Movie review: The Champion (1915) and Battling Butler (1926)

Before talking pictures (the 'talkies') were invented, people were entertained moving pictures (the 'movies'). There's nothing more entertaining than comedy, so let's travel back through time and reminisce about some old boxing comedies.

The Champion (1915)

Charlie Chaplin's name is synonymous with facial hair that fell out of fashion in the 1940s, silent movies (somewhat ironically), and slapstick comedy. The renown for the latter two probably set my expectations a little too high.

'The Champion' is the kind of silent film you think of when you think of silent films. It's a bit dull because the story exists only in service to the gags, the problem is that these gags were ran into the ground like bunker busters over the course of the 20th century. Almost every cliche you can think of makes an appearance and given that this was made during the infancy of cinema there was never a chance that any tropes would be subverted.

A two-reel movie, in the first act Chaplin's Tramp character takes up work as a sparring partner (hijinks ensue) and in the second act we get the fight (hijinks ensue). There's a lot of great physical acting in this one but I wouldn't call it must-see. At only 30 minutes long it's pretty forgettable apart from a comically large BEER jug and one very creative joke mid-fight.

Years later, Chaplin would have another swing at finding the funny side of boxing in 1931's acclaimed 'City Lights'. As the swan song of what silent movies could be in a world of talkies, that one is must-see.

Final Review Scores
In a word: hooey
In a slapstick classic: Absent-mindedly turning around while holding a long object
In a number: 6.30
In an emoji: 🕶️
In a constellation: Microscopium (my-cruh-SCOPE-ee-um)

'The Champion'
Directed, written by, and starring Charlie Chaplin
Runtime: 00:30:42

Battling Butler (1926)

Billed as "the biggest comedy of history" at the time, 'Battling Butler' was originally a three-act Broadway book musical but you wouldn't be able to tell from watching it. This is, as the Germans would call it, kino. After the European war of the 1910s devastated the continent, Hollywood would dominate global film in the 1920s and beyond. The movies became longer, the stories more ambitious, and tramps would eventually fade into obscurity. A key cinema innovation since the 1910s was the introduction of arcs. One year before the first talkie, director and lead actor Buster Keaton plays Alfred Butler, the comically pampered and limp-wristed son of a wealthy family. Alfred's father suggests that a hunting trip would do the boy some good in becoming a real man.

It's pretty creative to subvert the usual story of boxers being working-class and there are some pretty funny jokes in this one. Out in the woods, Butler's butler sets up their tent (complete with a bearskin rug) and on this trip they meet the leading dame, played by former vaudevillian Sally O'Neil. There's a romance plot in 'The Champion' too but this one actually matters.

Alfred wants to marry the girl and, as he does with all things, asks the butler to arrange it for him. The men of her family aren't too keen on the idea of her marrying such an effeminate manchild, so the butler tells them all that Alfred Butler is actually Alfred "Battling" Butler, a boxer in the newspaper who happens to have the same name. Hijinks ensue.

The crux of the movie is keeping up that lie. Besides the story there's some good cinematography, the costumes and set designs are all on point, and there's not much overacting in this one as all the characters are played convincingly. You know what though? You should stop reading this and go watch it. It's a great movie. Wouldn't you rather be surprised than me just telling you what happens?

WARNING: HERE BE ENDING SPOILERS

WARNING: HERE BE ENDING SPOILERS

WARNING: HERE BE ENDING SPOILERS

WARNING: HERE BE ENDING SPOILERS

WARNING: HERE BE ENDING SPOILERS

For the soulless individuals who scrolled down without a care in the world for art, the lie escalates and Alfred Butler (the rich kid) ends up training to take the place of Alfred "Battling" Butler (the boxer) in a fight against the wonderfully named 'Alabama Murderer'. Of course, the twist is that the challenger wouldn't let some nobody effete put a loss on his record. And this is where the story ended in the stage play.

Ending with revealing the prank is fine for a vaudeville-era act but this is cinema. There has to be drama and emotion, audiences should get a narrative climax and this is a nice ending as the fraud Butler gets to put his training to use in a real fist-fight against "Battling" Butler. The whole point of the story was making Alfred Butler into a real man, and even in the 1920s they knew it had to be done through boxing. This movie understands the sport well. Right down to a tragically on-point detail of Alfred "Battling" Butler giving his wife a black eye.

Final Review Scores
In a word: Sepia
In a sentence: There sure is a lot of music in this silent movie
In a number: 8.4
In an emoji: 🦣
In a bird egg: Limpkin

'Battling Butler'
Directed by Buster Keaton
Starring Buster Keaton, Sally O'Neil, and Snitz Edwards
Based on the 1922 play 'Battling Butler'
Runtime: 01:16:56