User reviews

This was my first ever exposure to the works of Charlie Chaplin and remains one of my favorites. We watched THE IMMIGRANT at the introduction to our discussion of silent film in my film history class and it was this movie (as well as EASY STREET, my all-time favorite Chaplin) that solidified my Chaplin fandom. It's clever, funny, and tells a pretty coherent story over the course of its meager twenty-four minute run-time, which isn't necessarily the case for all his films in my opinion. Whereas some just seem to drop Chaplin in an amusing situation and let him do his thing (e.g. THE CURE, where he's let loose in a health spa), THE IMMIGRANT tells the brief story of…well…an immigrant. Chaplin's lovable tramp is one of many immigrants huddled aboard a ship bound for America where he hopes to make a new life. On his journey, he meets and falls for a beautiful woman making the journey to America with her ill mother. Upon making landfall, Chaplin is penniless (having given his gambling winnings to the beautiful woman after her mother's money was stolen) and hungry. He finds a coin in the streets and pops into a restaurant for a meal when he crosses paths with the woman again. He continues to woe her, hoping to win her heart while at the same time dodging the angry brute of a waiter who's not afraid to rough up patrons who try to skip out on a bill.

THE IMMIGRANT is one of the most consistently funny Chaplin short films I've had the pleasure of watching. The gags are funny and, unlike some of his other films, the jokes don't run on too long. As I mentioned before, I also love the fact that there's a solid little story in there. It's the usual stuff: boy meets girl, boy falls for girl, boy wins girl. We've seen the same thing in plenty of his films, but it's the jokes and visual gags that make each movie special. I love the entire restaurant sequence, with Chaplin caught between trying to win the woman's heart while quietly panicking over his restaurant bill when his coin is discovered to be bogus. It's a fun movie and that doesn't wear out it's welcome halfway through with stale gags. I always have a hard time writing comments on Chaplin's films and putting up a convincing argument for new people to check them out; these movies were made before cinematography was more than some basic lighting and a locked down camera so there really isn't much to say aside from…it's funny. Check it out. It won me over and, if you've never seen it, it might win you over as a Chaplin fan too.

In 1917, immigration in America lit the fire of a widespread xenophobic sentiment leading to the infamous "Immigration Act" that barred the road to such undesirables as "criminals", "anarchists", "homosexuals", "beggars" or "feeble-minded persons". In a fitting coincidence, the same year, Charles Chaplin made "The Immigrant", if not the best, the most prophetic of what would become one of Cinema's most valuable and influential talents.

Given the historical context of the "Immigration Act", one must wonder in which "category" the Tramp would have fallen had he existed: he's naive, quite atypical, broke, and the way he kicks one of Ellis Island's agents is such an equivocal image that it would be used by the HUAC to demonstrate Chaplin's Anti-Americanism. Yet the film doesn't make obvious statements regarding immigration: in the steamer that crosses the Atlantic in the beginning, there are pickpockets, gamblers and cheaters, probable criminals but there are also decent and honest people as well. And ultimately, there is the Tramp.

In simpler words, without immigration, the world wouldn't have discovered Charlie Chaplin, and that was enough a reason to make a film about the subject. "The Immigration" was Chaplin's first self-immersion into his own creations when the Tramp ceased to be a vagabond coming from nowhere and going anywhere, he and Chaplin would make one. It's a turning point in Chaplin's body of work as every film would echo a part of his own history. Yet, despite its serious undertones, the film is light-hearted not to deprive the theme from its gravity, but maybe because immigration carried positive feelings like ambition, solidarity and hope for brighter futures. "The Kid" would cover more solemn subjects.

"The Immigrant" is divided in two acts: the first is set in the ship, the second in a restaurant. Through a laudable effort of mise-en-scene and storytelling, Chaplin manages to pull these two parts together so they don't feel disjointed. The first sequence shows a steamer crossing the Atlantic, full of archetypal emigrants: bearded men with towering hats, and heads-carved women. It's moving as it depicts a part of America's history still recent at that time, and simultaneously, it creates a funny contrast with the moderately exotic Tramp: his presence among the immigrants is enough to bring the first laughs.

