Review of The Gold Rush (1925) by Antonius B — 12 Jan 2018

Chaplin's masterpiece has it all - brilliant slapstick, endearing pathos, dangerous adventure, and an improbable romance besides. Here The Tramp is in the Klondike during the gold rush in the 1890's, and while he hardly looks or acts like a prospector, we identify with him as he endures hardship, befriends 'Big Jim' (Mack Swain), survives close quarters with the murderous Black Larsen (Tom Murray), falls for a woman who toys with him (Georgia Hale), and puts up with her bullying boyfriend (Malcolm Waite).

The New Year's Eve scene is incredibly touching, both in The Tramp's humiliation when he's stood up by his date and listens forlornly to the celebration in the nearby dance hall, but also in the faces Chaplin (as director) puts the camera on while 'Auld Lang Syne' is being sung. It truly is one of the best scenes you'll ever see - and on that same evening, while the Tramp dreams of entertaining his guests, he does his "dinner roll dance", a brilliant, iconic moment in cinema. I also love the scene where he and Big Jim eat one of his shoes after boiling it - Chaplin more enthusiastically, really digging in as if it were a piece of meat, and as if the nails were thin bones. There are also some wonderfully dark moments when out of starvation Big Jim imagines the Tramp as a giant chicken and comes at him with an axe. Throughout it all, Chaplin is so sweet and charming, and we root for him as the underdog while laughing at his innovative humor. Truly deserving of its reputation, and an absolute joy to watch.