LGM Film Club, Part 540: The Adventurer

Among the better of the Charlie Chaplin Mutual comedies from 1916-17, The Adventurer shows the development of the Tramp character. In the early versions of this character, the Tramp was outright menacing and creepy. In his big films of the 20s, Chaplin had developed it into this beautiful specimen of humanity. He’s in the middle here by 1917. The character here is an escaped prisoner who helps save a rich woman from drowning. He then gets invited to their home and pretends to be rich. But his foil–often the same character played by the same actor in these films–is a huge man with a huge ridiculous beard that is a big part of the comedy. He wants the young girl too. They kick each other in the butt a lot. There’s a lot of funny bits here. Hijinks ensue. It’s a quality 25 minutes.