Shoulder Arms (1918)

Director:

Charles Chaplin

Writer:

Charles Chaplin (writer)

Release Date:

20 October 1918 (USA)

Genre:

Comedy | War

Plot:

Charlie is a boot camp private who has a dream of being a hero who goes on a daring mission behind enemy lines.

Plot Keywords:

Capture | Limburger | Behind Enemy Lines | Gas Mask | Propaganda

Cast

Edna Purviance	...	The Girl
Charles Chaplin	...	Doughboy
Syd Chaplin	...	Charlie's Comrade / The Kaiser (as Sydney Chaplin)
Loyal Underwood	...	Short German Officer
Henry Bergman	...	Fat Whiskered Soldier / The Kaiser's General / Bartender
Tom Wilson	...	Dumb German Wood-Cutter
Albert Austin	...	American Soldier / Clean Shaven German Soldier / Bearded German Soldier
Jack Wilson	...	Crown Prince
rest of cast listed alphabetically:
W.J. Allen	...	Motorcyclist (uncredited)
L.A. Blaisdell	...	Motorcyclist (uncredited)
A.D. Blake	...	Soldier (uncredited)
Cliff Brouwer	...	Soldier (uncredited)
E. Brucker	...	Bit Part in Street Scene (uncredited)
F.S. Colby	...	Soldier (uncredited)
Slim Cole	...	Soldier (uncredited)
Wellington Cross	...	Motorcyclist (uncredited)
E.H. Devere	...	Bit Part in Street Scene (uncredited)
C.L. Dice	...	Motorcyclist (uncredited)
M.J. Donovan	...	Soldier (uncredited)
Guy Eakins	...	Soldier (uncredited)
Fred Everman	...	Bit Part in Street Scene (uncredited)
Mark Faber	...	Bit Part in Street Scene (uncredited)
G.A. Godfrey	...	Motorcyclist (uncredited)
Harry Goldman	...	Bit Part in Street Scene (uncredited)
Fred Graham	...	Soldier (uncredited)
W.E. Graham	...	Bit Part in Street Scene (uncredited)
James Griffin	...	Bit Part in Street Scene (uncredited)
William Hackett	...	Bit Part in Street Scene (uncredited)
Ray Hanford	...	Soldier (uncredited)
A.J. Hartwell	...	Bit Part in Street Scene (uncredited)
O.E. Haskins	...	Bit Part in Street Scene (uncredited)
Tom Hawley	...	Bit Part in Street Scene (uncredited)
Carl Herlinger	...	Bit Part (uncredited)
W. Herron	...	Motorcyclist (uncredited)
Ed Hunt	...	Soldier (uncredited)
E.B. Johnson	...	Soldier (uncredited)
J. Parks Jones	...	U.S. Soldier (uncredited)
Charles Knuske	...	Bit Part in Street Scene (uncredited)
Sam Lewis	...	Bit Part in Street Scene (uncredited)
Tom Madden	...	Soldier (uncredited)
G.E. Marygold	...	Motorcyclist (uncredited)
Clyde McAtee	...	Soldier (uncredited)
Robert McKenzie	...	Bit Part in Street Scene (uncredited)
A. North	...	Bit Part in Street Scene (uncredited)
Louis Orr	...	Soldier (uncredited)
J.T. Powell	...	Motorcyclist (uncredited)
John Rand	...	U.S. Soldier (uncredited)
Jack Shalford	...	Soldier (uncredited)
J.H. Shewry	...	Bit Part in Street Scene (uncredited)
Joe Van Meter	...	Soldier (uncredited)
W.G. Wagner	...	Motorcyclist (uncredited)
Tiny Ward	...	Soldier (uncredited)
J.H. Warne	...	Motorcyclist (uncredited)
Jack Willis	...	Soldier / Bit Part in Street Scene (uncredited)

Directed by
Charles Chaplin

Writing credits (in alphabetical order)
Charles Chaplin		writer

Produced by
Charles Chaplin	....	producer

Original Music by
Charles Chaplin		(1957)

Cinematography by
Roland Totheroh

Film Editing by
Charles Chaplin		(uncredited)

Production Design by
Charles D. Hall		(uncredited)

Second Unit Director or Assistant Director
Charles Reisner	....	assistant director (uncredited)

Camera and Electrical Department
Jack Wilson	....	second camera operator (uncredited)

Costume and Wardrobe Department
Mother Vinot	....	seamstress (uncredited)

