The gay nineties through the roaring twenties is the era of some of the greatest motion pictures ever produced, mainly because it was the very beginning and filmmakers wanted to be very inventive. This starts with a look at New York City at the turn off the century, then shows some of San Francisco before the earthquake and right after. A little bit of the magical filmmaking from France shows the special effects during their early years, and they are indeed fascinating.
But the book of the film is attributed to the great comics which includes the men I mentioned above as well as others including Charlie's brother Sydney, the other Charlie (Chase), Mabel Normand, Harry Landon, Andy Clyde and others. Other movie stars of the silent era make appearances through newsreels as this focuses on comedy, not meladrama or horror. So you get lots of farce with comical chases, pies in the face, women being embarrassed and of course comic assaults on the law and other authority figures. A good narration helps, but it's at its desk when it's just focusing on the film clips. Call this "That's Silent Entertainment!"
But the book of the film is attributed to the great comics which includes the men I mentioned above as well as others including Charlie's brother Sydney, the other Charlie (Chase), Mabel Normand, Harry Landon, Andy Clyde and others. Other movie stars of the silent era make appearances through newsreels as this focuses on comedy, not meladrama or horror. So you get lots of farce with comical chases, pies in the face, women being embarrassed and of course comic assaults on the law and other authority figures. A good narration helps, but it's at its desk when it's just focusing on the film clips. Call this "That's Silent Entertainment!"
