Chaplin vs. Keaton vs. Lloyd
Saturday, April 1, 2023 at 10:00PM ;)
Today marks a century since Harold Lloyd delivered his most legendary work to movie theaters. Safety Last! is a silent comedy classic, featuring such riveting stunts as the famous climax that finds our hero hanging from a clock. Though no other Lloyd picture has a comparable legacy, the man's filmography is a treasure trove for slapstick lovers with an inclination for bespectacled hunks. If you have any doubts, jump over to the Criterion Channel, where a new 42-title collection showcases the man's work from the late 1910s to the advent of sound and 1936's Milky Way. If you're not entertained, see a doctor, stat.
But of course, maybe Lloyd's not your preferred flavor of silent comedy. Amid the classic loving community, it seems everyone has a favorite from the three big names that defined Hollywood slapstick and continue to live in the public imagination. So, because this is a day for foolishness, why not indulge in pot-stirring drama and futile competition? Between Charlie Chaplin, Buster Keaton, and Harold Lloyd, who's your pick? Maybe it's…
CHARLIE CHAPLIN (1889-1977)
In terms of modern acclaim, the English menace that was Charles Chaplin is unbeatable. From his early days to way past the talkie revolution, from gag-punched melodrama to political cinema out to provoke, the man did it all and incurred the ire of many as he did it. And yet, there are those who criticize his sentimental streak, mocking some of Chaplin's most popular triumphs as maudlin. Others argue that there's a perfect balance between the mushy and the innovative in this auteur's oeuvre, leaving space for both utter sincerity and cold cynicism. Then again, it might just be the artist's maturing that leads The Kid maker to lecture the world through the murderous Monsieur Verdoux.
You can find many of Chaplin's best films on HBO Max, though the Criterion Channel also features a bunch of big hitters like the masterful Modern Times and the elegiac song of Limelight.
BUSTER KEATON (1895-1966)
Travel-sized hottie Buster Keaton is fondly known as The Great Stone Face for his stoic expression. If Chaplin embodied a trickster spirit on the silver screen, Keaton's persona was that of a sad sack plagued by misfortune, his gaze unwavering even as the universe conspires to make his life hell, if not a circus. The contrast between expressive filmmaking and an inexpressive leading man makes for electric comedy, like dry humor shot through with a pulse of formal madness and a maverick stuntman's physicality. More than most of his contemporaries, Keaton showed a willingness to play with the limits of filmmaking, testing its plasticity and metatextual properties in such masterpieces as Sherlock Jr. or The Playhouse. Confession time – Keaton has my vote among these three, but don't let that influence your opinion.
Buster Keaton's filmography is widely available on streaming and physical media. However, it's more dispersed than Chaplin's or Lloyd's. The Criterion Channel has a great many titles, but so do Kanopy, Paramount Plus, and other such platforms. Hell, many of Keaton's gaggiest achievements were in shorts, and a bunch of those are available on Youtube. So discover them and have a good laugh.
HAROLD LLOYD (1893-1971)
With matinée idol looks and a dangerous fearlessness about him, Harold Lloyd feels like the most traditionally heroic of the silent comedy gods. In some ways, his glasses-wearing character was a fresh-faced everyman whose backstory was wildly malleable, easily adapted into whatever scenario his next movie needed. Usually, a romantic element was included, a yearning softness that served as counterpoint to the stunt queen shenanigans that, in 1919 cost him two fingers. However, it'd be wrong to define Lloyd's screen persona without mentioning a modicum of self-awareness tinging the guy's boyishness, some disruptive notes that complicate the funny business and make his adventures feel singular.
High-energy physicality is showcased throughout Lloyd's extensive filmography, which includes over 200 titles. Most of the influential stuff is collected in the Criterion Channel program, though you'll also find many of his classics, like The Freshman and The Kid Brother, on HBO Max.
Considering all this, it's time for you to make your voices heard in the comment section. Also, vote on this poll:
Let's see who's the silent comedy auteur to end all silent comedy auteurs according to The Film Experience readership. May the battle begin!
Reader Comments (9)
Three geniuses.
Three different personas.
All legendary.
I have a special feeling for Lloyd, but they're equally giants.
For me it's all about Buster Keaton. Chaplin doesn't even come close... though I admit i need to get more familiar with Harold Lloyd
Keaton is my favorite by kind of a wide margin, which isn’t to say I don’t like Chaplin or Lloyd (I do), but Buster Keaton is one of my favorite directors and movie stars ever, not just of the silent era. Obviously he never adapted to sound as well as Chaplin and Lloyd did (for the latter, l would recommend The Milky Way as an underrated gem from his sound era), but his silent oeuvre was one of the most innovative runs any filmmaker has ever had. This is such a cliche, but he really was so far ahead of his time in how he approached filmmaking.
Each silent film star received an honorary Oscar.
Harold Lloyd was recognized at the 1953 ceremony. The moment was fleeting. The inscription read in part “master comedian and good citizen.” The latter description was considered a jibe at Charlie Chaplin who was a target of the House Un-American Activities Committee and had been denied entry into the U.S.
Buster Keaton was honored in 1959. From the New York Times on the day after ceremony, "A loud outburst of applause and cheers ensued. In the midst of the ovation, Mr. Keaton, sad-faced as in his movies, walked slowly across the emptied dance floor toward Mr. Hope. As he neared him, a large section of the audience rose in tribute to one of the masters of deadpan comedy. Mr. Keaton gave no indication that he was aware of the reception. He accepted the Oscar with a brief 'thank you' and, still without a shadow of a smile, trudged slowly back to his table in the ballroom of the Beverly-Hilton Hotel."
Charles Chaplin was honored in 1972. When Chaplin stepped on the stage, the audience cheered for an uninterrupted 12 minutes, the longest ovation in the history of the Academy Awards.
Bravo Chaplin!
I love all three but always had loved Lloyd more, then Chaplin, then Keaton... all three, groundbreaking and equally influential, not only on comedy
Chaplin as an all around performer.
Lloyd as a precise comic persona.
Keaton as a filmmaker.
To me, Chaplin is the only movie star bigger enough to represent cinema itself, all around the world.
Modern Times is a masterpiece never surpassed.
I voted for Chaplin as I just think he's a better filmmaker and a better actor but I think Keaton is funnier than Chaplin. Even in their scene in Limelight where Chaplin is the one doing all of physical stuff yet it is Keaton that remains still as he quietly upstages Chaplin. Lloyd I think is the better stuntman of the three. They're gods in cinema and honestly, I'm more impressed by what they do with stunts instead of.... blech... Tom Cruise. He is nowhere on their level. Jackie Chan is the closest thing to those 3 in terms of stunt work.
Re Buster Keaton:
“Why Every John Wick Sequel References the Same Comedy Legend” (Keaton)
A fun article over at Slate magazine, where Dana Stevens talks to John Wick director Chad Stahelski about how Stahelski uses Buster Keaton as a model for style, structure, and how to assemble gags. Both of them seem really well versed in Keaton’s work.