Chaplin Today: The Gold Rush is part of the ten-episode documentary series, Chaplin Today that was created for French television. Each episode of the series examines one of Chaplin's feature films, providing great behind-the-scenes insights into how Chaplin made the movie, also the affect that particular film has had on contemporary filmmakers like directors Bernando Bertolucci, Costa-Gavra and Claude Chabrol. Also, actress Liv Ullman, all of whom contributed to the series. And for Chaplin Today: The Gold Rush, you'll meet filmmaker Idrissa Ouedraogo, a West African director who was exposed to the films of Charlie Chaplin as a child. He gives his thoughts on The Gold Rush and you'll see and hear from Lita Gray, who tells how she was cast as Chaplin's leading lady and why she had to leave that position. Her replacement Georgia Hale also discusses her memories of making that film. And we'll learn the unusual inspiration for one of the more memorable sequences in this film; when Charlie is so hungry that he actually eats his shoe.

Producer: Serge Toubiana
Director: Serge Le Peron
Cast: Idrissa Ouedraogo, Charles Chaplin.
BW & C-26m.

by Robert Osborne