At the arrival in New York, the sight of the Statue of Liberty rewards the patience of these people who underwent persecutions, poverty, hunger and probably the worst of all, seasickness. The 'boat' part is the more emotionally and politically charged, and in its way, it elevates the film above the standards initially set by Chaplin. The Ellis Island part even reminds of "The Godfather Part II", without the sepia tones. Still, Chaplin knows that the audience expect laughs, that the transition between comedy and drama shall not be abrupt, hence the slapstick use of the boat's movements (that maybe inspired these Tex Avery gags where characters felt sick by watching a random sea-picture going up and down).

And this running gag foreshadows the use of moving objects in Chaplin's humor, from the blizzard blowing people away in "The Gold Rush", to the elevating chairs in "The Great Dictator". Other hints, more serious this time, of his later works are present through the character of the Girl (Edna Purviance) with her ill mother. The Tramp wins some money after a card game, and surreptitiously put his win in the girl's pocket, ignoring that it came from the man who stole her. This is the typical example of Chaplin's humanity: helping without expecting recognition; it's "City Lights". And naturally, it's the perfect plot device so that, victim of his own generosity, he arrives is New York, with a full heart and empty pockets.

The second part is more of a sketch, but this is not to diminish it. Chaplin goes to the restaurant, not noticing that the coin he found on the street went through the hole in his pocket. He meets the poor little immigrant who just lost her mother and to complete the picture, there is the big and burly waiter played by Eric Campbell, Chaplin's archenemy, in one of his last roles. Campbell is equal to Chaplin, almost stealing the show as the waiter who violently ejects a poor client short of 10 cents. The violence only serves the gags, when Chaplin realizes he doesn't have the money and tries to hide it from the waiter, watch the body language of the two actors, you could tell there was a great complicity between both. It's not only funny, but it's probably one of the few comedy moments relying on a form of thrilling suspense.

The ending is a bit rushed, but the essential was there, promising greater films to come. If not the best or the most memorable of his films, with its share of gags, and its serious undertones; it's one of Chaplin's most defining works, especially regarding the context of the film. 1917 wasn't only the year of the Immigration Act, it was the pinnacle of WWI, while the Bolshevik revolution planted the seeds of a New Order. Only a director like D.W. Griffith could embody the transformations that Modernity was applying to the world, in sweat, blood and tears. "The Immigrant" doesn't have the epic scope of "Intolerance", not even the pretension to compete with "The Birth of a Nation", but within its own simplicity, the film highlights the birth of a new talent, not of an actor, but of a director.

Indeed, if Charlie Chaplin is my favorite movie director, it's less because I believe he is the best, but because I believe his contribution to cinema as an artistic art form has never been equaled, not in his lifetime, not even after. The revolution he brought up in 1917 relies less on technicality than a particular skill in terms of storytelling in the way they vehicle a wide range of emotions in one single scene.

This legendary comedy stands as one of Charlie Chaplin's great achievements, a seamless blend of humor, romance, suspense and social commentary, all packed into an 18-minute running time! It's especially impressive when you consider that only three years earlier Chaplin was a complete novice at movie making, cranking out reels of often crude and chaotic slapstick for Mack Sennett. But in The Immigrant, Chaplin displays a self-assured command of contemporary film-making skills (i.e. cinematography, editing, and basic story structure) equal or superior to that of the era's top directors. Most impressive of all is Charlie himself: his iconic character is in full bloom, fresh and funny and full of life. He's a marvel, and a joy to watch.

The first half of this film is set on the sort of beat-up, wildly rocking cattle boat that served as passage to America for an entire generation of immigrants in the late 19th and early 20th centuries, and it's certain that many of the people who saw The Immigrant when it was new could relate to the experience first-hand. Charlie is one of a large group of voyagers, seemingly of Eastern European origin (although this is never specified) emigrating to the United States. Some viewers may find the humor in these scenes vulgar, what with the relentless sea-sickness motif. The very first shot of the film suggests that Charlie is already suffering from a violent bout of mal-de-mere, although a surprise twist reveals we've jumped to the wrong conclusion. Whether you find these gags amusing or not, they're based on harsh reality only slightly exaggerated for comic effect; after all, before he was famous Chaplin himself came to America with the Fred Karno comedy troupe in a boat not unlike the one seen here, and his memory of that experience must still have been fresh -- unpleasantly so.

