutely nuts and starts going insane, cranking people’s noses and buttons on clothes. The tramp seems to go in and out of jail like crazy and after he comes out of the asylum he picks up a flag that fell out of a van. He waves it a little shouting to the van that they dropped it and unknowingly, a crowd of protesters came unknowingly behind him. So the tramp is arrested as an opposed communist protesting leader and gets out of jail eventually.

Eventually in the film the tramp gets a job as a night watch and along with the gamin, they stay there for the night and have some fun (not that kind of fun). They go to the toy department and begin to roller-skate around. Unknowingly the tramp is avoiding death as he skates near a broken banister blindfolded. The final of my favourite scenes is definitely when the tramp must sing. It was comically brilliant and very entertaining.

Chaplin in his imagination scene.

Another sweet romance story

Chaplin is always good at making simplistically golden stories, and when it comes to romance, he does this. Although the gamin is likely to be only a 16 year old girl, the love life between her and the tramp was beautiful and brings a smile to your face. In one scene the tramp is imagining him and the gamin in a home and the scene was captivating and made me smile as It took my heart away. It’s the sincere kind of emotion that makes Chaplin’s films great. During this time, Chaplin married Goddard and the chemistry between them in acting was terrific.

The film's final moment.

Overall:

The film leaves our tramp character very well with him and the gamin walking down the street together, ready to face anything that comes up to make ends meet. Very many have claimed this to be the finest of Chaplin’s workings and to an extent it is agreeable. Alongside The Kid and The Gold Rush this is one of Chaplin's fine workings and is my favourite of his work so far. It is comically genius, masterfully written and is full of wonderful characters. Overall this is one of the highlights of his career and is a film that should not be forgotten…ever!

Ratings:

Screenplay/Story: 9.5/10

Characters: 9.5/10

Emotion: 9.1/10

Visuals & Editing: 9.3/10

Direction & Cinematography: 9.6/10

Music: 9.2/10

Overall: 9.5/10

[Silent Film Marathon] 18# City Lights (1931)

My Rating: 9/10

Directed & written by: Charlie Chaplin

Runtime: 90 Minutes

Genre: Romance, Comedy

In 1931, sound films where at the point the new way of films, but Chaplin stuck by silent films for just a while yet, and out came City Lights, a charming and sincere comedy film. Starring once more the classic character the tramp this Chaplin film was equally as charming as it was funny. As a comedy it certainly compares to other comedies out there –and certainly outlives many of the newest ones around-. City Lights is easily one of the greatest silent films and all because of Chaplin’s marvellous writing, acting and of course, directing. It’s got plenty of good moments and the occasional use of comic sounds and it’s overall a beautiful film. It’s great that Charlie Chaplin stuck with silent films just a while longer, and five years after this film would go on to having his last, being Modern Times. It’s truly a comical masterpiece and is much more than just a comedy; it’s a wonderful drama and romance story.

 Plot:

Once more casted as The Tramp, our character meets a blind flower girl, and through a series of coincidences has gotten the impression that the shabby tramp is a millionaire. A second storyline begins when the tramp encounters a millionaire himself who is only recognised by him when he is drunk. So with these two plots, the tramp tries to raise money for the blind girl to have an eye operation. The highlights include the tramp in a boxing match, and the final scene where the tramp meets the blind girl once more who at this point, can now see.

The Tramp’s Adventures through the City

The film opens with our tramp sleeping on a new monument being given to a city, and soon after he encounters the blind girl whom he buys a flower from. It is almost love at first sight (for the tramp that is) when the tramp meets her as he stays to watch her. The Tramp’s whole journey is wild, funny and heart-warming.  City Lights is a mix of comedy and romance which makes it one of the most perfect comedy films. The Tramp gets into so many different predicaments throughout the story. The film, like most silent films, had sudden flashes of written dialogue. City Lights only had a few of them which I actually enjoyed because it didn't have to base itself on lines. The tramp also encounters a rich man about to commit suicide by throwing himself into a river, but the tramp stops him, telling him “Tomorrow, the birds will sing”. As I said, the drunk and suicidal man only recognises the tramp when he is drunk and it’s really funny seeing them together. I love the scene when they go out together in the night, where the tramp ends up eating confetti instead of spaghetti, and other funny happenings.

the tramp and the blind girl.

