''The Face on the Bar Room Floor'' is a

short film A short film is any motion picture that is short enough in running time not to be considered a feature film. The Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences defines a short film as "an original motion picture that has a running time of 40 minutes ...

written and directed by Charles Chaplin in 1914. Chaplin stars in this film, loosely based on the poem of the same name by

Hugh Antoine d'Arcy Hugh Antoine d'Arcy (March 5, 1843 – November 11, 1925) was a French-born poet and writer and a pioneer executive in the American motion picture industry. He is known for his 1887 poem, " The Face upon the Barroom Floor", a sorrowful tale of a p ...

Synopsis

A devastated tramp (

Charlie Chaplin Sir Charles Spencer Chaplin Jr. (16 April 188925 December 1977) was an English comic actor, filmmaker, and composer who rose to fame in the era of silent film. He became a worldwide icon through his screen persona, the Tramp, and is consider ...

) visits a crowd-filled bar and recounts the story of how he fell in love with a woman and then had her taken by a friend of his. Drunk, he keeps trying to draw the woman's picture on the floor with a piece of chalk, and gets into fights with other men in the process. He eventually passes out “dead drunk” (thus deviating from the poem, where the protagonist actually falls “dead”) at the end of the film. According to Chaplin expert Gerald D. McDonald, "The subtitles of the film were lines from the poem, but the original verses were altered to match the Keystone credo that life is a funny game at best."

Reception

A reviewer for '' The Moving Picture World'' gave the film a favorable review, writing "Chas. Chaplain icwins new laurels in the leading part. This is bound to please.""Comments on the Films"
The Moving Picture World, August 29, 1914, p. 1241-1242

Cast

* Charles Chaplin - Artist/Tramp *

Cecile Arnold Cecile Arnold (born Cecile Laval Arnoux; July 9, 1893 – June 18, 1931) was an American silent film actress and Ziegfeld Follies girl. Early life Cecile Laval Arnoux was born in Louisville, Kentucky, on July 9, 1893, although some sources i ...

- Madeline *

Fritz Schade Fritz Schade (January 19, 1880 – June 17, 1926) was a German-born American film actor of the silent era. He appeared in 41 films between 1913 and 1918, including six films with Charlie Chaplin. His wife was the silent film actress Betty Sc ...

- Drinker * Vivian Edwards - Model * Chester Conklin - Drinker *

Harry McCoy Harry McCoy (December 10, 1893 – September 1, 1937) was an American film actor and screenwriter. He appeared in more than 150 films between 1912 and 1935. Early years McCoy was born on December 10, 1893, in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, ...

- Drinker *

Hank Mann Hank Mann (born David William Lieberman, May 28, 1887 – November 25, 1971) was a Russian Empire-born and American comedian and silent screen star who was a member of the Keystone Cops. According to fellow actor and original member of th ...

- Drinker *

Wallace MacDonald Wallace Archibald MacDonald (5 May 1891 – 30 October 1978) was a Canadian silent film actor and film producer. Biography MacDonald was born in Mulgrave, Nova Scotia, Canada, and attended school in Sydney, Nova Scotia. He started as a mess ...

- Drinker * Edward Nolan - Bartender

References

External links

* * 1914 films Silent American comedy films American silent short films American black-and-white films Short films directed by Charlie Chaplin 1914 comedy films 1914 short films Keystone Studios films Films produced by Mack Sennett Articles containing video clips American comedy short films Films based on poems Mutual Film films 1910s American films {{1910s-short-comedy-film-stub

Synopsis

Reception

Cast

See also

References

External links