IMDb #128 Review: The Gold Rush (1925)

Source: Wikipedia

Vagaries of fate deposit the Tramp, a contender for the world's most famous fictional hobo, into the freezing North to prospect for gold. Back when Alaska wasn't a state any more than the toothbrush mustache belonged exclusively to Uncle Adolf.

The floppy-footed manchild waddles into a raging blizzard. In a flash of basic intelligence, he seeks shelter in a cabin. Which he shares with a rich miner and a fugitive murderer. Pretty grim for a harmless comedy.

Slapstick happens, because Charlie Chaplin's vaudeville roots run deeper than Alaskan oil reserves. Also like Alaskan oil reserves, he taps that wealth and generates repercussions for the every human/animal/vegetable/mineral in the vicinity. He draws his staying power from the timeless humor of idiots in pain. For example, stranded in the cabin, "funny stuff" entails hilarious starvation and cannibalistic fantasies and unconvincing chicken suits.

When the plot wears thin, it moves the Tramp to a town with more people. And a dance hall, because what what kind of self-respecting old movies lack pointless dance scenes. And women who notice the hobo, because what kind of old movies lack romantic naivete an rambling dream sequences. And a horribly mismatched fight, in which our intrepid hero clocks some big lug in the head with ... a clock.

Bored again, the plot deposits us back where we started, with gold and the fugitive and millions of potential dollars. Not that any amount of money can fix stupid. But it's funny to watch them try (and fail, but mostly try).

Stupidity seems to offer boundless energy, because the poorly-dressed hobo never succumbs to frostbite or diphtheria. It must take acting chops to look that dumb. Because the real man brilliant: writing, directing, producing, editing, starring in, and composing music for just about every movie he made.

For maximum effect, try to get this masterpiece as close to the original as possible. Yes, even with the screechy, scratchy jazz organ soundtrack. It complements the grainy video of jerky antics of a lovable imbecile. Best to think of it as a live-action cartoon, a blurry glimpse into a period when movies were simpler, quieter, and hella weirder.

95 minutes.