Review of The Gold Rush (1925) by François M — 31 Oct 2014

Classic Charlie Chaplin movie. Complete with the usual incredibly creative visual comedy and romantic angle. Very funny. Contains some of Chaplin's most memorable and iconic scenes: the stewed boot, the dancing bread rolls (revived for a modern audience by Johnny Depp in Benny and Joon), the cabin on the edge of a cliff (which must have inspired scores of cartoon scenes).

Incredibly innovative cinematography for 1925. The chicken illusion scene must have been very original and technologically advanced for its time.

One disappointment, however. I saw the 1942 revised version of the movie, wherein Chaplin replaced the written dialogue with narration and added a more in-sync score. No issues with the score, but the narration spoils the movie, to an extent. The great thing about silent movies is figuring out the jokes and plot just by the visual medium. With the narration, it feels like you are spoon-fed the jokes and plot, and makes the whole movie feel dumbed-down.

I haven't seen the 1925 version but I imagine I would enjoy that more.