Transportation Department
Toraichi Kono	....	driver: Mr. Chaplin (uncredited)

Other crew
Nellie Bly Baker	....	secretary: Mr. Chaplin (uncredited)
Elsie Codd	....	unit publicist (uncredited)
Tom Harrington	....	assistant: Mr. Chaplin (uncredited)

Production Companies

• Charles Chaplin Productions

Distributors

• First National Exhibitors' Circuit (1918) (USA) (theatrical)
• Associated First National Pictures (1922) (USA) (theatrical) (re-release)
• Playhouse Home Video (1985) (USA) (VHS) (For CBS/Fox Video)
• Key Video (1989) (USA) (VHS) (For CBS/Fox Video)
• Image Entertainment (2000) (USA) (DVD)
• Koch Vision (2000) (USA) (DVD)
• MK2 Diffusion (2001) (worldwide) (all media)
• Reel Media International (2004) (USA) (video)
• Warner Home Video (2004) (USA) (DVD)
• Reelclassicdvd.com (2005) (USA) (DVD)
• Reel Media International (2007) (USA) (all media)
• Pathé Frères (1919) (France) (theatrical)
• FilmAnnex (2006) (worldwide) (all media)

Also Known As:

Runtime:

45 min (17 fps) | 36 min (TCM print)

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Color:

Black and White

Aspect Ratio:

1.33 : 1

Sound Mix:

Mono (Westrex Recording System) (1959 re-issue) | Silent

Certification:

Argentina:Atp | Canada:G (Ontario) | USA:Not Rated

Filming Locations:

Chaplin Studios - 1416 N. La Brea Avenue, Hollywood, Los Angeles, California, USA

Company:

Charles Chaplin Productions

Trivia:

Originally planned at five reels; outtakes were preserved in Chaplin's private collection. True Boardman, Marion Feducha and Frankie Lee played Chaplin's sons in cut domestic scenes intended for the beginning of the film. Peggy Prevost and Nina Trask portrayed draft board clerks, Alf Reeves a draft board sergeant and Albert Austin a doctor in a cut scene at the draft board office.

Goofs:

Miscellaneous: In the woods, where Chaplin runs to hide from the pursuing Germans, automobiles are visible traveling on a highway on the horizon.

Quotes:

Officer:How did you capture thirteen?
Recruit:I surrounded them.

Movie Connections:

Referenced in Star Power: The Creation of United Artists (1998) (V)

"Over there"

One of the prices of superstardom is that you have to become adaptable. When the US joined the World War in 1917 Charlie Chaplin was at the height of his popularity. Naturally, he was expected to make some sort of contribution. Chaplin had already set his short films in all sorts of locations, even at different time periods, and had given his little tramp all manner of occupations, so soldiering in the trenches shouldn't have been too big a step. However, Shoulder Arms is, if not a propaganda piece (it was released a bit late for that), at least one that had to have a certain outlook. As a result Chaplin was constrained somewhat, and it shows.

The first half of the picture, which is set during Charlie's training and among his comrades in the trench seems a little muted compared to other Chaplin pictures of this period. The reason for this is clear – it wouldn't have had the right effect if there were seen to be too much antagonism between soldiers. Characters like the burly drill sergeant or Charlie's buddy (played his brother Syd) would make ideal bugbears in any other picture, but here all we get is a bit of appropriately brotherly tussling between Charlie and Syd. When you see how weak these opening ten minutes are you realise how much of Chaplin's comedy depended upon playing off others and pricking pomposity.

Fortunately, Chaplin gets to make up for all this when his little tramp goes out to face the German foe. Here he can go all out with making his enemies look ridiculous, getting the most out of his varyingly-sized supporting players. We have Henry Bergman as a roly-poly German, Albert Austin as a gangly one, and best of all Loyal Underwood as a short but self-important German officer. This is Underwood's finest moment, and he really puts a lot of energy and spirit into the part. And Chaplin gets to set up some great routines, with some ingenious ways of defeating foes, not to mention one of his best ever entrances when he appears out of the landscape in his tree disguise.

And Chaplin was clearly savvy enough to realise that the beginning of the picture contained some fairly poor material. Consequently he edits in a handful of shots of antics in the German trench (with Underwood at his most animated), which serve as nothing more than a little touch of uproar, and a promise of things to come.

And now we must have that all-important statistic – Number of kicks up the arse: 7 (1 for, 0 against, 6 other)