The Gold Rush

1.                     In class, we talked about the rise of filmmakers during the beginning of the 20th century, focusing on eras like the rise of silent comedies. The greats of that era include Buster Keaton and Charlie Chaplin, perhaps the most famous of them all. Movies now, to what they used to be at the beginning of the 20th century, are both different and the same. Mainly because films inspire films, but sometimes, they don't. Sometimes, making films are at times hard, because it depends on how both the audience and critics see the film. There are so many results, like critics will like a film, but the audience doesn't, the audience likes the film, but the critics don't, they both can like it or, they both would hate it. Most films of the 20th century were not like that at all. Films were still new during that time, so everything was new and original. The Gold Rush is a great example of that. A true master of film making, Charlie Chaplin knew what he was doing when filming The Gold Rush. If he were still alive today, he would of enjoyed to know that film that he always wanted to be known for would go on to be one of the greatest films of all time. Even at that time, Chaplin was the most famous entertainer in the world, but even he knew that his portrayal as the Tramp in The Gold Rush was likely his most personal favorite to all of his other films.

2.                  The article I chose was on the filming of The Gold Rush. It describes the inspiration for the film's humor. Chaplin used tragic events for the dark humor that is displayed in the film and why we love it. Making the film was hard than they thought, twice as long. It took more than a year to complete the film. I can see why

 http://www.charliechaplin.com/en/biography/articles/5-The-Gold-Rush

3.                  The article helped me know how the genius that is Charlie Chaplin dealt with the making of the film. I understood that Chaplin wanted to put humor into dark moments of our past. How he made the state of three men to be frozen, starving, and miserable in a cabin humorous to audiences is something I can never understand. That's what makes Chaplin a mastermind of American comedies, that he can create some of the most memorable and comedic scenes in film history with the use of reality. The scenes in the cabin were inspired by the true story of immigrants who stuck in a snowstorm, were reduced to eating dead animals and those who died. When it was shown to audiences, one particular scene made everyone go crazy enough that the theater stopped the film and played it back. The power of the film showed that this was different from Chaplin's previous films. I can see why he wanted to be remembered for his role in The Gold Rush.

4.                I have never seen a silent film before The Gold Rush, and have never been a fan of black and white films. It's rare that I would watch one, but watching The Gold Rush might make me reconsider my view towards silent and black and white films. I could see where many comedies or films in general were inspired by not only The Gold Rush, but towards other films of that generation. I have known who Charlie Chaplin was, but I never have seen a film of his. He is a true artist of film making  He directed, wrote, and starred in most of his films. He understood what he was gone do for a film before anyone else. I am looking forward for more films of that time period.

CHECKLIST FOR PLAGIARISM

1) ( x ) I have not handed in this assignment for any other class.

2) ( x ) If I reused any information from other papers I have written for other classes, I clearly explain that in the paper.

3) ( x ) If I used any passages word for word, I put quotations around those words, or used indentation and citation within the text.

4) ( x ) I have not padded the bibliography. I have used all sources cited in the bibliography in the text of the paper.

5) ( x ) I have cited in the bibliography only the pages I personally read.

6) ( x ) I have used direct quotations only in cases where it could not be stated in another way. I cited the source within the paper and in the bibliography.

7) ( x ) I did not so over-use direct quotations that the paper lacks interpretation or originality.

8) ( x ) I checked yes on steps 1-7 and therefore have been fully transparent about the research and ideas used in my paper.

Name: Brian Meyers  Date: 2/18/13