Charlie Chaplin's THE ADVENTURER fell a bit flat in my opinion. I love the man's films and I consider myself a fan, but this 1917 short failed to get much of a reaction out of me. In the short, Chaplin is a convict who manages to evade capture from the police and finds himself at a pier where he saves the lives of a beautiful woman, her mother, and her jealous suitor. He is brought to their home and nursed to health in time for an extravagant party where he must evade capture once again when the suitor recognizes him from a newspaper article. It's a promising formula but the movie had more than a few moments when the pace slows to a crawl and I found myself a bit bored. I was also distracted by the over-exposure in some of the outdoor scenes (but I can't fault them for that seeing as how film was still a new medium). There were a few bits I loved, such as the stop-motion used for the police officer falling down the cliff-side, Charlie's constant drinking, and his use of a sliding door as a trap. Unfortunately, for every laugh, there was a long period of mediocrity, be it the run-around on the pier or the drawn-out final chase scene. As usual, Chaplin's ensemble does a great job, including the beautiful Edna Purviance and the goofy Eric Campbell. It's not Chaplin's best moment but it's good for a few chuckles.
Review of The Adventurer
