Charlie Chaplin was probably the biggest film star of his generation and even screen legends like Buster Keaton, Harold Lloyd or Stan and Ollie could only dream of his success. "The Rink" is a 1916 23-minute movie directed by the master himself and of course he also plays the lead character. It's black-and-white and silent and considered one of the films made during Chaplin's peak years. He was still in his 20s when he made this and cast several people as co-actors with whom he regularly appeared in films such as the very memorable Edna Purviance and Eric Campbell. The action here takes place at a restaurant (kitchen), at the rink as the title suggests and finally at a party. If you remember a chaotic character like the ones Chaplin always portrays on roller-blades, you already know what you are about to watch. Or maybe not as I found the humor in here sub-par to be honest. All in all, not recommended.

(72%) Chaplin highlights his roller-skating talent in this briskly paced 20 minuter set around Charlie as a waiter. There's some nice somewhat more subtle jokes centred around Charley working out the bill by seeing what customers have split onto their clothes, and a mix-up in the kitchen leading to a diner served a scrubbing brush. Charlie's character is not a complete down and out, or very wealthy, but more fun loving and fancy free, and once he's given an hour of free time he hits the rink. This is very much a standard Chaplin early movie that benefits from his skating ability and charm, although the version I saw is a poor cheap money grab as it needed some restoration.

Monday September 24, 7:00 pm, The Paramount Theater An inept waiter (Charles Chaplin) visits a roller skating rink on his lunch hour. Posing as Sir Cecil Seltzer C.O.D., he meets a lovely young girl (Edna Purviance) who invites him to her skate party that evening. Inspired by Skating, a Vaudeville routine co-written by his brother Sydney and Fred Karno, The Rink showcased Chaplin's graceful and at times frightening roller-skating abilities. Charlie serves one customer a live cat, is responsible for another receiving a scrub-brush and soap for lunch, and douses the cook (Albert Austin) with the contents of a cocktail shaker. Romantic entanglements begin when Mr. Stout (Eric Campbell) flirts with Edna at the rink, while Mrs. Stout (Henry Bergman) flirts with Edna's father (James T. Kelley) in the café. They end in a wild free-for-all when everyone embarrassingly shows up at the party, and Charlie escapes by hooking his cane to the bumper of a passing car.

There isn't a lot of subtlety to "The Rink", but it does have some entertaining slapstick and some traces of some of Chaplin's favorite themes. The first part in the restaurant has both good moments and routine stretches, and then things liven up when everyone gets their skates on - the action combines tangled relationships with tangled limbs. Although he has his character take a good assortment of slips and falls, in so doing Chaplin also demonstrates his physical skill, and his performance anticipates his more famous roller skating scene in "Modern Times". It's probably not among his best short features, but all the same it's one that Chaplin fans will want to see.