The Little Tramp vs. The Duke

Chaplin - a new musical!

Rob McClure as Charlie Chaplin

Let me be completely honest here: the only reason I saw the new musical, Chaplin, is because I had a friend playing in the band.  There, I said it.  I was pretty sure I wasn't going to enjoy it because, as you will know, the reviews weren't kind.  But I queued up at TKTS and got myself a pretty good seat in row L of the Ethel Barrymore Theatre, sculled a coffee and prepared myself for something ordinary.

You can imagine how surprised I was to be standing and cheering in the curtain-calls.

You know what? It's a good show.  It's not a great show - the 'commy' stuff in Act Two feels a bit out of place, although it's important, and some of the book is a bit hammy for my taste (it is essentially a 'rags to riches' musical - can it be done without ham?) - but there are definitely some catchy show-tunes amongst it all and, I'm sure, this is a musical which will have a long life in regional and amateur theater.  This production is well-sung, the pacing is good (for the most part) and the ensemble is very fine.  I must make special mention of Erin Mackey as Oona O'Neill - when she turns up in Act 2, she breathes great life into the proceedings.  She has an amazing voice.

But it is Rob McClure as Charlie Chaplin who had me cheering.  His performance is remarkable - I think it's much more than a mere impersonation, too.  Although there are great moments of comedy - the discovery of his 'Little Tramp' is inspired - there is real depth and sadness to his Charlie, too.  It's a powerful and thoughtful  piece of work and I genuinely hope he is remembered when the Tony nominations roll around in July.

Unfortunately, this show has only had a four-month run.  It closes in January.  I believe that the all-powerful New York theater critics killed this show, which is a shame.  The audience I saw it with absolutely loved it and I was certainly won over, too.

The Searchers (dir, John Ford, 1956) *****

It's always a special treat to see classic movies on the big screen.  The IFC Center on West Third Street plays weekend classics and I, by chance, had one of those moments where I could either see a new movie, or an old movie that I'd been wanting to see for some time.  I'm so glad I chose the latter.

The Searchers

John Ford's 'The Searchers' is a great western.  Some say it's the greatest of them all - I'm yet to decide (I still love Clint Eastwood's Unforgiven from 1992) but it is certainly a cinematic masterwork.  Surprisingly understated, Ford's epic deals with unusually heavy themes in the most fascinating yet minimal way.  The film is compelling through how little is said between the main characters - but somehow, everything is perfectly clear.  It is far more than just the story of a man searching for his niece, it is a character study of determination and commitment in the most difficult and heartbreaking of circumstances.  Throughout, extreme violence is only suggested and this makes the film so much stronger, especially perhaps in contemporary times; our imaginations are scary places to visit.  

Make sure you watch this film - it's a true 'classic'.  Plus, John Wayne is one cool dude duke.

At the end of the movie, even though there were only 10 of us there, we all clapped and the man in front of me stood up and said, "They don't make them like they used to, do they?"  For the record, I actually don't agree with that - I think there were both good and bad films then as there are now.  You just have to go searching for them.

Finally, and this is particularly important, if you're going to go to a costume party as someone from a western, make sure you remember to pull your pants up really high.  Several times during the film, it occurred to me that this shocking general-public costuming oversight needs to be immediately addressed.  You must get those pants right up to or, preferably, above your belly-button.  When else are you going to get the chance to be a Harry Highpants?  Wear your western pants properly or not at all.  I'm so glad we cleared that up.

(from L-R) - 1. Not quite high enough, 2. very good, 3. excellent, 4. oh, come on, you're not even trying.