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Henry Bergman, Charles Chaplin, Jackie Coogan, Babe London, Edna Purviance ... see more see more... , Loyal Underwood , Tom Wilson , Albert Austin

Charlie Chaplin's fourth film for First National is generally considered a lightweight entry and a throwback to earlier days. It begins with Charlie, Edna and their two boys leaving their house (actua... read more read more...lly a corner of Chaplin's studio at La Brea and De Longpre in Hollywood) for a day's outing. The family piles into the family flivver, and after Charlie's amusing efforts to keep the engine running, they arrive at a dock and board a crowded day cruiser. Charlie has a disagreement with another passenger (Tom Wilson), when he squeezes himself into a place on the bench next to the fellow's hefty wife, (Babe London). When Wilson tosses the famous derby onto the dock, Charlie races off the boat to get it. As the vessel pulls away from the dock, a large woman with a baby carriage tries to board, but ends up stretched between the dock and the boat. Charlie, returning with his hat uses her as a gangplank, then tries to pull her aboard with a grappling hook.Once the boat is under way, the passengers dance to the music of a small combo, but soon everyone is feeling the effects of the violently rocking cruiser. Charlie has to stop dancing with the lovely Edna to sit by the railing near the trombonist, whose own mal de mer turns the black man quite pale. Meanwhile, Edna and the kids are napping on deck chairs and Charlie decides to join them. In typical Chaplinesque fashion, he cannot seem to assemble his chair. Overcome by seasickness he collapses into the lap of the equally bilious Babe and is covered with a blanket by a helpful steward. When the lady's jealous husband returns with drinks he tries to attack Charlie, but becomes too nauseated to continue, of which the now recovered Charlie takes advantage.The return trip in the family car is equally eventful. Charlie runs afoul of a couple of traffic cops, is blocked by some irate pedestrians, one of whose foul language spurs Charlie to indicate the divine retribution awaiting him, and backs into a tar truck which spills its contents on the street. The cops, berating Charlie for blocking traffic, get stuck in the tar along with Charlie, but he cleverly steps out of his large shoes and drives off with his family, much to the amusement of the onlookers. This last scene may have originally been intended to occur earlier in the film, according to continuity sheets existing in the Chaplin archives, but was placed at he end of the film for the released version. ~ Phil Posner, Rovi

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46% liked it

106 ratings

Unrated, 20 min.

Directed by: Charles Chaplin

Release Date: December 15, 1919

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Flixster Reviews (22)


  • fb1142797643
    March 6, 2012
    fb1142797643
    The Little Tramp as a family man? It just doesn't seem right. Charlie takes his wife and two kids for an afternoon scenic cruise around the bay. Most of the time is spent on a rickety car, seasickness and a hard-to-assemble deck chair, plus there's a funny closing sequence involv... read moreing sticky, spilled tar. A rather half-hearted effort. Note: I was surprised to see someone called a "stupid ass" in this film from a more innocent time.
  • fb208103125
    April 16, 2012
    fb208103125
    A very short (17 minutes) two-reel comedy that relies solely on sight gags and not up to the usual standard of Chaplin's other shorts and features. While there are some humorous bits such as walking over the lady onto the boat, most of the gags fail to impress. While this is no... read morewhere near a "bad film" it certainly isn't Chaplin's best and far from his masterpieces, which were many. The film lacked a social commentary or any other deeper meaning in it's story and that made it rely solely on it's sight gags. All in all, I'll take and definitely appreciate viewing and acquiring any and all of Chaplin's works and this is no different but it's not one of his best.
  • September 30, 2009
    An early Chaplin short that showcased the Tramp not as a bum with a heart of gold but as a normal middle-class man who only wanted his family to have "A Day's Pleasure". The climactic "tar" sequence was hilarious and masterfully choreographed.
  • January 11, 2009
    The fourth short in the set seems like a step back in many ways. It was apparently a film made very quickly while he was preparing for his first feature, and it kind of shows. There?s nothing too bad about it, but it?s awefully slapstick and doesn?t show the same level of satir... read moreic wit that?s in Shoulder Arms or A Dog?s Life. Still, it has some amusing bits.

Critic Reviews


Dennis Schwartz
December 5, 2010
Dennis Schwartz, Ozus' World Movie Reviews

The film lacked Charlie's usual social commentary and relied totally on sight gags, which never registered as funny. Full Review

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