A Day's Pleasure

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Nick M A Day's Pleasure is only the second Chaplin picture for 1919, and they will continue to become more scarce as we move into the 1920s. In general, the extra time he's been afforded to produce each of his pictures for First National has resulted in a noticeable increase in quality. Unfortunately, this one is notable for not living up to our growing expectations. There are a few noteworthy, original gags, but the film as a whole is a return to the pugilistic comedy of the early nineteen teens that I simply don't find funny, particularly when fights happen repeatedly and take up half the length of the picture. There are a few genuine laughs to be had, but this isn't one of my favorites. To be fair, part of the reason is that it hasn't aged as well as many of his other films. Much of the non-violent comedy relies on shared experience with technology of the day. I don't know what it's like to try to operate an unreliable "flivver" (cheap car), nor do I have experience with collapsible deck chairs of the absurdly complicated variety that Chaplin does battle with on his family's pleasure cruise. Audiences of the day reportedly found all of this much funnier than I am able to. Rated 2.5/5 Stars •  Rated 2.5 out of 5 stars 10/09/24 Full Review Audience Member While definitely not amongst his most hilarious, "A Day's Pleasure" is still very entertaining and showcases Chaplin's inventiveness quite well: otherwise mundane settings, such as on a boat trip or at a crossroads, become the basis of a myriad gags, a couple of which might make you gasp even today, an entire century later. Rated 3.5/5 Stars •  Rated 3.5 out of 5 stars 02/11/23 Full Review sean l Lazy weekend outings with a diminutive middle-class man and his family, who endure car troubles, a bumpy afternoon cruise and a late afternoon stand-off with the traffic officer. It's all extremely basic, half-effort stuff from a visibly uninspired Charlie Chaplin. Unhappy with his professional situation and depressed by his personal one, the auteur is a sad clown going through the motions here, with a critical lack of creative energy. Of course, a bored genius can still negligently drop a few gems, and a passive Chaplin is still capable of better material than most. Case in point: a Greco-Roman title bout with an uncooperative piece of folding furniture. It goes on forever, but we never tire of it because the action is so effortlessly funny, still relatable after a hundred years. Pity the rest of the show doesn't flow as smoothly. Rated 2/5 Stars •  Rated 2 out of 5 stars 03/30/23 Full Review david f These old Chaplin films don't date at all. This one's got some great gags: one where Chaplin tries to start a car which shuts off over and over again just as he gets inside the driver's seat. Another scene where he tries to unfold a deck chair on a pleasure boat is just immortally funny. Rated 4/5 Stars •  Rated 4 out of 5 stars 03/31/23 Full Review Audience Member A brief taste of the genius of Charlie Chaplin. Not as complete as many of his movies, especially once you consider that he had aleady made movies like A Dog's Life before this, and that was nearly double the duration. However, there is still enough time for Charlie Chaplin to display why is the greatest comedic actor of all time. He pretty much invented physical comedy for the silver screen, and also perfected it. With the setting an central plot of this movie, there is little room for too much plot development, but Chaplin uses that to concentrate on particular scenes. His attempt to unfold a deckchair is one of the funniest things you'll ever see. Rated 3.5/5 Stars •  Rated 3.5 out of 5 stars 01/20/23 Full Review Audience Member Another enjoyable Chaplin two reeler has Charlie going out a day trip with his family. There are bits involving his car, a boat ride and a traffic intersection (the best of the bits). Chaplin was clearly beginning to come into his own with this picture, shot right around the same time he made his first feature length film, "The Kid". My daughter's favorite bit was Charlie fighting the guy throwing up over the dye of a boat. Rated 3.5/5 Stars •  Rated 3.5 out of 5 stars 01/31/23 Full Review Read all reviews

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