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The Gold Rush



The first feature-length comedy by Charlie Chaplin—which charts a hapless prospector’s search for fortune in the Klondike and his discovery of romance (with the beautiful Georgia Hale)—forever cemented the iconic status of Chaplin and his Little Tramp character. Shot partly on location in the Sierra Nevadas and featuring such timeless gags as Chaplin’s dance of the dinner rolls and meal of boiled shoe leather, The Gold Rush is an indelible work of nonstop hilarity. This special edition features both Chaplin’s definitive 1942 version, for which the director added new music and narration, and a new restoration of the original silent 1925 film.

Disc Features

- New high-definition digital restoration of the 1942 sound version, with uncompressed monaural soundtrack on the Blu-ray edition
- New 2K digital transfer of the reconstructed original 1925 silent film, restored in collaboration with the Cineteca di Bologna, with a newly recorded version of director Charlie Chaplin’s score, presented in 5.1 surround DTS-HD Master Audio on the Blu-ray edition
- New audio commentary for the 1925 version by Chaplin biographer and archivist Jeffrey Vance
- Three new programs: Presenting “The Gold Rush,” which traces the film’s history from original release to rerelease to 2003 reconstruction and features film historian Kevin Brownlow and Vance; Music by Charles Chaplin, featuring conductor and composer Timothy Brock; and Visual Effects in “The Gold Rush,” featuring effects specialist Craig Barron and Chaplin cinematographer Roland Totheroh
- Chaplin Today: “The Gold Rush” (2002), a short documentary featuring filmmaker Idrissa Ouedraogo
- Four theatrical trailers
- PLUS: A booklet featuring an essay by film critic Luc Sante and James Agee’s review of the 1942 version

Chaplin’s definitive 1942 version

I wonder if the Chaplin Estate had a hand in this release...

Yet they gave the 1925 version a new 2K scan. I guess that's why it took so long to realize. I can wait as long as needed if they are gonna do this for Chaplin releases, as the transfer on the European BD is atrocious.

I'd like to think of Criterion's decision to grace the 1925 cut with an audio commentary over the 1942 atrocity as them flipping a middle finger at Charlie's estate.

Finally. I actually didn't know about the recut until 5 years ago. Up until then, I had always watched the original cut on a VHS tape I made from an old AMC broadcast, back before TCM came along and stole their thunder. I taped it over, thinking it was readily available in the U.S., and when I rented the DVD, I thought "wtf, is this a documentary on the movie? Why the hell are they talking over it?"

Chaplin's masterpiece! Can't wait for this one

Does the 2K for the 1925 version mean (hopefully) it is Blu-ray? I can very well live without the 1942 mistake.

Both versions will be on the Blu-ray edition.

And if they did a new 2K scan of the 1925 version, it would be completely asinine not to transfer it in 1080p, although they don't specify that they have.

Unless this is one of those situations where an atypical frame rate means that it is best presented in 1080i.

hearthesilence wrote:Finally. I actually didn't know about the recut until 5 years ago. Up until then, I had always watched the original cut on a VHS tape I made from an old AMC broadcast, back before TCM came along and stole their thunder. I taped it over, thinking it was readily available in the U.S., and when I rented the DVD, I thought "wtf, is this a documentary on the movie? Why the hell are they talking over it?"

Yep, the old "Killiam Classics" version of the film that aired on AMC...I've still got a VHS copy of that one, which also features an excellent piano score to boot

Anyone know exactly what the issue is with the different running times of the old DVD (96 minutes) and new Blu-ray (89 minutes) of The Gold Rush '25? They're from the same Photoplay restoration, nothing appears to be missing, and from my rough calculations, it seems to be the difference between 22 fps and 24 fps.

Obviously, the 1942 version is run at full sound speed, 24 fps, so I wonder if the decision was made to simply do the same for the original. It would make a progressive job for the Blu-ray much easier and solve any timing issues with the adapted score written for the 1942 24 fps version.

Good question. Just did a comparison between the discs, and here's what I'm thinking:

The MK2 disc was based on a PAL version of the film. It's possible that the PAL version was timed to be around 92-93 minutes. So, slowed down for NTSC and that's about 3 minutes more, or 96. So what accounts for the other 3 minutes? Well, to my eyes, the Criterion seems to run faster than the PAL-NTSC MK2 version, so like you said it's probably the difference between 22fps and 24fps.

Yes, looks like it is a bump in the frame rate. I can get behind the decision to do 24 fps. We at least know Chaplin approved of the film being projected at that speed and after comparing the two the differences aren't that great; most of the time it looks very natural, any time it speeds up several notches it is correct to the action happening on the screen, never looks ridiculous or out of the ordinary.

I'm going to throw my hat into the aye-1925 transfer/nay-1942 transfer group - the 1925 shimmers, I prefer its contrast level (it's luminous in the same way the great Lucky Star Blu-ray is,) it is silky smooth in motion, the grain is often tighter, and the detail is at least as good and arguably better in many places. The damage doesn't bother me at all. I'd call the 1942 the muddy looking one - mushy grain, dull and dim - its only positive being the consistency of its source materials.

See also discussion here:
https://www.nitrateville.com/viewtopic.php?f=1&t=37481

July 03-04 posts discuss an interesting change, between 1925 and 1942, in the story and the ending.

The new restoration has "some seven minutes of additional footage discovered since its last reconstruction in 2012."
https://www.screenslate.com/articles/il ... ovato-2025

Stefan Andersson wrote: Fri Aug 15, 2025 9:19 pm The new restoration has "some seven minutes of additional footage discovered since its last reconstruction in 2012."
https://www.screenslate.com/articles/il ... ovato-2025

I really hope MoMA (or anyplace in NYC) shows it again beyond the one solitary screening. (I couldn't make it due to a prior engagement.)

On the restoration:
"in 1925, it was a silent picture, lasting ninety-five minutes and concluding with a kiss./.../ Chaplin, /..../, in 1942, brought forth a new version, with multiple trims, his musical score, and, /.../ a spoken narration. /.../ the kiss was cut. /.../. the latest restoration /.../ entailed reaching out to United Artists’ Japanese division; the Bundesarchiv, in Germany; the British Film Institute, in London; MoMA and the GEM film library, in New York; the Blackhawk collection, at U.C.L.A.; and the Filmoteca de Catalunya, in Spain. From the first of these sources came a duplicate negative /.../, which supplied almost seventy-seven per cent of the material. From the last of them came a positive print, which provided a mere .07 per cent, lasting fewer than five seconds"

The Ritrovato 2025 screening had "Chaplin’s own score for the movie, restored, adapted, and conducted by Timothy Brock"

Source:
https://www.newyorker.com/magazine/2025 ... estoration

New restoration on UHD:
https://shop.plaionpictures.com/goldrau ... hd-blu-ray

Notes mention the 1942 score; it´s probably "Music composed by Charles Chaplin for the sound version of 1942, adapted and directed by Timothy Brock for the 1925 version"
https://festival.ilcinemaritrovato.it/e ... gold-rush/

Interesting comment:
"reinstating a key moment reshot for the 1942 release adds pathos to the Tramp’s odyssey."
https://www.slantmagazine.com/features/ ... ival-2025/