 Great music and great acting

The acting was terrific, and not only Chaplin was the highlight acting. The blind girl was played wonderfully and the eccentric rich man was hilarious too. Another thing that I loved was the music. It was extremely well done and was very in sync with the actions of the actors. The music in our first moments is little kazoo sounds to a man speaking (the scene with the monument). One of the film’s finest moments was the boxing scene where the tramp must fight a big tough guy. Being small and weak, but high in agility the tramp dodges him swiftly. It was a very well-co-ordinated scene and Chaplin’s clever and athletic ability. So overall the acting was superb and the music was terrific.

Overall:

Chaplin is certainly one of the greatest directors (and actors might I add) there is with almost every single one of his films being brilliant. City Lights was one of his last silent features but with his clever and legendary writing, Chaplin pulled it off with great critical response. Since then the film has been loved and cherished and is among the best silent films for sure. There is no doubt that when City Lights ends, you'll feel very positive. From start to finish, it is packed with happiness that will easily fill you. This is and will always be a masterpiece that will not be forgotten.  Overall City Lights is charming as it is funny.

Ratings:

Screenplay/Story: 9.1/10

Characters: 9/10

Emotion: 9/10

Visuals & editing: 8.9/10

Direction & Cinematography: 9.2/10

Music: 8.9/10

Overall: 9.1/10

[Silent Film Marathon] 11# The Pilgrim (1923)

My Rating: 8/10

Directed & Written by: Charles Chaplin

Genre: Comedy

Runtime: 43 Minutes

Just before I begin I’d like to know why the film barely has any reviews on RT. What kind of critic doesn’t review these kind of films? They should stop going to the cinema to review the new crap and take a look at the past, because the films seem forgotten on RT. Dead if you will, but never mind about that; n with the review. The Pilgrim is only four reels long, but as one of Chaplin’s shorter comedies, it’s very funny and inventive. So this time The Tramp is an ex-convict on the run, but for some reason he doesn’t seem like much of a bad guy. When Charlie escapes from prison he dons a preacher's clothes. By mistake he becomes the new minister for the town of Devil's Gulch. So this time as he imposes as a minister he tries to stay undercover and gets to stay overnight at someone’s house where he meets a woman he fancies. A man he knew from jail sees him and he is welcomed in and also stays overnight. More of Chaplin’s great athletic ability comes into play as he runs around stopping the man from stealing anything in the house. And that’s what I meant by not being such a bad guy, because he fancies that woman he clearly doesn’t want him to steal anything.

More great comic acting

As usual Chaplin has only put in the title cards where necessary which is good for it leaves plenty of great mimic acting, which with Chaplin is very easy to latch on to. Now a scene that I absolutely loved was when he is at the church and he has to tell a story. He has to tell the story of David and Goliath and with his terrific movement and timing it is very funny. The funny thing is that Goliath wins in his miming act of the story. It’s one of the highlight scenes of the film that shows how funny something can be regardless of words. Showing more of his clever antics, The Pilgrim holds some delightful comical displays.

The David and Goliath story scene.

Overall:

The Pilgrim is one of the great silent comedies. Perhaps not as profound, as The Gold Rush, The General or The Kid Brother, it is nevertheless one of Chaplin's best shorts. The Pilgrim has a runtime of 40 minutes, and it like many of Chaplin’s films will not leave you bored. All four of it’s reels are frantically funny and entertaining. The Pilgrim overall is definitely a terrific comedy that may not be fitted well with the character depth, but for a 40-minute short film it is full of wacky fun and slapstick.

Video of the scene.

