Chaplin had just gained release from Essanay and had control over this production. It resulted in one of his most subtle and funny short films, with much less of the pointless slapstick of his earlier, less shaped work. There are really one two scenes. Chaplin's tramp is on a ship bringing immigrants to America and meets Edna Purviance, his real-life main squeeze. Next, Chaplin, with no money to speak of, finds himself in a restaurant facing the mean, monumentally gigantic form of waiter Eric Campbell.Well, Chaplin does a marvelous job with difficult material. I mean, the material must be difficult when the humor (and sentiment) has to depend on action without any dialog -- and without simple-minded pratfalls.There is a sequence involving a coin that's been dropped on the floor that's as carefully choreographed as any dance involving Gene Kelly and Debby Reynolds in "Singin' In The Rain." So many people claim that Charlie Chaplin was a genius that I can almost believe it. But I wouldn't go that far. I'd just say he's very talented.

By this point it was fairly clear that Charlie Chaplin's little tramp character was not a canonical, consistent individual embarking on one adventure after the other. He could be a man of any name or background, albeit with the same famous props and persona, even a foreigner coming to American shores for the first time.It was this flexibility of character that kept Chaplin continually inventive, as well as being the key to the breadth of his appeal. The situations Charlie finds himself in here would be familiar to a large proportion of the audience, either from their own lives or the stories of their parents. There is a layer of poignancy in the harsh and frank depiction of the sea crossing, and Chaplin's balancing of comedy and tragedy was never better. Jokes have a bittersweet edge, and sad moments are given a comic – but never disrespectful – twist.Chaplin's precision as a director is utterly beautiful to behold. When the camera is tilting and Charlie is lurching all over the deck, other passengers get up one-by-one to vomit over the side, giving a kind of rising level of madness to the scene, and making the tramp's tottering look even more precarious. Later, when the passengers are having dinner, the rocking of the boat provides plenty of great gags, but look at what happens when Edna Purviance walks in. Not only do we cut to close-ups, losing all the distracting background business, but the rolling subsides to a gentle swaying. The change is smooth enough for us not to notice, but it subliminally colours the moment.The supporting performances are gems as always, but this time special attention goes to Henry Bergman. In the first half, Chaplin ekes a few laughs out of the poor man's rotund stature, with Bergman's rolling across the deck actually being quite an impressive feat. In the second half he gives one of his most fun performances as the flamboyant artist, not being exactly laugh-out-loud funny but creating a bold character all the same.And Chaplin himself is in the middle of it all, now doing his little tramp so effortlessly it looks as if his funny business is just happening, rather than having been thought up. He was now like Jimmy Stewart or Gary Cooper would be years later – always playing the same familiar type who could be adapted to any setting. The added bonus for Chaplin is that, as a silent star, audiences could project any name or voice they wanted upon him. This, then, is also one of the reasons why the little tramp could not have survived into the sound era – but that's another story.

'The Immigrant (1917)' shows Chaplin really finding his feet as a performer and a storyteller. In this 20-minute comedy, the Little Tramp arrives in New York City following a tumultuous transatlantic journey, throughout which the vessel pitched like an amusement park ride. The ever-resourceful Tramp is first seen sprawled over the side of the ship, as though indulging his sea-sickness, but then emerges to reveal himself with a flailing fish in hand. There's also a very touching scene, foreshadowing an unforgettable moment in 'City Lights (1931),' in which Chaplin surrenders his money to a pretty girl (Edna Purviance) in the most humble way he can manage – only to get accused of pickpocketing!Following his arrival in America, the broke and lonely Tramp finds some money on the sidewalk and buys a meal, only to realise – too late – that he's lost the coin. Desperate to avoid being beaten up by the burly waiter and kitchen staff, he tries to obscure the fact that his finances are inadequate. Chaplin's timing, as ever, is exquisitely funny, and even then he had mastered the combination of comedy and sentiment that would make him one of Hollywood's most powerful and respected artists. Edna Purviance is delicate and sympathetic as a fellow immigrant, and the massive Eric Campbell is amusingly intimidating as a café head- waiter who's willing to flay a man for being ten cents short of the bill.

Chaplin's eleventh film for the Mutual Film Corporation, which he edited, wrote, produced, and directed highlights the experiences of early twentieth century immigrants. A group of European immigrants heads to the United States aboard a ship. On the way, there are many sight gags and slapstick moments, such as the swaying of the ship (which is highly exaggerated), the card shuffling, and the mealtime musical chairs with the dishes. The New York harbor scene is especially poignant, as Chaplin himself was an immigrant only a few years before. Many of the shipboard experiences in the film probably echo his own during his immigration to the United States. Chaplin helps a woman and her daughter aboard ship and later meets the same daughter in a restaurant where he has dinner with her. However, Chaplin must figure out a way to pay for their dinners because he comes up short of cash. Meanwhile, another customer gets the works from the establishment, headed by waiter Eric Campbell, for not paying up. Chaplin spies a coin on the floor, and he has to quickly pocket it before anyone else sees it. This comical scene is the highlight of the film. Chaplin bumps into an artist who hires Chaplin and Edna Purviance (the daughter) as models, and Chaplin gets the guy to pay an advance. He then uses this advance to force Edna to marry him. This is a combination of the immigrant experience and the determination to survive and make good with a comic bent of course. *** of 4 stars.