Hilarious flick from Charlie Chaplin with an amazing performance by Jackie Coogan as ‘the kid’. – Will
The Tramp takes care of an orphaned child he finds on the street. When the orphans mother begins looking for him and offers a reward, everyone is out to take the kid away.
Written and Directed by – Charles Chaplin
Starring – Carl Miller, Edna Purviance, Jackie Coogan, Charles Chaplin, Tom Wilson, S.D. Wilcox, Charles Reisner, Raymond Lee, Walter Lynch
This was the first film by Charlie Chaplin I had ever seen, although it wouldn’t be the last since I caught a double bill last night, and I loved it. Chaplin was an extraordinary performer but the spotlight was stolen by Jackie Coogan as The Kid. The two of them together were hilarious and even a little moving as well. Chaplin’s movements alone are pretty funny with his odd penguin walk and ill-fitted clothing and his constant run-ins with the local cops are perfectly choreographed moments of comedy.
The Kid (Coogan) is first found as a baby (Silas Hathaway is the baby) by The Tramp (Chaplin) on the street. The Kid’s mother had left him in a fancy car in the hopes of the rich family taking him in but when robbers steal the car they ditch the baby in the street. When The Tramp finds him all he wants to do is get rid of him which leads to a few meetings with the cops and a failed attempt to leave the baby in another woman’s carriage. The Tramp reluctantly takes the baby in and we flash forward to 5 years later.
Chaplin and Coogan in The Kid.
Now that The Kid is a little older, he can help The Tramp work on some of his schemes to make some money. This involves The Kid smashing windows as The Tramp just happens to walk by with a new piece of glass. Again, the local cop breaks up their scams in hilarious fashion as The Tramp and The Kid outsmart him time after time. The Kid’s mother has become a famous performer and now makes regular visits to the slums where The Kid lives to give to the needy. When The Kid gets sick and the orphan asylum comes to take him away, the mother realizes that The Kid is actually her son and offers a reward for his safe return. Now everyone is looking to take The Kid away from The Tramp and neither of them want this.
For a film that barely runs an hour, The Kid is crammed full of gags and laughs. From the pair putting one over on the local cop to a showdown with the local bully and his big brother, The Kid had all of us over here laughing up a storm. Even my daughter, who can barely sit through a half hour TV show managed to watch the entire film. That probably had more to do with how cute she thought The Kid was the whole time!
The Cop, The Tramp and The Kid. A perfect comedy match.
Chaplin excelled at physical comedy, obviously a strength when you’re working in silent film, and the sight gags are pure hilarity. Even Coogan as The Kid gets his time to shine when he confronts the local bully and knocks him about. When the bully’s brother shows up and tells The Tramp that if The Kid beats his brother he’ll beat The Tramp, Chaplin makes sure The Kid wins and loses at the same time before he deals with the bully’s brother in a similar fashion. It’s a great scene that left me laughing out loud.
It’s not always jokes though. When the orphan asylum comes to take The Kid away we get to see just how much The Tramp has come to love the boy. I don’t know how well it’s going to bring a tear to your eye but it does its best and it’s still a touching moment. Tears of sorrow will quickly turn to tears of laughter again as The Tramp races over rooftops and jumps into the car that’s taking away The Kid as he triumphantly rescues his adopted son.
The best scenes are easily the ones where The Tramp and The Kid are quickly outwitting a less intelligent foe. From outsmarting the cop to trying to get both of them into a shelter while only paying once, it’s all a lot of look over there while we work over here. The weird motion of the film helps accentuate these scenes causing them to be even more funny and making it look like every movement is a last second decision. Not many comedies will cause me to laugh out loud but I could barely stop during The Kid. If you ever get a chance to check this out I would recommend it. Amazing performances and plenty of laughs as well as an important part of film history are on display here and it’s required viewing for anyone with an interest in film beyond exploding blockbusters.
Under the marquee – Will