In any event, the highlights of the shipboard sequence include Charlie's attempts to navigate the slick floor of the dining hall, his meeting with Edna and her mother, and a game of cards with fellow passengers, including one burly guy with a very bad temper. The first half closes with one of Chaplin's most famous gags: as the immigrants get their first view of the Statue of Liberty the camera lingers for a moment on their expressions, at which point they are suddenly pushed back behind a rope line and then herded through customs like cattle by brusque, uniformed officials. As this takes place, Charlie sneaks a quick look back at the horizon, as if wondering whether Miss Liberty is really out there after all, and then he manages to give one of the rude officials a swift kick. A most satisfying moment, that.

The second half of The Immigrant takes place in a restaurant, and this sequence is a comic tour-de-force in and of itself. Charlie, hungry and broke, enters the restaurant thinking he has at least enough money to pay for an order of beans and a cup of coffee. When he realizes he's mistaken about his ability to pay, his prime objective is to escape the wrath of enormous waiter Eric Campbell, who is almost as menacing here as he was playing the bully in Easy Street. Campbell is a huge factor (so to speak) in making this sequence work so beautifully, as he had a knack for portraying comic villainy in a way that was both funny and genuinely frightening; Charlie's fear at what may happen if he fails to pay his check feels very believable. The many ingenious devices Charlie contrives to avoid facing the music make up the rest of the show, and as the suspense mounts the gags get funnier. (It was interesting to learn from the documentary "Unknown Chaplin" that this sequence was written and filmed first, and that the lead-in material on the boat was devised afterward.) It's in the restaurant that Charlie also reunites with his shipboard sweetheart Edna. Their relationship feels natural, touching, and real, and provides this wonderful comedy with an appropriately poignant finale.

The Immigrant is one of Chaplin's early short films, with a very simple story but Chaplin makes it work. The thing that makes this early short film work so well is Chaplin's skill at slapstick comedy, it's so much fun to watch him try to deal with these endless predicaments that he gets into that you don't even pay attention to the simplicity of the story.

The majority of Chaplin's early films, particularly the short films like The Immigrant, are little more than brief comedy skits. But the value here does not lie in the story of the film, it lies in seeing how well Chaplin fits the role and how entertaining it is, even by todays standards, to watch his face as he realizes that he has dropped his money, after watching a man get beaten up for being ten cents short. The Immigrant is a classic because it is a Charlie Chaplin film, and really for no other reason. Chaplin makes it work, and he does it extremely well.

The first half of 1917 saw Charlie Chaplin taking a more deliberate pace constructing his movies for his employer, Mutual Film Corporation Films. And he added a dose of societal moral commentary into his productions, a new twist in the comedian's platform for entertaining his fans.

During that six-month period Chaplin produced only three two-reelers. (At Keystone, he sometimes churned out one 15-minute movie every week.) He was becoming more of a perfectionist with his every film. When June 1917's "The Immigrant" was completed, he had only one additional film to make for Mutual under their contract obligations, missing the non-binding loose schedule by nine months.

Critics, however, saw the meticulous work of Chaplin as nothing short of enthralling. In "The Immigrants," as the British-born actor was himself belonging to that group, Chaplin examined the assimilation and financial plight of foreigners settling in the United States from their native countries. He uses as a symbol of such constrictions facing the relocating people by the actions of an immigration official roping off the departing passengers into a tight corner as they pass by the Statue of Liberty. Soon after his confinement, Chaplin kicks an immigration official in the butt. The scene was brought up as evidence during his exportation review by United States government officials looking into his anti-Americanism during the early 1950's "Red Scare" period.

Reflecting Chaplin's obsession to detail in "The Immigrants," he shot 90,000 feet of footage--90 reels--for this two-reel picture. The restaurant scene following the immigrant ship embarkation typifies the amount of retakes Chaplin demanded before satisfied with a scene. A simple eating sequence for Edna Purviance turned out to be quite unsettling for her stomach when she ate so many beans required in the script and by Chaplin, making her physically ill.

CHARLIE CHAPLIN and EDNA PURVIANCE are excellent together in this early Chaplin short covering his arrival by boat in the USA as "The Tramp" who has barely a penny to his name. The first sequence aboard ship is especially well done, full of the kind of sight gags and slapstick humor involving him and the other passengers that would make him the most famous comedian of his time.

