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Best of Chaplin, Vol. 3 [VHS]

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The three Chaplin comedies collected together for the "Best of Chaplin, Volume 3" consist of a pair of two-reel comedies that he did during his happy days at Mutual, and what is usually considered to be the first appearance by the beloved character of the Tramp in the third comedy the comedian made for Keystone:

"The Adventurer" (Released October 22, 1917), is the last of the films Chaplin did for Mutual. Charlie plays a convict who escapes after a lengthy chase scene and end up rescuing not only the lovely Edna Purviance, but also her mother and obnoxious fiancé. Hailed as a hero, everyone thinks Charlie is a wealthy yachtsman and he gets invited to a dinner party at the Judge's mansion. There, of course, it is just a question of time before his true identity is revealed and things get out of hand.

"The Cure" (Released April 16, 1917) has Chaplin as a wealthy inebriate who is trying to dry out at a sanitarium where once again the lovely Edna catches his eye. If you have ever seen a clip from this one it is probably Chaplin's comic use of the revolving door and the poor guy with the gouty foot. The big joke in this one is that the supply of booze Charlie has brought in a trunk to survive the experience of sobering up ends up being dumped into the mineral spring, which makes for a lot of happy people in the end of this one.

3. "Mabel's Strange Predicament" (Released February 9, 1914) bring Chaplin and Mable Normand together for the first time. They would make nine one-reelers together, including the ambitious six-reeler "Tillie's Punctured Romance," and most of them, like this one, were more Mable Normand comedies than Charlie Chaplin comedies. Chaplin plays a drunken masher for the first time on screen, who tries to get acquainted with the elegantly dressed Mabel, who has to deal with her husband (Chester Conklin), another admirer (Harry McCoy), and his jealous wife (Alice Davenport). The interesting thing here is how Chaplin, the relative novice, steals the movie from the star, Norman, although she really has nothing special to do in this one so it was not a fair fight.

None of these three comedies are a true Chaplin classic, although the first appearance of the Tramp (according to most critics; Chaplin had a slightly different view), has some historic importance. At the very least viewers can have an appreciation for how much Chaplin had grown as a film comedian in a couple of years by comparing his early work at Keystone with the more polished Mutual productions.