The Gold Rush (2 Disc Special Edition) DVD
Amazon Products

 Rating: - Silent gold
This 2-disk set is a great resource for those interested in "The Gold Rush," Charlie Chaplin's 1925 comedy about Alaskan gold prospecting. The main disk contains the 1942 re-release, which did away with interscene placards, replacing them with a voiceover by Chaplin himself. The second disk included the original 1925 silent release. Both versions were accompanied by a wonderful piano arrangement that was timed with the movie action. The second disk also contains a "making of" shorts that described Chaplin's off-screen romances with his leading ladies as well as footage of an older Chaplin reprieving one of his movie routines. Another short describes the effect that Chaplin had on an African filmmaker. The extras are by no means comprehensive, but have enough meat to satisfy the casual student of Chaplin and early cinema.

The film is terrific and sometimes funny, and always watchable. Chaplin's "Little Tramp" character delves into the Alaskan wilderness, seeking his fortune as a gold prospector. He encounters other prospectors, good and bad, and falls in love with the lovely Georgia, who seems at first not to notice him. There is great pathos as well as comedy in the film. A scene in which Chaplin prepares a New Years' Eve party for Georgia and her friends, who have forgotten their promise to attend, is quite affecting. The misery is offset somewhat by one of Chaplin's great routines -- set in a scene that imagines how the party would have gone -- in which Chaplin sticks forks into two dinner rolls and makes these "feet" dance beneath his sad sack face. Other notable scenes include one in which the Little Tramp, being thrown out of the rude cabin he shares with Black Larsen, slips and slides in his struggle against a fierce wind that blows him back into the cabin. Another scene in which Larsen fights another prospector for control of a shotgun -- managing to point it at the Little Tramp no matter where he flees -- is perfectly-choreographed and fraught with comedic tension. AN early scene, in which a lone Chaplin navigates a narrow mountain ledge -- sometimes followed by a live bear -- are beautifully timed.

I preferred the 1925 version to the slicker 1942 release, but it's nice that both versions are here. YMMV. The film quality was superb, almost too perfect, and Chaplin's pancake makeup was quite obvious, especially in close-ups. You'll wonder whether a little-used print was located, or whether this version was cleaned up digitally. In any event, "The Gold Rush" disks is both educational and entertaining. Not a must-see, but not at all disappointing.

Search: