''Shoulder Arms'' is

Charlie Chaplin Sir Charles Spencer Chaplin Jr. (16 April 188925 December 1977) was an English comic actor, filmmaker, and composer who rose to fame in the era of silent film. He became a worldwide icon through his screen persona, the Tramp, and is conside ...

's second film for

First National Pictures First National Pictures was an American motion picture production and distribution company. It was founded in 1917 as First National Exhibitors' Circuit, Inc., an association of independent theatre owners in the United States, and became the count ...

. Released in

1918 This year is noted for the end of the First World War, on the eleventh hour of the eleventh day of the eleventh month, as well as for the Spanish flu pandemic that killed 50–100 million people worldwide. Events Below, the events ...

, it is a silent

comedy film A comedy film is a category of film which emphasizes humor. These films are designed to make the audience laugh through amusement. Films in this style traditionally have a happy ending ( black comedy being an exception). Comedy is one of the o ...

set in France during

World War I World War I (28 July 1914 11 November 1918), often abbreviated as WWI, was List of wars and anthropogenic disasters by death toll, one of the deadliest global conflicts in history. Belligerents included much of Europe, the Russian Empire, ...

, the first of three films he made on the subject of war. It co-starred Edna Purviance and

Sydney Chaplin Sydney John Chaplin (; 16 March 1885 – 16 April 1965) was an English actor. Chaplin was the elder half-brother of actor and director Charlie Chaplin and served as his business manager in later life. Through their mother Hannah, they were o ...

, Chaplin's elder brother. In this film, Chaplin is never in his Little Tramp outfit.

Plot

Some time during

, Doughboy (

) begins his service in the war amongst "the awkward squad" a group of American soldiers. He is bow-legged, unbalanced, and uncoordinated during bootcamp in contrast to the other soldiers who all have excellent coordination. He does move on to the front in France though, amongst the shells and trenches, and bunks amongst comrades (

). Doughboy is charged with guard duty and begins daydreaming of bars, cities, and home before being dismissed back to his bunk. News/mail for soldiers is brought out for the soldiers, but there is nothing for Doughboy. Though his fellow soldiers offer him food from their mail he refuses and walks out to find there is a package for him;

Limburger Limburger (in southern Dutch contexts Rommedoe, and in Belgium Herve cheese) is a cheese that originated in the Herve area of the historical Duchy of Limburg, which had its capital in Limbourg-sur-Vesdre, now in the French-speaking Belgian ...

cheese and incredibly hard crackers. Due to the pungent smell of the cheese, he decides to throw it over the trench, hitting the Germans, rather than eat it. Later, Doughboy struggles to sleep in waist high water, with his comrades all sleeping with no particular trouble in the conditions. In the morning, they are given the order to advance over the top. After hyping himself up against a backdrop of exploding artillery, Doughboy somewhat reluctantly goes over and manages to capture the enemy trench and 13 German troops the same as his identification number. Doughboy becomes much more confident after these events, and is no longer frazzled by the artillery or scared to take shots over the trench. Doughboy volunteers for a secret mission and is advised that he may not return. His mission is to infiltrate enemy lines, disguised as a tree. When one of his comrades is captured spying on the enemy, Doughboy helps him to escape and is chased by a large German soldier (

Henry Bergman Henry Bergman (February 23, 1868 – October 22, 1946) was an American actor of stage and film, known for his long association with Charlie Chaplin. Biography Born in San Francisco, California, Bergman acted in live theatre, appearing in ''Henr ...

) into the woods. Losing his tree disguise he is able to escape to a bombed out building wherein he meets a French girl ( Edna Purviance) who tends to his wounds. Shortly after meeting, the large German soldier finds them. Both the French girl and Doughboy run, however the French girl is caught and arrested for aiding the Allies. Before the French girl is assaulted by a German soldier, Doughboy manages to save her. Then the Kaiser shows up and Doughboy, disguised as a German officer, saves his comrade from capture again. All three of them now disguised as German officers chauffeur the Kaiser and his allies towards the Allied front. At the front they are greeted with applause and praise from the Allied troops. Doughboy then wakes up back at bootcamp, revealing all was his dream.

Credited cast

Charles Chaplin Sir Charles Spencer Chaplin Jr. (16 April 188925 December 1977) was an English comic actor, filmmaker, and composer who rose to fame in the era of silent film. He became a worldwide icon through his screen persona, the Tramp, and is consid ...

as Charlie, the

Doughboy Doughboy was a popular nickname for the American infantryman during World War I. Though the origins of the term are not certain, the nickname was still in use as of the early 1940s. Examples include the 1942 song "Johnny Doughboy Found a Rose i ...

* Edna Purviance as French girl *

as The sergeant, Charlie's Comrade / The Kaiser *Jack Wilson as German Crown Prince *

as Fat German sergeant / Field Marshal von Hindenburg / Bartender *

Albert Austin Albert Austin (13 December 1882 – 17 August 1953) was an English actor, film star, director, and script writer, remembered for his work in Charlie Chaplin films. Biography Austin was born in Birmingham, Warwickshire, England, and was a m ...

as American Officer / Clean Shaven German Soldier / Bearded German Soldier * Tom Wilson as Dumb German Wood-Cutter * John Rand as U.S. soldier *

J. Parks Jones James Parks Jones (1890 – January 11, 1950) was an actor in many silent films in the United States. His roles included many leading and supporting roles over more than a decade. He was born in Cincinnati. Jones married Myrtle Gonzalez, a Latin ...

as U.S. soldier (credited as Park Jones) *

Loyal Underwood Loyal Underwood (August 6, 1893 - September 30, 1966) was an American stock actor for Charlie Chaplin's film studio. Biography Born in 1893 in Rockford, Illinois, Underwood's movie debut was in '' The Count'', a 1916 Chaplin short film created ...

as Small German officer *W.J. Allen as Motorcyclist *L.A. Blaisdell as Motorcyclist *Wellington Cross as Motorcyclist *C.L. Dice as Motorcyclist *G.A. Godfrey as Motorcyclist *W. Herron as Motorcyclist

Reception

''Shoulder Arms'' proved to be Chaplin's most popular film, critically and commercially, up to that point. A review in the October 21, 1918 ''

New York Times ''The New York Times'' (''the Times'', ''NYT'', or the Gray Lady) is a daily newspaper based in New York City with a worldwide readership reported in 2020 to comprise a declining 840,000 paid print subscribers, and a growing 6 million paid ...

'' was typical:

"'The fool's funny,' was the chuckling observation of one of those who saw Charlie Chaplin's new film. ''Shoulder Arms'', at the Strand yesterday—and, apparently, that's the way everybody felt. There have been learned discussions as to whether Chaplin's comedy is low or high, artistic or crude, but no one can deny that when he impersonates a screen fool he is funny. Most of those who go to find fault with him remain to laugh. They may still find fault, but they will keep on laughing."

The film was very revolutionary for its time, introducing a new genre of comedy. Previously, films had treated war as a serious subject. This is believed to be the first comedy film about war.

References

External links

* *
Shoulder Arms
' on Amazon Prime Video *
Shoulder Arms
' on Pantaflix {{Authority control Short films directed by Charlie Chaplin 1918 films 1918 comedy films American black-and-white films Silent American comedy films American silent short films American World War I films Military humor in film Surviving American silent films Cultural depictions of Wilhelm II First National Pictures films 1910s American films

Plot

Credited cast

Reception

See also

References

External links