Jade Cloud: The Gold Rush

 Jade Cloud

Professor Saphire

COM 126.01

25 September 2020

                                    How The Gold Rush Expanded Cinematic Language

           The Lumiere brothers and Georges Melies laid the groundwork for cinema, but Charlie Chaplin was the man who launched this artform to new heights. His film, The Gold Rush, is proof of that, as he masterfully wielded his skills to transform the rudimentary pictures the world became accustomed to, into something of the extraordinary.

            Unlike his predecessors who shot films that were exclusively realistic or antirealistic, Chaplin broke the mold by incorporating elements of both methods. For starters, Chaplin's decision to shoot his film in a way that made it feel like the audience was witnessing authentic, everyday occurrences is highly reminiscent of the actualities the Lumiere brothers captured. Indeed, several shots in The Gold Rush could be interchanged with a number of clips in Lumiere's First Picture Show. For example, the scene of the dance hall girls partaking in a snowball fight, excluding the close-up shots of Georgia, was almost an exact replica of Lumiere's Bataille de Boules de Niege. While maintaining that sense of realism throughout the duration of The Gold Rush, Chaplin elevates his film by integrating other film pioneers' innovations presented in Mark Cousin's documentary, Birth of the Cinema. As was previously mentioned, Chaplin includes close-up shots in his sequences, which first appeared in George Albert Smith's films. Even though it is a relatively minute element, the addition of close-up shots, intertwined with wide, medium, and external shots, make the sequences feel more complete. Chaplin also attempted to utilize over-the-shoulder reverse angle shots in his film, whether intentional or not, which can be seen when Georgia bickers with Jack in the dance hall or when she bids the Lone Prospector goodnight at Hank's cabin. Although these shots aren't up to Star Wars standards, they are still quite advanced for the time they were created, and add a layer of intimacy between the audience and the film that the Lumiere's work lacks. 

            While The Gold Rush embraced various aspects of realism inspired by the Lumiere brothers, Chaplin also did not hold back in his decision to incorporate elements of antirealism, the method Georges Melies preferred. In Melies' film, A Trip to the Moon, the audience can't help but feel like they're watching a live play or musical unfold, with larger than life performances at the forefront. Although Chaplin decided to exclude the wild costumes and fantastical scenery favored by Melies, he, along with his fellow castmates, take an over the top, theatrical approach to their acting, not unlike the actors in A Trip to the Moon. However, Chaplin and his crew's performances appear more genuine, making their characters more endearing and believable, which is a pleasant contrast to the performances featured in A Trip to the Moon. 

            The bizarre and absurd scenarios that occur throughout The Gold Rush also push the film further towards the antirealistic end of the spectrum. While the film maintains some semblance of real life for the majority of the time, there are the occasional moments that remind the viewer that it is a made-up world they're watching. Without a doubt, a real-life scenario occurring in which a cabin hangs over the edge of a cliff and the two men inside that leaning cabin don't plummet to their deaths, is slim to none. Objectively, this scene is unbelievable and yet, the viewers can't help but be concerned for the two protagonists. The viewer knows that what they're watching would be impossible in reality, and yet the film achieves verisimilitude because in that moment, the viewer can't distinguish between what should and shouldn't be real. That is a true testament, not only to Chaplin's acting ability, but also to his talent as a director, as verisimilitude is a difficult thing for a film rooted in realism to achieve, let alone those that are antirealistic. Another factor that stands out in Chaplin's film is his usage of special effects, an essential element of antirealism. The scene where Big Jim begins to hallucinate and imagine the Lone Prospector as a chicken in his frenzied state of hunger is similar to one in Melies' film, Cendrillon, in which a rat transforms into a man. Chaplin took what must have been a groundbreaking visual effect for that time, established by Melies, and then refined it by making the transition from animal to human appear more seamless.  

            Not only has The Gold Rush pushed technical boundaries of filmmaking, it succeeded in eliciting emotional responses from its audience, an element that others prior to Chaplin were unable to accomplish. Despite all of the elements of antirealism in the film, you can't help but get emotionally drawn into the Lone Prospector's world. For instance, right as he locked eyes on Georgia in the dance hall for the very first time, you feel the affection he has for her as if you were there inside the movie with them. And when she failed to show up to his New Year's Eve dinner, the Lone Prospector's disappointment, portrayed wonderfully by Chaplin, has you, the viewer, feeling awful for him. Even if the film had not expanded cinematic language the way it did, Chaplin's ability to make an audience laugh, cry, and root for the underdog is enough to convince anyone to give it a chance.

            It is remarkable to witness the giant leap film made in just two decades, with men like Chaplin at the helm. Needless to say, his contributions to filmmaking were profound, and his creation, The Gold Rush, is an incredible feat of cinema that will stand the test of time.