Charlie Chaplin's "The Gold Rush" Screens Around the World

Following its premiere at the Cannes Film Festival, a newly restored 4K version of Charlie Chaplin‘s classic silent comedy The Gold Rush will be released in cinemas worldwide on June 26, one hundred years to the day that it first screened at the Egyptian Theater in Los Angeles. Organized by distributor mk2 films, the same-day global rollout will include more than 250 screenings spanning over 70 territories. 

First released in 1925, The Gold Rush was met with widespread critical acclaim. The first ever showing at the Egyptian Theater was a huge event, with newspaper advertisements promoting it as the "world's greatest premiere."

"At the Berlin premiere, the film was rolled back so that the 'Dance of the Rolls' sequence could be enjoyed for a second time." And, according to the mk2 press release, "At the Tivoli Theatre premiere in London, the BBC tried a sort of experiment—to record 'a storm of uncontrolled laughter, inspired by the only man in the world who could make people laugh continually for the space of five minutes, viz., Charlie Chaplin’, an achievement that proved to be an historic moment in film and broadcasting history."

In 1942, Chaplin re-released a “talkie” version, reissuing it with synchronised music and narration and re-editing the original camera negative. He removed all the titles, rearranged some sequences and discarded several scenes. He also took steps to ensure that all existing prints of the 1925 version were withdrawn. In 1993, Kevin Brownlow and David Gill reconstructed the film by combining the few surviving elements with the 1942 reissue, restoring the film as closely as is possible to how Chaplin first released it. (The 1942 reissue received two Academy Award nominations. And in 1992, the film was selected for preservation in the National Film Registry by the Library of Congress as being “culturally, historically, or aesthetically significant.”)

To mark the film's centennial, a worldwide search was launched to locate additional 1925 full-frame material. Following Brownlow and Gill's reconstruction, and thanks to the joint efforts of several film archives around the world, this new restoration offers an opportunity to see Chaplin's masterpiece closer to its original form.

The restoration was made possible by elements held by Roy Export, including materials originally  prepared for Kevin Brownlow and David Gill’s 1993 reconstruction, and by materials generously made
available by the BFI National Archive, Blackhawk Films and the Lobster Films collection, Das 
Bundesarchiv, Filmoteca de Catalunya, George Eastman Museum, and the Museum of Modern
Art (MoMA). The restoration itself was carried out by Fondazione Cineteca di Bologna at L’Immagine Ritrovata laboratory (Bologna), under the aegis of Association Chaplin and Roy Export SAS, with the support of mk2.

The music, originally composed by Charles Chaplin in 1942, was adapted, arranged, and conducted by
Timothy Brock for this restoration of the 1925 version of the film, and performed by Orchestra Città
Aperta.

 

The release of The Gold Rush was not only a important event in Chaplin's career as well as film history, but it also played a significant event in the life of Louise Brooks, who was not otherwise involved with the film. The film star and the aspiring actress met sometime after Chaplin arrived in New York City for the premiere of The Gold Rush at the local Mark Strand theater. Shortly afterward, the two enjoyed a short term romance fling. 

 

 

To accompany the special re-release of The Gold Rush, a new international poster has been unveiled, presenting a fresh design that aim to honor the timeless image of the Little Tramp. If you have the opportunity, go see The Gold Rush on the big screen!

 

THE LEGAL STUFF: The Louise Brooks Society™ blog is authored by Thomas Gladysz, Director of the Louise Brooks Society  (www.pandorasbox.com). Original contents copyright © 2025. Further unauthorized use prohibited. As an Amazon Associate, I earn from qualifying purchases.