Film & Shorts Discussions > Random Comedy Reviews

Behind the Screen (1916) - Charlie Chaplin

<< < (2/2)

Freddie Sanborn:
The cop doesn’t move like Chaplin, but he was a chameleon so I wouldn’t rule it out.

Umbrella Sam:
Another very fun short. It’s funny how similarities to THE PAWNSHOP were brought up, because I was getting the same vibes watching this, especially with the whole “moving the column” bit, which reminded me a lot of the ladder parts in THE PAWNSHOP. Lots of great comedy bits thrown together in a surprisingly short time frame: Chaplin using the helmet to hide from the onions, stealing food from his coworkers, the trap door. They’re all perfectly paced, and Chaplin finds clever ways to tie some of them back together in the end, notably the column and trap door bit. The pie fight is also a good twist on the normal pie fight formula for the time; instead of just a pie fight for pie fights’ sake, it’s him ignoring orders and turning into into a full on battle with Eric Campbell. Much like THE PAWNSHOP, it takes what worked at Keystone and paced it so much better, and you really see how much further Chaplin has progressed while still not forgetting his roots.

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