Ratings:
Screenplay/Story: 8.5/10
Characters: 8.4/10
Emotion: 8.1/10
Visuals & Editing: 8/10
Direction & cinematography: 8.2/10
Music: 7.9/10
Overall:8.3/10

[Silent Film Marathon] 7# The Gold Rush (1925)

My Rating: 9/10

Directed, written & Produced by: Charlie Chaplin

Runtime: 96 Minutes

Genre: Comedy, Drama

This film deserves at least a 9/10, because this film is definitely certified fresh for it’s comedic and dramatic efforts. As usual Mr. Chaplin creates a dramatic comedy that makes you laugh out loud, and with this one it really does, but also brings a tear to your eye –not literally on my experience-. With hilarious slapstick, a warm and sincere story and Chaplin’s classic character The Tramp, the film is a wondrous piece of silent cinema. Taking place around 1898, a time of the gold rush in the story, the weather is extremely wild and our character is on the quest for gold, although he does not succeed in finding much. This is another one of Chaplin’s finest films because of it’s sincere comedy full of delightful and humorous acting. As much as some will say that Chaplin’s character is recycled, which is true to some degree, but it’s a character that I love to see. Chaplin in his later years did move on to making films outside his Tramp character, but it is one of the earliest great creations of Cinema, a character who really connects with people. Thanks to the great writing the character never does feel re-used as he’s always put into a different situation.

Plot:

It’s a time during the gold rush and everyone is on a get rich quest. We meet The Tramp journeying alone to get some gold but a huge storm breaks out. He discovers an empty hut that he later discovers when a ‘Wanted’ man enters it isn’t empty. Another man soon arrives, and a big man at that. So there is the tramp and the other weary traveller with the angry and furious of their stay criminal. Soon they run out of food, where the tramp decides to cook his shoe. They all decide someone has to go out in that blizzard to find food, which soon ends up being the tough guy so The tramp is left with Big Jim McKay. From there onwards it's a journey of our little friend the tramp who discovers love and a millionaire. A lot happens in the first 20 minutes and the film follows The tramp’s journey of travelling through a blizzard to making a way to becoming a millionaire.

Chaplin does it again

I can’t get enough of Chaplin’s work. His iconic Tramp character is easy to identify with and in this film, he is outrageously funny. My favourite scene is when Georgia (our female supporting character) tells The tramp that she and her friends will visit him at 8pm on New year’s eve to celebrate and when she leaves he goes absolutely wild in the hut (not the same hut from the beginning). The film has some very touching moments and for me I grew attached to the character. The story was terrific also. It was a great concept and was inventively funny.

Chaplin carving the shoe.

Around the tramp was an excellent cast of terrific, but simplistic in a way, characters. The Tramp first meets the tough thug who is also a wanted man, and after, Big Jim McKay, a prospector. Then we have Georgia who at first plays with the tramp’s emotions along with her friends and soon falls in love with him. It’s a great romance story much like that in City Lights. Every moment of the film is golden and there is never a 10 minutes of boredom. All 10 of it's reels are great and will not leave you unhappy. There is always something exciting happening and with Chaplin’s talented writing, it’s easy to see why it is golden. Not only is Chaplin’s writing superb, but the supporting characters do a splendid job.  There are many scenes I could mention where terrific, but I don’t want to spoil anything.

One of the funniest scenes from the film.

Overall:

One of the final scenes has Big Jim and the tramp at the cabin where they where at the beginning of the films and there house seemed to have blown to an edge of a cliff. The reason they went there is because it was to help Big Jim find his treasure, which he does. The scene is hilarious and is one of the film's most memorable moments. The Gold Rush is among one of the greatest silent films I’ve seen and overall.  The film is another triumph from the workings of Chaplin who has become a true icon in Cinema. Bringing smiles to your face and that sincere heart-warming feel Chaplin has great finesse and style. The story is full of pathos, emotion and slapstick comedy satisfying enough for the modern day film viewer and is highly enjoyable. Overall The Gold Rush stands as one of Chaplin’s finest films and is humorous as it is heart-felt.

