The Masquerader (1914 film)
| The Masquerader | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Directed by | Charlie Chaplin |
| Written by | Charlie Chaplin |
| Produced by | Mack Sennett |
| Starring | Charlie Chaplin Roscoe 'Fatty' Arbuckle Chester Conklin Charles Murray |
| Cinematography | Frank D. Williams |
Production company | |
| Distributed by | Mutual Film |
Release date |
|
Running time | 13 minutes |
| Country | United States |
| Languages | Silent film English (Original titles) |
The Masquerader is a 1914 film written and directed by Charlie Chaplin during his time at Keystone Studios. This film stars Chaplin and Roscoe Arbuckle and has a running time of 13 minutes. It is the tenth film directed by Chaplin.
Plot
[edit]The film revolves around making films at Keystone Studios. Charlie plays an actor who bungles several scenes and is kicked off the studio. The next day a strange, beautiful woman appears to audition for the film - it's Charlie in disguise. After doing a perfect impersonation of a female, Charlie has drawn the attention of the director who hires the new "actress" for his films. The director gives the beautiful woman the men's dressing room to change in. While there, Charlie returns to his tramp costume. When the director returns looking for the woman, he finds Charlie and realizes he has been tricked. Angry, the director chases Charlie through the studio until Charlie decides to jump into what he thinks is a prop well. The film ends with the director and other actors laughing at Charlie as he is trapped in the bottom of a real well. The plot involving a man dressing up as a woman was quite popular in silent movies.
Reception
[edit]A reviewer from Bioscope wrote, "Here we have Mr. Chaplin rehearsing for a cinematograph production, in which he gives a really remarkable female impersonation. The makeup is no less successful than the characterization, and it is further proof of Mr. Chaplin's undoubted versatility."
Cast
[edit]- Charlie Chaplin - Film actor
- Roscoe 'Fatty' Arbuckle - Film actor
- Chester Conklin - Film actor
- Charles Murray - Film director
- Jess Dandy - Actor/villain
- Minta Durfee - Leading lady
- Cecile Arnold - Actress
- Vivian Edwards - Actress
- Harry McCoy - Actor
- Charley Chase - Actor
- Frank Opperman - Actor
See also
[edit]References
[edit]External links
[edit]- The Masquerader at IMDb
- The Masquerader on YouTube
- The Masquerader is available for free viewing and download at the Internet Archive
- The Masquerader on RetroFlix
 | This 1910s short comedy film–related article is a stub. You can help Wikipedia by expanding it. |
- 1914 films
- Short films directed by Charlie Chaplin
- American black-and-white films
- 1914 comedy films
- American silent short films
- Silent American comedy films
- Keystone Studios films
- Cross-dressing in American films
- Films produced by Mack Sennett
- 1914 short films
- American comedy short films
- 1910s American films
- 1910s short comedy film stubs