Charlot pompier

I first saw this movie back in January of this year, around my high school's exam time.

I was stressed out, so I went looking for movies to watch on the Internet, and I came across this.

This was my first Chaplin film; indeed, this was my first silent film, and I must say it made a very good impression on me.

I'm more a fan of verbal comedy, but this was unexpectedly funny!

However, I thought the butt-kicking a bit incessant and found no humor in it.

Other than that, a hilarious film. I give it two thumbs up!

A Fire Chief (Eric Campbell) is approached by a man (Lloyd Bacon) who asks that the Fire Department ignores a fire at his house so that he may collect the insurance money. The man insures that his daughter (Edna Purviance) is out during the fire so remains unharmed. The woman is not out though when an arsonist sets the property alight and she gets trapped upstairs. Meanwhile the Firemen which include accident prone Charlie Chaplin are at another house, putting out a fire. When the man realises his daughter is trapped he searches for them, finding Chaplin who attempts to save the day and win the woman's heart.

Amazingly The Fireman was Chaplin's 52nd film but was released in June 1916. Despite his age and lack of years in the industry he was by now a pro and it shows here with clever gags and a nice central idea. Unfortunately the film suffers from a similar problem as The Floorwalker in that it just isn't quite funny enough.

Although not awash with comedy there are some excellent comic turns to be found. A particular highlight of mine was the dual use of the fire engine as a means of putting out fire and as an over-sized coffee machine. The gag works very well visually and adds a little bit of surrealism which I always like to see. Another laugh comes when Chaplin falls backwards on to a man who is kneeling down, scrubbing a floor. The weight of Chaplin on his back sends the man's head straight into a bucket of water. As well as these sight gags there are the little touches which can often go unnoticed. Chaplin had a habit of using a recurring gag where by he would trip and doff his hat to the curb. Here as a Fireman he salutes. It's a nice in joke and twist on one of his favourites.

One interesting point about the film is that it shows a near deserted area of Los Angeles. It's incredible to see footage of the metropolis less than a hundred years ago and compare it to today. There are few streets and fewer houses and just one vehicle in the background of one shot. To me a lot of Chaplin's location work is fascinating for its background detail as well as its focus.

Another aspect of the film which I enjoyed was the reversing of film to create some odd looking and humorous scenes. The film is reversed to create the effect of Chaplin sliding up a Fireman's pole (in the literal sense) and is also used on a couple of occasions to create images of horses walking backwards which looks very odd indeed. This is another example of Chaplin's ever expanding inventiveness. Because of this and other clever ideas it's a shame that he resorts to so much that even by 1916 was tired and well used. The kick up the backside gag is repeated here several times and although it's Chaplin on the receiving end it does feel a little overdone. The plot itself feels fairly formulaic and very similar to previous films.

Despite the problems with the movie such as tired plot and jack of jokes it ends on a high. The final scene is exciting and sweet and brings the proceedings to a pleasant close. Chaplin's climbing and acrobatics are excellent and even though he has an obviously fake Edna Purviance on his back, the stunts are still impressive. Despite being his second Mutual film it still feels as though Chaplin was finding his feet with the company and though exploring new ideas was relying too heavily on safe material.

www.attheback.blogspot.com

Am a big fan of Charlie Chaplin, have been for over a decade now. Many films and shorts of his are very good to masterpiece, and like many others consider him a comedy genius and one of film's most important and influential directors.

From his post-Essanay period after leaving Keystone, 'The Fireman' is not one of his very best but is one of his best early efforts and among the better short films of his. It shows a noticeable step up in quality though from his Keystone period, where he was still evolving and in the infancy of his long career, from 1914, The Essanay and Mutual periods were something of Chaplin's adolescence period where his style had been found and starting to settle. Something that can be seen in the more than worthwhile 'The Fireman'.

The story is more discernible than usual and is never dull, but is sometimes a bit too busy and manic.

On the other hand, 'The Fireman' looks pretty good, not incredible but it was obvious that Chaplin was taking more time with his work and not churning out countless shorts in the same year of very variable success like he did with Keystone. Appreciate the importance of his Keystone period and there is some good stuff he did there, but the more mature and careful quality seen here and later on is obvious.

While not one of his most hilarious or touching, 'The Fireman' is still very funny with some clever, entertaining and well-timed slapstick and has substance and pathos that generally were not there with Keystone. It moves quickly and there is no dullness in sight. The ending is great fun.

Chaplin directs more than competently, if not quite cinematic genius standard yet. He also, as usual, gives an amusing and expressive performance and at clear ease with the physicality and substance of the role. The supporting cast acquit themselves well, particularly a charming Edna Purviance.

In summary, very good and one of the best from Chaplin's 1916 output. 8/10 Bethany Cox

In 1914 and early 1915, Chaplin did his first comedy shorts. In general, they were pretty awful--with almost no plot and consisting of him mugging it up on camera and hitting people. However, in 1915 he left Keystone Studio and began making better films with Essenay (though there are some exceptions) and finally, in 1916, to Mutual where he made his best comedy shorts. These newer films had more plot and laughs and usually didn't relay on punching or kicking when they ran out of story ideas.

Compared to other Mutual comedies, this one is a bit of a let-down, as again and again it seems like Charlie and the crew really are given no direction. They just wanter about aimlessly and yell a lot and slap each other, but not a whole lot of plot until the very end. This is a pretty spectacular ending, though, as you really get to see Chaplin's athletic skills!

There's not very much to the simple short comedy "The Fireman" besides the kind of knockabout slapstick that might have been getting a little old even in 1916, but at least in Chaplin's hands it is watchable and it has some good moments. It moves quickly and gets pretty manic at times, and if there had been a little more depth or creativity, it could have been pretty good.

The setting offers many props and story possibilities. A few times these are worked into the action in creative ways, but more often, the movie relies on the same type of humor repeated over and over again. When it comes to comedy ideas such as falling down, kicking someone, and the like, Chaplin is better than almost anyone else of his era in carrying off the gag, but in this case the movie just relies on such things too heavily, instead of working in some more imaginative material.

The cast includes some Chaplin regulars, most notably Eric Campbell and Edna Purviance, who are always worth seeing. And there are the kernels of some good ideas, as well as some stretches when the slapstick is funny. So it had the makings of a very good comedy - but as it is, it's OK but below average for Chaplin.