Then the tender relationship with equally poor girl Edna Purviance and the second sequence devoted to establishing their relationship during a restaurant meal. Deftly comic moments where timing is everything are contributed by the menacing head waiter ERIC CAMPBELL, who has just thrown out a customer ten cents short of his bill. The fun begins when Charlie realizes whatever money he had from winning at cards has slipped through the hole in his pocket. A cat-and-mouse game with the waiter is played for laughs as Charlie seizes every opportunity to delay paying the bill until he accidentally finds some cash.

Chaplin fans can't afford to miss this one. Both halves of the story are played to perfection.

The Immigrant (1917) : Brief Review -

Can cinematography create Comedy? Don't say No because this film proves it. A Fun-Tastic Romantic Comedy! The Immigrant stars Charlie Chaplin as an immigrant coming to the United States who is accused of theft on the voyage across the Atlantic Ocean and falls in love with a beautiful young woman along the way. Just try to think about it, what ideas this title gives you and how much longer can you hold onto it. Sounds peculiar to have an Immigrant's story make too much sense, aint it? Well, not anymore. Comedy has regular sources which brings laughter such as physical, slapstick, tricks, stunts, adventure and whatever else you think fits here can be considered. But have you ever considered camera work as a source of Comedy? I did not, really. But that's before watching this film. Now i believe it. So, the first half of the film takes place on a steamship which of course keeps shaking as it is floating, but the use of camera here is immensely skillful. You see, this is not the only film to have scenes on ship but i guarantee you that the use of natural resources like sea waves was never done so practically innovative before. That dinner table scene and almost every scene on Ship is with the screen swinging like a pendulum. What a great experience it was. And what's more that it creates a comedy from it, i mean how? And all this in 1917, exactly 104 years back??? I don't see even today's filmmakers going creative like that and then i have to believe that Chaplin and his team did this all a century ago. Don't ask anything, because i don't have anything to say on this. I'd rather just clap for The Immigrant team for making me believe that the cinema was much more creative 100 years ago than today, even with short films. The Immigrant has everything you wish for- romance, comedy, drama, human emotions and last but not the least, that feel of life.

RATING - 7/10*

By - #samthebestest.

THE IMMIGRANT (Mutual Studios, 1917), Written, directed and starring Charlie Chaplin in his eleventh short subject for Mutual, is another well-produced comedy with a good mix of proper story and funny sight gags. Though the film itself could have developed into feature length form, allowing more plot and character development to Chaplin's title role and others around him, the end result, is a story divided in two parts: the first being an introduction of Charlie and other immigrants before they just come off the boat; the second with Charlie in America waiting his ship to come in.

PART ONE: The opening introduces an assortment of various immigrants gathered together on a boat crossing the Atlantic Ocean awaiting their arrival to the land of opportunity. One of the immigrants is a nameless passenger whom will be classified as Charlie (Charlie Chaplin). As he tries keeping balance and avoiding seasickness as the ship sways back and forth in seesaw fashion, Charlie, unable to eat a hearty meal, offers his seat in the mess room to a young girl (Edna Purviance) traveling on board with her widowed mother (Kitty Bradbury). On deck playing a game of cards, one of the players (Henry Bergman) sneaks away long enough to lift the entire life savings from Edna's sleeping mother to use for further gambling purposes. However, it's Charlie who wins the cash. After learning of Edna's misfortune, Charlie, as a friendly gesture, offers her his winnings. As the ship passes the Statue of Liberty and docks on Ellis Island, the passengers part company. PART TWO: Charlie, broke and hungry, finds a coin (possibly a silver dollar) resting on the sidewalk and uses it to spend on a square meal at a nearby restaurant. While there, Charlie reacquaints himself with Edna, inviting her to accompany him for dinner. After Charlie witnesses what happens to a diner who's ten cents short on his bill by a giant-sized waiter (Eric Campbell), also his server, Charlie discovers, to his shocking surprise, the coin to pay for he and Edna's meal is gone!

Others featured in the cast of Chaplin stock players include: Albert Austin (Man in restaurant); Frank J. Coleman (Immigrant/ Restaurant Manager), John Rand, James T. Kelly and Loyal Underwood. Take notice Henry Bergman can be spotted playing two different roles, that of a shipboard passenger, another as an accomplished artist.

