Film & Shorts Discussions > Random Comedy Reviews

The Immigrant (1917) - Charlie Chaplin

(1/3) > >>

metaldams:



      THE IMMIGRANT is short number eleven out of twelve Charlie Chaplin made under his Mutual contract and is my my favorite of the group.  The main reasons for it are because visually I think this short looks the best and there are two situations in general that are brilliantly built up.  Chaplin really takes his time building these situations yet makes it riveting to watch the whole time.  Then there is the whole cultural thing.  Yes, it’s fascinating watching a film made in 1917 depicting immigrants coming to America from Ellis Island.  This leads into the first thing I want to talk about - the look of the film.

      Yes, from an art direction perspective, Chaplin and crew did a fantastic job making this boat look like an authentic boat sailing to America.  I’ll even go as far to say you can pause any frame in this film and it will be painting worthy.  Try it.  Some people criticize Chaplin for having too still a camera compared to Keaton and Lloyd and that he doesn’t make real film comedy as a result.  I personally don’t care about that.  When you have art direction and composition of actors and props that look this good, a moving camera is not necessary for Chaplin.  My favorite shots are the immigrants roped off to the right of the screen and any shot where there are a lot of extras in general, be it eating at the dinner table or lying down outside on the ship.  I also really love the rocking boat.  If you watch the UNKNOWN CHAPLIN documentary, there is some device under the floor causing the movement.  It breeds great physical comedy with Chaplin and others being tossed around in the room plus the whole business with the moving dishes on the table.

      The first scene that really impresses me with its build up involves the stolen money the crook takes away from Edna’s mom and how it builds into the card game.  The crook needs that money to try to win back what he already lost to Chaplin.  We get some fun business with Chaplin dealing the cards before he wins the stolen money again.  I won’t give away the details, but watch how everything comes back to Edna and her Mom with the money and how brilliantly there’s a scene where it appears Chaplin is stealing money from an outsider’s perspective, yet gets off the hook.  The way this is all done is extremely clever, I can’t praise it enough.

      The next brilliant scene is Chaplin trying to pay the waiter, played by Eric Campbell.  First thing I want to say is Campbell is imposing and comical in the role and this is arguably his best role - well, there’s EASY STREET too.  OK, best or not, he’s extremely good here.  The whole idea of a comic being threatened and the possible results of the threat being done to someone else before hand has been done a million times, but this to me is the best example.  A man can’t pay his bill and gets beat up by Campbell, a threat that awaits Chaplin because he lost his coin.  All I’m going to say is the punchline is that Chaplin does give the appearance of paying the waiter and it makes it appear Henry Bergman is a cheap tipper.  Hysterical Eric Campbell reactions here.  I give away the punchline because it’s the least important thing, it’s the journey getting to the punchline, with finding the coin and meeting Henry Bergman in the first place, that’s incredible.  Enjoy.  One more thing.  Chaplin meets Edna in the restaurant and sees a wet handkerchief and the fact she’s wearing black.  He gives some gestures showing some sympathy.  That’s all we need to know Edna’s mother from the boat passed away.  Such simple gestures and a beautiful way to make a quick plot point.

      I hope you guys enjoy this one, it really is a very special Charlie Chaplin film.  We only have one more Mutual short to go after this.

Dr. Mabuse:
Excellent review of my favorite Charlie Chaplin short.  A brilliant weaving of pathos and humor, "The Immigrant" represents the high-water mark of Chaplin’s Mutual period.  By chronicling the plight of two lonely, poverty-stricken immigrants (Charlie and Edna) who are romantically reunited in a cheap restaurant, this two-reel masterwork has a narrative seamlessness that Chaplin never duplicated. Chaplin’s rapport with Purviance adds a poignancy and depth to "The Immigrant" not seen in their other collaborations.  The relationship between their characters reveals an emotional impact conveyed without title cards, such as the moment when Charlie discovers that Edna’s mother has died.  This unique chemistry, sensitively handled by Chaplin, gives the film its soul.

Social commentary comes into play during the ironic scene in which the immigrants are treated like cattle while their ship passes the Statue of Liberty — a portent of the political troubles that would lead to Chaplin’s exile from America in 1952. Nevertheless, "The Immigrant" remains his most humanistic and endearing film. Impossible to dislike.

metaldams:
I never put two and two together with the immigrants being roped off juxtaposed with The Statue of Liberty, but that’s a good observation.

Umbrella Sam:
Of all the Mutuals, THE IMMIGRANT probably best represents just how far Chaplin had come in the development of his craft. Long gone is the repetitive Keystone pacing. This short took the drama of THE VAGABOND and successfully paired it with the comedy in a way that no other Mutual short accomplished. Well, OK, maybe EASY STREET, but EASY STREET took it a bit too far. THE IMMIGRANT finds a nice balance that makes it a more pleasant experience.

The first half on the boat really is so fascinating to watch. Just seeing the immigrants looking at the Statue of Liberty is a great sight; watching the Statue go by, you can imagine that’s exactly the image many of them first saw. The relationship between Charlie and Edna is very well set up here; I like the fact that he is completely selfless during these sequences, not only with the money he tries to slip into her pocket, but also the moment where he gives up his seat to her and just leaves. At Keystone and, heck, even some of the earlier Mutual shorts, he would have just shoved Albert Austin to the side and kept spending time with her...but no. Instead he just does a very nice thing and leaves it as is. Austin is great as usual. I love that part with the soup going back and forth between him and Chaplin as the boat moves; there’s a very similar gag in the Bugs Bunny cartoon, HARE WE GO. The part with him and Chaplin holding on to each other trying to stop themselves with getting sick also got a laugh out of me.

From the setting alone, the second half is more in line with the other Mutual shorts than the first half, but it still works. The reunion between the Tramp and Edna is indeed done very well and it leads to a fun situation where the Tramp needs to figure out how to pay for the food. The way Chaplin moves throughout this is great, constantly sneaking around Campbell every opportunity he gets and yet still coming up short until the artist arrives. I remember the first time I saw this thinking how odd it was that an artist just randomly saw these two in a restaurant and somehow just decided these two would be perfect for some painting before even talking to them...but, I don’t know, I guess artists can get inspiration anywhere. It’s something that doesn’t really concern me anymore.

So, yeah, great short and from a pacing perspective, arguably the best Mutual short for Chaplin, even though I think you could argue there are some that are funnier like THE PAWNSHOP. As a whole, though, THE IMMIGRANT is a wonderful short that’s among the essential Chaplin films. If there’s one Chaplin Mutual short to check out, this is the one.

HomokHarcos:
I like this short because it covers a scenario that many people back then went through: sailing the Atlantic to reach America. The conditions on the boat must have been awful for the immigrants, and as shown from Edna's mom, probably had deaths on the ship. Chaplin himself was an immigrant, although I'm not sure how much of the movie was based on his own experiences.

Usually I think the romances can be quite corny in these movies, but Chaplin having a connection to Edna makes perfect sense. He saw her on the boat, so I can understand why they would feel a connection when they see each other again in the restaurant. I love the scene of him trying to get out of paying the restaurant bill, it's funny seeing Eric Campbell beat people up for not being able to pay, so Chaplin has a very legitimate reason to not miss out on his payment. It's a scenario that I think was also used in Laurel and Hardy and Abbott and Costello comedies.

I agree about the art direction, it's almost as good as Easy Street, just looking at this movies that are over 100 years old is awe inspiring.

Navigation

[0] Message Index

[#] Next page