SILENT COMEDY

Suggested Viewings
Easy Street (1917)
Never Weaken (1921)
The Kid (1921)
Safety Last (1923)
Sherlock Jr. (1924)
The Gold Rush (1925)
Seven Chances (1925)
The Freshman (1925)
The Circus (1927)
The General (1927)
The Kid Brother (1927)
Steamboat Bill Jr. (1927)
Big Business (1929)
City Lights (1931)
Modern Times (1936)
Tom and Jerry's Greatest Chases     (1943-1954)
Mr. Hulot’s Holiday (1953)
Mon Oncle (1958)
The Artist (2012)
I bet most of you, whether you know it or not, are fans of silent comedies. Tom and Jerry? Roadrunner and Coyote? Fantastic, joyful stuff. And, those cartoons were all inspired by the work of early silent comedians.

But before we dive in, check out this quote about the Beatles: "They were among the few artists of any discipline that were simultaneously the best at what they did and the most popular at what they did." (AllMusicGuide)

It's true.  Are there any other artists you can think of that were both the best and the most popular?  Alfred Hitchcock? Steven Spielberg circa 1975-1982?  It's hard to think of others, right?  But back in the 1910's and 20's the world had not one, but three filmmakers that fit this description.

In the 1910’s and 20’s, the world was blessed by the triumvirate of Charlie Chaplin, Buster Keaton, and Harold Lloyd.  80 years later, their genius is still unmistakable. And they can still make a room full of jaded, media-gorged teenagers laugh.

Harold Lloyd is currently the least familiar of the three, but at the time, he was just as much of a box office draw. You’ll know him by the straw hat, circular glasses, and white gloves. Apparently he got a couple fingers blown off in a bizarre pyrotechnics accident, and that’s why he always kept those gloves on. But that didn’t keep him from performing most of his own stunts, including hanging from giant clock towers.

Buster Keaton grew up performing with his parents in their stage act and quickly learned acrobatics and stunts. His films take advantage of this athleticism as he crafts complicated, mind-boggling stunts. He is also known as “The Great Stoneface” because of his unchanging facial expression.

And then there was Chaplin. 

The story goes that after a mediocre first film, Chaplin went into the costume room and came out with baggy pants, a small hat, big shoes, a cane, and a mustache. The Little Tramp was born. After some disagreements with his directors, Chaplin was allowed to try his hand directing his own shorts. These continued to be wildly popular and by the age of 26, Chaplin was one of the highest paid people in the world. He only made three features before sync sound was invented. But he was so great at the form that by 1931, when almost all films had sound, he still released City Lights as a silent picture. The same goes for Modern Times in 1936.

In the words of critic James Agee: “Of all comedians, [Chaplin] worked most deeply and most shrewdly within a realization of what a human being is, and is up against. The Tramp is as centrally representative of humanity, as many-sided and as mysterious, as Hamlet, and it seems unlikely that any dancer or actor can ever have excelled him in eloquence, variety or poignancy of motion.” 
Picture
Safety Last (1923) dir. by Frank Newmeyer. You might recognize this scene from Martin Scorsese's Hugo.
Picture
Sherlock Jr. (1924) dir. by Buster Keaton
Picture
Buster Keaton laying on a tiger.
Picture
The Gold Rush (1925) dir. by Charlie Chaplin. "The dance of the rolls," one of the most poignant and beautiful moments in cinema.
Picture
Modern Times (1935) dir. by Charlie Chaplin. This film did feature synchronized sound, but we still never hear Chaplin's voice.
Picture
The Great Dictator (1940) dir. by Charlie Chaplin. Because Hollywood didn't want to offend the Germans (and loose out on German Box Office sales), films weren't allowed to criticize the Nazis. Chaplin finally said enough is enough and made this scathing, brilliant film.