Once again, Charlie presents himself as both gentleman of nerve and gentleman of heart. Though it's never fully realized of Charlie's country origin, one would assume that since Chaplin is of British birth that his character is one coming to America from his native England. A funny and agreeable silent comedy with some truly classic scenes, the best saved for its second half in the restaurant involving Chaplin and his Goliath-sized waiter (Campbell).

For the documentary, "Unknown Chaplin," it was profiled as to how THE IMMIGRANT was developed. Using existing outtakes showing Henry Bergman playing the waiter, it's been said that Chaplin found something not right with the picture. Once substituting Bergman with the fierce looking Campbell, the restaurant scene developed into one of the funniest sequences in the entire movie. Sources note that when THE IMMIGRANT was completed, Chaplin had as much as 90,000 feet of negative, having Chaplin himself spending four days and nights editing and putting the pieces together to his satisfaction, which indicates what a perfectionist Chaplin was and how dedicated he was to his craft. Even the final result is atypical Chaplin, making this every bit worth his lost coin of admission to see.

Reviewed from 1990s video cassette copy from Blackhawk/Republic Home Video distribution, the twenties-style orchestration and sound effects on the soundtrack from 1930s reissue simply turns this into pleasant viewing experience. Restored prints with clear visuals, new orchestration and silent speed projection (30 minutes from standard 21) from KINO Video, availability on VHS or DVD, is the print occasionally used for Turner Classic Movies broadcasts (TCM premiere: December 6, 1999). Beware of some poor copies of THE IMMIGRANT and some with missing opening inter-title, "A widow and her daughter" pertaining to Edna and mother) with inappropriate/ bad scoring that hurts the significance of such a great comedy classic. Next Chaplin Mutual comedy: THE ADVENTURER. (****)

I kind of missed the boat on "The Immigrant", although it did raise an occasional chuckle. Reading the plot synopsis on Wikipedia, there's quite a bit that went over my head. Perhaps I'm just not used to silent comedies yet.

You can't really take your eyes off the screen for one second in one of these movies.

The set-up is very similar to "The Adventurer", also made in 1917. Charlie is first seen escaping - this time from a foreign country as he arrives at America by boat. Again he falls for a woman played by Edna Purviance, and again he's menaced by a huge man with demonic eyebrows played by Eric Campbell. Chaplin typically tries to do the right thing, but is often foiled and misunderstood.

I'm going to watch more Chaplins. Hopefully I'll come to understand them better, and maybe I'll revisit this one and get more out of it.

"The Immigrant" was the film that changed my entire perception of Chaplin. I had no idea whatsoever that a silent film could actually make me laugh much less tell a coherent story.

The way Chaplin set up the boat scene was excellent. It was filthy, overcrowded, and uncomfortable and it made me want to "root" for the prosperity of the immigrants. The writing was again much better than I could have expected such as in the scene where he gives his winnings to a poor woman but is mistaken for stealing them. The audience found the flip flopping of dishes (and passengers) on deck to be very funny. I thought it to be a bit schticky, but pleasantly humorous.

The restaurant scene however, left an impression on me that I will hold onto my entire career in film. The beans in the coffee and the imposing thug waiter were a hoot but I particularly liked his methods of peaks and valleys and letting the audience in on secrets while masking them from the characters. These techniques kept us interested such as when he finds the coin (peak), loses the coin (valley, secret), then snakes the artist's tip to pull off paying for the meal (peak, secret). It wasn't so much the antics or writing of that particular scene that affected me though they were outrageously comical. It was rather, a realization that I was in a room with a large majority of teenagers many of whose grandparents weren't even born when this film was made yet these teenagers were all laughing hysterically. How is it that a man's writing and performance make men, women and children laugh in the 20's, 50's, 70's, AND 90's? The answer is immortal comedy that can only be considered the work of a genius.

Chaplin plays an immigrant on a ship bound for America. While on the ship, he helps a fellow immigrant, Edna Purviance, whose mother had been robbed. Chaplin meets Purviance later at a restaurant where they are spotted by an artist who hires them to be models. Chaplin uses the advance to buy a wedding license.