Ratings:

Screenplay/Story: 9.3/10

Characters: 9.3/10

Emotion: 9/10

Visuals & Editing: 8.8/10

Direction & Cinematography: 9.1/10

Music: 8.9/10

Overall: 9.1/10

[Silent Film Marathon] 4# A Woman of Paris (1923)

My Rating: 8/10

Directed & Written by: Charlie Chaplin

Music by: Louis F. Gottschalk

Runtime: 93 Minutes

Genre: Drama

So to my surprise a title card was presented at the beginning of the film with a message from Chaplin saying this is his first attempt in making a serious drama and he does not appear in it. All I can say is he did an excellent job. A Woman of Paris holds a firm story of a woman wanting to escape her life, but things don’t go according to plan and the tides turn throughout the story. It’s a wonderful drama that in the end you understand fully and can appreciate it’s meaning. Alongside is Chaplin’s terrific poetic language –not verbally- with his title cards that hold as the narration. It is 1923 and Chaplin’s career has just begun and is slowly becoming very recognised in his line of work. This film is another classic film full of a delightful story, characters that engage you and a delicate story as always with Chaplin films.

An Iconic moment from the film.

Plot:

As always you can notice my structure of intro, plot then what I loved about the film, followed by the conclusion. Well the plot is quite simple. We meet a young woman called Marie and her lover, Jean. She is locked in her house and elopes for the night to be with her lover. Marie lives with her father, who when she returns does not let her stay for the night in an outrage. So Jean takes her to his house to see if his parents will let her stay. His father awakes with outrage and Marie is upset and thinks she should go. He leaves the home with Marie and plans to go away on a train to Paris, but when h returns to pack his bag as Marie waits at the train station, his father dies sitting on the chair at the fireplace -whose death is never explained-. So he tells Marie the trip must be postponed. The train pulls up and Marie goes alone. From their onwards it’s a drama of fate and follows Marie’s new life.

Marie with ehr new life with her husband whom does not take her seriously.

Chaplin creates a great Drama

I knew it would be good even as Chaplin’s first attempt for a serious drama, because most his feature-film comedies where heartfelt and had drama moments. The story is terrific and the characters are golden. We have Marie, a woman who once wanted a new fresh life and ends up with a rich man whom she comes to dislike, Jean an artist who now lives with his mother and all the supporting characters are simplistically golden. Chaplin has proven himself a worthy writer by far and aside his great direction, this film has memorable moments and is overall terrific. The film shows that being rich –during this time period- doesn’t have all the benefits of the world. So that’s what was nice to see about it.

Jean with his mother upset about his plans to marry Marie, which he soon ends.

 Overall:

One of the film end title cards say "Time heals, and experience teaches that the seret of happiness is in service of others", and that's what I meant by Chaplin's terrific sayings. The film has wondrous mimic acting from Edna Purviance as Marie and Carl Miller as Jean and the film had character complexities that were relatively new to cinema at this time. Let’s not forget the wonderful music from Louis F. Gottschalk, and as a silent film it is always important the music to be good, as I have said several times in my reviews for silent films. So overall A Woman of Paris may not be the finest of Chaplin’s work, but that does not say much for all the films I have seen him direct, writer & produce have been wondrous. Overall this film is a terrific drama of fate full of representation.

Ratings:

Screenplay/Story: 8.2/10

Characters: 8.1/10

Emotion: 8.4/10

Visuals & Editing: 8/10

Direction & Cinematography: 8.3/10

Music: 8/10

Overall: 8.1/10

[Silent Film Marathon]1# The Kid (1921)

My Rating: 9/10

Written, Directed & Produced By: Charlie Chaplin
Music By: Charlie Chaplin
Genre: Classics, Drama, Comedy
Runtime: 68 Minutes
           
