1) Relate what was discussed in class or the text to the
screening.
In class, we discussed the beginnings of silent film and
Charlie Chaplin’s career starting at Keystone Pictures where he developed his
own character under the eye of producer Mack Sennett. Chaplin made over 35
films with Keystone before moving onto Essanay and later, Mutual prior to
establishing the United Artists film distribution company with Mary Pickford, Douglas
Fairbanks and D.W. Griffith. (Londino, "Silent Film, Comedy, and the Gold
Rush) As his career progressed, Chaplin made more money while working on a
lesser number of films, making him one of the highest-paid men in the world.
This also meant that his films became grander as time went on, as he spent more
time on them and was able to use greater budgets and employ his own artistic
vision, using knowledge he gained from watching films being made early in his
career. This is highly apparent in The Gold Rush, as the film uses subtle
but inventive methods of telling the imaginative story, infused with Chaplin’s
own auteur style.
We also discussed Charlie Chaplin’s character, known as “The
Tramp.” The Tramp was a comedic underdog who had a toughness based on Chaplin’s
rough childhood in London, though was also portrayed as kindhearted, generous
and yearning for love and acceptance. (Londino, "Silent Film, Comedy, and
the Gold Rush)He often provided a bright spot in scenes with darker themes,
such as cannibalism and starvation in The
Gold Rush and poverty and losing one’s child in The Kid. He also often used women, such as Georgia, as beacons of
light in his films, who would see through to the Tramp’s good qualities and be
won by him in the end. Finally, we learned that The Gold Rush was Chaplin’s
favorite film and the one he wanted to be remembered by, taking over a year to
complete and grossing over $6 million, an amount that was astronomical at the
time. (Londino, "Silent Film, Comedy, and the Gold Rush)
2)
Find a related article and summarize the content. (on the film, director, studio, actor/actress,
artistic content, etc.) You can use the
library or the internet. Cite the article or copy the url to your
journal entry. Summarize in your own words the related article but do not
plagiarize any content.
This article provides insight into the making of the film, The Gold Rush. Chaplin was inspired by a
book he read about the infamous Donner Party, as well as stereoscope pictures
he viewed of the 1896 Klondike gold rush. He decided to use his character of
the Tramp to turn these horrific stories into comedy. The idea quickly took
hold of Chaplin and The Gold Rush is actually the only one of his silent
comedies to shoot after the story had already been made up entirely. Chaplin chose actress Lita Grey, who he had
previously worked with, to play the love interest in the film. They began an
affair, and Grey discovered she was pregnant, forcing Chaplin to marry her and
shutting down production for three months, until Georgia Hale was bought in to
replace Grey.
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| Charlie Chaplin with Lita Grey and their son Charles Chaplin Jr. |
Part of the film was shot on location in the Sierra Nevada
to recreate the image of prospectors working their way up the Chilkoot Pass,
while the majority of the film was shot in a studio. Models were used to create special effects
such as the hut being blown to the edge of a cliff. Chaplin later reissued the
film after its initial release accompanied with an orchestral score. He also
replaced the end shot of himself kissing Georgia with one of he and Georgia
simply walking off together and often said this was the film he wanted to be
remembered for.
3) Apply
the article to the film screened in class. How did the article support or
change the way you thought about the film, director, content, etc.?
I had always admired Chaplin for his work and contributions
to film. However, the article makes me be even more in awe of him for his
genius and creativity, specifically how he crafted an entire film based on ideas
from a few pictures and a book he had read. I also have a great respect for the
fact that he continued to work hard and persevere to get the film completed
even after the controversy of his and Grey’s affair and the resulting marriage/pregnancy
shut down production for a few months. That displays tremendous determination. I
also believe that it’s amazing Chaplin and the rest of the cast and crew were
able to make such a legendary film considering the circumstances. Watching the
movie, it seems like everything is done perfectly. There isn’t even a hint that
production was troubled or did not go as planned and that is a great credit to
Chaplin and the others who worked on it.
 |
| Chaplin and Georgia Hale |
4) Write a
critical analysis of the film, including
your personal opinion, formed as a result of the screening, class
discussions, text material and the article. I am less interested in
whether you liked or disliked a film, (although that can be part of this)
than I am in your understanding of its place in film history or the
contributions of the director.
The Gold Rush
deserves all of the praise it has received in the ninety years since its
release. The contrast between the comedy and the darker themes would be hard
for some directors to pull off, however Chaplin executes it flawlessly, making
for intriguing and poignant scenes, such as the juxtaposition between Chaplin’s
character; the Lone Prospector, alone and depressed in the cabin with the scene
of the other characters joyously celebrating New Year’s at the dance hall. The
film’s circular structure makes it seem like a full journey that audiences go
on with Chaplin. The film also has very memorable comedic moments, for instance
Jim believing the Lone Prospector is a giant turkey and trying to hunt him.
Though this would be a horrifying scene in reality, Chaplin adds a degree of
whimsy that keeps it from becoming upsetting. Another iconic scene is when
Chaplin imagines that Georgia and the other girls have come to his New Year’s
party and performs a little dance for them with the rolls. This scene has been
paid homage to several times, including where I first saw it; the film Benny and Joon starring Johnny Depp.
Though
the film centers on Chaplin’s hijinks, the characters are fleshed out so that
they seem human, rather than stock comedy characters. A prime example of this
is Georgia, who is shown to be confident, flirty and a little cruel, in that
she’s ready to lead on the main character and play a prank on him with her
friends. However, once she sees the party he had made for them, she instantly
shows remorse and later tries to protect Chaplin when she fears he will be put
in irons for stowing away, thus earning her redemption and becoming worthy of
the newly-rich Lone Prospector. Even, her title cards display her change, with
the illustrations going from a flourishing flower to one that is wilted but
still can be beautiful. The Lone Prospector himself shows his kind nature by
caring for the dog in the cabin and offering his shoe for himself and Jim to
eat when they are starving. The complexity of these characters makes them
infinitely interesting and I found myself rooting for them. Overall, this film
is a legendary comedy jewel and Charlie Chaplin did an amazing job making it.
 |
| The Happy Ending |
CHECKLIST
FOR PLAGIARISM
1) (x) I have not handed in this assignment for any other
class.
2) (x) If I have reused any information from other
papers I have written for other classes, I clearly explain that in the paper.
3) (x) If I used any passages word for word, I put
quotations around those words, or used indentation and citation within the
text.
4) (x) I have not padded the bibliography. I have
used all sources cited in the bibliography in the text of the paper.
5) (x) I have cited in the bibliography only the
pages I personally read.
6) (x) I have used direct quotations only in cases
where it could not be stated in another way. I cited the sources within the
paper and in the bibliography.
7) (x) I did not so over-use direct quotations that
the paper lacks interpretation or originality.
8) (x) I checked yes on steps 1-7 and therefore have
been fully transparent about the research and ideas used in my paper.
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