Cut to the Chase: The Charley Chase Collection

This two-disc set presents 16 comedy shorts from a great silent-movie actor and slapstick comedian who emerged from the Keystone Cops to become a major star of the 1920s. Charley Chase hit his stride playing the dapper urban everyman in a series of smartly made two-reelers, and this collection features some of the best from his prime years of 1924–1926, most directed by the great Leo McCarey. The highlight is Mighty Like a Moose (1926), in which Chase's character, Mr. Moose, and his wife, Mrs. Moose (Vivien Oakland), transform themselves with cosmetic surgery and then no longer recognize each other. Considered not only Chase's best motion picture but also one of the greatest comedy shorts from the era (added to the National Film Registry in 2007), this mistaken-identity farce epitomizes Chase's charismatic screen persona while also underscoring the creative energy of his collaboration with McCarey. Another notable offering presented here is Isn't Life Terrible (1925), which includes a brief, uncredited appearance by Fay Wray. All of the films have been remastered from archival prints, including two shorts exclusive to this collection: The Uneasy Three (1925) and Charley My Boy (1926), both directed by McCarey. And all are silent with original scores by various composers performed by the Mont Alto Motion Picture Orchestra. A fine addition to any collection of classic cinema and a worthy companion piece to the works of Charlie Chaplin and Buster Keaton, this is recommended. (S. Axmaker)