Simply one of Chaplin’s finest
When it comes to artistic quality Chaplin hits the spot. Knowing that a 60 minute silent film can be as powerful as this is impressive. Making films was very hard to do and to do correctly, but the famous stars like Chaplin, Buster Keaton and all those other guys knew what they were doing. The Kid shows Chaplin’s iconic character, The Tramp wondering the streets as usual in his debonair and goofy way. He soon finds a child and takes him in as his own and takes care of it for five years. The plot is simplistic beauty and the film was actually very funny. It’s the kind of humour that anyone can laugh at. With it’s simplistic nature, all the slapstick is clever, inventive and very funny. Chaplin being the director, producer, writer main actor and even music composer works out well in this production. The music was touching and the overall cinematography is superb. It’s impressive because he is doing all those jobs for the film and it manages to come out fresh as ever. Today films are too big and take more time to make so one guy can’ do five different things. Also note that this is his very first feature film and sure shows his directorial début of silent film making. This kind of creative control never happens in today's films but we still have those directors who act, write, produce and direct.

A Simplistic but Golden Plot

The wonderful thing is how Chaplin has created such a simple plot it creates the depth for itself. The film opens with a sequence showing us a woman and her baby. She leaves the baby in a car with a note saying take care of this motherless child. We discover it’s two robbers who get back in the ca. they discover the baby and dump it into an alleyway. Pretty soon, along comes The Tramp smoking his cigarette butts he keeps in a mint tin. He takes the child in for himself, taking the name of John. The film skips five years later and the relationship is powerful. When I say simplistic, I mean of the whole idea that The Tramp has a child, he loves him, and will do anything to keep him, as any father likely would. Eventually in the story the child gets sick so The Doctor is sent over and the child gets taken away from him as The Tramp is not the real father. The Tramp tries to stop the police officer and Child welfare officer from taking his kid away, but fails. He eventually gets down the stairs and snatches his kid and they run away. The story is beautiful and golden because of it’s simple nature.

The Tramp with the Child.

Action speaking louder than words

Like most of Chaplin’s silent workings, actions speak louder than words. Telling a story with only facial expressions and body action isn’t easy, but Chaplin perfected it. Fast motion represents anger, joy or panicking while slow motions represent sadness, sorrow and so on. As I said, this film has beautiful emotion because it’s simplistic nature and feels very sincere.

Two men stopping The tramp from getting his child back.

Staring at the child you never rose [extra note]

Now this was a wonderful contrast. The fact that the woman is staring at the very child that she abandoned was fascinating. The interesting thing is only the audience knows that.

Clever Fighting

This is probably the most memorable scene from the film and it was terrific. It was funny, well-co-ordinated and the way the characters moved was powerful. The Tramp’s kid (John) is sitting on the doorstep and some rough kid who is probably 2-3 years older than John. He tries to take John’s toy away but John fights him, and somehow was winning. The size difference is what made it interesting. The smaller, the easier to dodge I’d say. So the kid’s big brother comes along and he just looked hilarious. You could see he was wearing a costume to make him look buff and it was a clever exaggeration. The Tramp comes out and sees the fight and the other kids brother says to him “If your kid beats my brother, I’m gonna beat you”. So it happens and The Tramp cleverly dodges every swing and it was terrific. It’s probably one of the best co-ordinated comedy sequences in silent film, lest we forget that it was very funny.

The Tramp trying to settle a fight.

Overall:

With silent films, not everyone can fully appreciate the artistic quality which is understandable to the younger generation, but there is a lot to learn from films like this. Not only are they great on a cinematographic scale, but they are delightfully entertaining. Chaplin is definitely one of the greatest directors and his legacy will go on. I just wonder what people’s reactions to his films will be in 50 years’ time. For a 68 minute silent film, this one has sincere emotion, brilliant comedy and delightful characters.

Ratings:

Story: 9.4/10 -Simplistically Golden

Characters: 9.2/10 - Warm and sincere

Emotion: 9/10 - True emotions

Visuals & Editing: 8.9/10 - Good sets and overall editing

Direction & cinematography: 9.3/10 - Purely Excellent
Music: 8.9/10- Created Plenty of Emotion

Overall: 9.2/10