All I need to make a comedy is a park, a policeman and a pretty girl.
No 342 - The Gold Rush Director - Charles Chaplin This is the 1942 re-release of the 1925 original (seriously.... 1925! This film is 86 years old!!!) - and so rather than being fully silent we have an updated musical score (which includes Tchaikovsky's Sleeping Beauty - which confused me) and an OTT and plumby narration from Chaplin himself. In fact , Chaplin is a one man force of creation, writing the script as well as most of the music, producing, directing, starring and editing the film. Whilst the narration does get a bit annoying at times, it doesn't stop what is a very enjoyable and incredibly sweet film. The physical comedy is nowhere near as dangerous as the stunts performed by Keaton or by Lloyd - but where Chaplin really triumphs is in the amazing way he emotes. His facial expressions are beautiful. For the first half, it is primarily a sort of blissful ignorance, whether famously eating a shoe - or whether in great peril. The comedy is more subtle - Though there...