"The Immigrant" is generally considered to be one of Chaplin's finest shorts. That is true. It is one of his funniest. However, I do not consider it as finely-crafted on the whole as many of the other Mutual films. "The Immigrant" feels like two separate one-reelers, featuring the some of the same characters, strung together. We have a shipboard reel and a restaurant reel. The only common characters from both segments are Chaplin and Purviance. (I don't count members of the stock company who appear in both segments as different characters.) There is no overarching plot combining the segments, and the film also suffers from the lack of a consistent heavy throughout. This weak story structure hampers the overall effectiveness of the short, but doesn't detract too much from comedy. The first segment has some of the more elaborate gags, like eating dinner on the wave-tossed ship, but I prefer the more subtle humor of the second half as Chaplin tries to figure out how to avoid the wrath of his tough waiter when he discovers he doesn't have any money to pay for his meal.

Much political hay is made of Chaplin kicking the immigration officials after the ship passes the Statue of Liberty. Leftist supporters look at it as an early example of his "heroic" anti-totalitarian political sentiments, while critics take it as a nasty, early anti-American statement. I believe both groups are guilty of wrongly transposing the political sensibilities of the late-forties and early- fifties back into the teens. Robinson's excellent book "Chaplin: His Life and Art" thoroughly examines the issue and shows that Chaplin intended no political message. (Write something like that on the Chaplin newsgroup and watch people argue for months!)

Charlie, however, would have plenty of time for politics later!

'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.

A Chaplin film that's well worth watching, with plenty of clever gags, though it seems to me two scenarios bolted together rather than a well-integrated narrative. Regardless, it's one of Chaplin's better Mutual productions, and Edna Purviance is at her best in this role.

Now, to the point raised by my review title. The Fondazione Cineteca di Bologna / Lobster Films restoration released by Flicker Alley, Inc. in 2014 is the source for the following:

The oft-repeated claim "Chaplin kicked an Immigration/Customs employee" in 'The Immigrant' seems to never have been challenged or corrected. Whether the result of an honest misreading of the film or an intentional political smear, no such incident occurs in the film.

The scene in question starts at the 11:00 mark. The immigrants are still on board ship, waiting to disembark.

The ship's captain - who appeared earlier in a scene where he accused Charlie of being a pickpocket -- is sitting at a small desk with the passenger manifest in front of him. One of the crew members roughly corrals the immigrants with a long rope as if they were livestock. (This same crew member had earlier dished food to the immigrants while the boat rocked madly and bowls of soup slid from one side of the table to the other.)

Charlie reacts to being treated like cattle and kicks the crew member. A few moments later the crew member kicks Charlie in return.

Immigration/Customs officials make no appearance whatsoever in the film. The immigrants presumably will not encounter any officials until they reach the bottom of the gangplank, but we never see that as the scene ends before that point. All we see is the immigrants being checked off the passenger manifest by the captain of the ship and a crew member getting a well-deserved comeuppance.

I have no idea if Chaplin or his legal representation ever rebutted the government's spurious claim, but if they did, it doesn't seem to have ever become part of the public record.

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.

This film is very much split in two, with the first part showing the tramp on one of the immigrant ships coming to America. Here he gambles, flirts and gets into trouble, just like you would expect. It's not just goofing, though, as you get a very clear glimpse into his conscience. There's also a scene where he wields a gun. The tramp character aiming at someone is slightly unnerving! The other half of the film is the most enjoyable one. The tramp, now on land, finds a coin and goes to buy some food at a restaurant. He ends up losing the coin and, well, there's more flirting and more getting into trouble.

There's several gags in this that are very nice, and some that you have seen before. There's some interesting movie magic when it shows the ship hitting the waves (one where they are obviously only moving the camera, and the other where they are moving the entire set). It's a nice little Chaplin short, so if that's what you're after, you won't go wrong with this one.

Charlie Chaplin is an immigrant who endures a challenging voyage and gets into trouble as soon as he arrives in America.

This is Chaplin and the tramp as you expect him. Innocent, courteous, and having misfortunes come his way. We have a rocking boat that is not unlike the gag in "Gold Rush" (though it makes more sense here). And, of course, there is a girl. The tramp is always after the ladies.

Some people have tried to get a social or cultural message out of this picture. And yes, there most likely is one. But the real joy is just seeing Chaplin in action. The film has been very well preserved and will be enjoyed for years to come. (I write this in 2015, so the film is almost 100 and still holds up just fine.)

There were some fun sequences, but it was pretty lacking compared to his later work.

A few laugh out loud moments but to be quite honest I didn't find it especially entertaining. Thankfully, it's quite short and so I found it better to just enjoy it like a historical document, and not as a great comedy.