Becoming Charley Chase (Comedy Compilation/1915 - 1925/All Day Entertainment/VCI Entertainment)

 

Picture: C     Sound: C+     Extras: B     Films: B

 

 

An innovator and groundbreaking filmmaker whose contribution to slapstick comedy is giant and forgotten, Charles Parrott is a big star of the silent era that wrote, directed and performed in films whose ideas and movements have been so duplicated, you have seen them whether you have seen his work or not.  It is once again All Day Entertainment to the rescue with a terrific 4-DVD set called Becoming Charlie Chase.

 

We also see extracts of lost films and hope more is recovered somewhere.  All Day has restored the films to the best of their ability and they look impressive, downright clean and clear at times where it will be some of the best silent film footage you have seen in a while.  Before enjoying them with any commentary, we highly recommend you watch them as they are and guarantee you will be impressed.  As slapstick has declined in the U.S. and the likes of Rowan Atkinson’s Mr. Bean picked it up overseas, it is more important than ever to see this legacy in full swing and in its original form.

 

The contents are as follows/DVD One:

CHARLES PARROTT AT KEYSTONE (AND MORE!)

 

PEANUTS AND BULLETS 1/30/15 Music by the Snark Ensemble 12:13

LOVE IN ARMOR 3/11/15 Music by Ben Model 13:29

SETTLED AT THE SEASIDE 03/29/15 Music by Redwine Jazz 6:32

THE RENT JUMPERS 04/08/15 Music by Redwine Jazz 11:01

LOVE, LOOT, AND CRASH 04/24/15 Music by Ben Model 12:21

A VERSATILE VILLAIN 05/29/15 Music by Ben Model 13:00

HE WOULDN'T STAY DOWN 05/30/15 Music by Ben Model 14:23

MARRIED TO ORDER 10/30/20 Music by the Snark Ensemble 16:11

 

 

DVD Two:

CHARLEY CHASE BECOMES JIMMY JUMP

 

AT FIRST SIGHT 01/06/24 Music by the Snark Ensemble 9:57

ONE OF THE FAMILY 01/26/24 Music by the Snark Ensemble 10:13

JUST A MINUTE 02/03/24 Music by Ben Model 12:17

POWDER AND SMOKE 02/10/24 Music by the Snark Ensemble 9:57

HARD KNOCKS 03/02/24 Music by the Snark Ensemble 10:41

DON'T FORGET 03/23/24 Surviving extract Music by the Snark Ensemble 2:59

THE FRAIDY CAT 03/30/24 Music by Ben Model 10:46

PUBLICITY PAYS 05/04/24 Music by the Snark Ensemble 9:55

YOUNG OLDFIELD 06/22/24 Music by the Snark Ensemble 9:41

STOLEN GOODS 06/29/24 Music by the Snark Ensemble 10:30

JEFFRIES, JR. 07/06/24 Music by the Snark Ensemble 9:27

A TEN-MINUTE EGG 7/20/24 Music by the Snark Ensemble 9:56

SEEING NELLIE HOME 07/27/24 Partial reconstruction from surviving material Music by Ben Model 5:43

OUTDOOR PAJAMAS 09/14/24 Music by the Snark Ensemble 8:38

SITTIN' PRETTY 09/28/24 Music by the Snark Ensemble 10:15

TOO MANY MAMMAS 10/12/24 Music by the Snark Ensemble 9:00

 

DVD Three:

JIMMY JUMP BECOMES CHARLEY CHASE

 

THE POOR FISH 12/07/24 Music by the Snark Ensemble 9:30

THE RATS KNUCKLES 01/04/25 Music by Ben Model 9:17

HELLO BABY! 1/18/25 Music by the Snark Ensemble 10:29

FIGHTING FLUID 02/01/25 Music by the Snark Ensemble 9:50

SHOULD HUSBANDS BE WATCHED? 03/14/25 Music by the Snark Ensemble 9:34

IS MARRIAGE THE BUNK? 03/29/25 Music by the Snark Ensemble 9:54

BAD BOY 04/12/25 Charley Chase's first surviving two-reel short Music by the Snark Ensemble 18:24

BIG RED RIDING HOOD 04/26/25 Music by the Snark Ensemble 9:47

LOOKING FOR SALLY The last appearance of Jimmy Jump 05/10/25 Music by Ben Model 20:20

NO FATHER TO GUIDE HIM 09/06/25 Music by the Snark Ensemble 19:09

 

DVD Four:

DIRECTED BY CHARLEY PARROTT

 

A ROLLING STONE Billy West 01/20/19 Music by Ben Model 18:48

THE FLIRTS Harry Mann & Jimmie Adams 04/08/19 Music by the West End Jazz Band 21:38

THE DUMB BELL Snub Pollard 07/16/22 Music by Ben Redwine and Redwine Jazz 9:23

SOFT PEDAL Paul Parrott 12/16/22 Music by Ben Model 9:50

COURTSHIP OF MILES SANDWICH Snub Pollard 06/24/23 Music by the West End Jazz Band 19:12

JUS PASSIN THROUGH Will Rogers Music by Ben Model 27:05

DEAR OLD PAL Snub Pollard and Paul Parrott, the last film directed by Charles Parrott before he became Charley Chase 11/11/23 Music by Redwine Jazz 9:38

 

 

For film scholars and film fans, this is a must-see collection and an historic winner of a set for All Day, continuing to release some of the most important DVD sets on the market.

 

The 1.33 X 1 image has some choice moments, but there is even damage All Day and David Kalat cold not fix, so we have to rate accordingly, but we usually give a lower rating to unrestored footage, so it is in keeping with our ratings.  The Dolby Digital 2.0 Stereo is from newly recorded material whose artists are identified on the above film list and the sound is just fine, plus is not the phony keyboard music that partly killed a silent film revival in the 1980s.  Extras include expert commentaries with fans and scholars on all 40 shorts, archival interviews with Chase’s daughter Juno, The Sounds Of Silence on scoring films, Evolution Of A Gag showing how Chase invented the famed Mirror Gag before The Marx Brothers made it immortal and The Parriott Chase that offers a 45-mintus retrospective on the man’s career.

 

 

-   Nicholas Sheffo