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| The Cure (1917) | |
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| Tweet Topic Started: Jul 13 2007, 07:19 AM (225 Views) | |
| Laughing Gravy | Jul 13 2007, 07:19 AM Post #1 |
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Now, I’m not what you’d call a Chaplin fanatic, preferring Buster Keaton for sheer entertainment value. I have said many times, though, that I consider Modern Times to be the greatest feature-length comedy ever made, and some of Charlie’s other films are unmatched for their inventiveness and sheer comic madness. When Tower Records, God bless ‘em, went out of business, I went mad picking up carloads of DVDs at up to 60% off, and I managed to nab a copy of the “90th Anniversary Edition Chaplin Mutual Comedies” boxed set from Image, few of which I’d ever seen before. So I began the non-cartoon portion of my recent 24-hour movie marathon with the 1917 comedy THE CURE, starring Charlie Chaplin and Edna Purviance. Chaplin can still get laughs with big shoes and a revolving door. The first great gag in the movie offers Charlie – newly arrived at a health spa – admonishing the clerk who brings him his trunk for smoking a cigarette, which is of course “bad for his health.” Charlie opens the trunk and reveals about 3 dozen bottles of hard liquor! Chaplin was one of my introductions to the world of classic movies. In 7th grade, a teacher took our Junior High School Drama Club to the Art Theatre in beautiful Cuyahoga Falls, Ohio to see a double feature of City Lights and Modern Times, my first time seeing classic movies on the big screen. I went back to the Art many times after that (before it became a porno theatre) to see such varied fare as On the Waterfront, The Wild One, and a four-movie Marx Bros. marathon. Now that I think of it, I went there a time or two AFTER it became an adult theatre, too… There’s a big fat guy with gout, which means a foot wrapped in bandages for Charlie to accidentally stomp on as an ongoing gag. I wonder how many films utilized this scenario? I think I’ve seen more gout-stomping than pie fights! Two of the most memorable: Laurel & Hardy in Perfect Day (Edgar Kennedy with the boo-boo foot) and County Hospital (Mr. Hardy himself gets to wear the gout bandages). Okay, here’s a scene wherein Charlie is waiting for his massage. The giant masseuse is beating the crap out of the previous victim, and the nervous look on Chaplin’s face as he awaits his turn is hilarious. When it’s Chaplin’s turn, he wrestles with the guy. Very, very funny stuff. In the end, the “spa” turns out to be full of liquor, and Chaplin remains the only sober one. A very good short. |
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11:09 AM Jul 11