- Year :
- 1914
- Cast :
- Production :
- Keystone
- Description :
- Chaplin’s first tentative effort at both story and direction (whether partial or complete direction is subject to speculation) is a simple park comedy. Chaplin recalled in his autobiography that he made the film in a single afternoon. The Tramp’s first scene is memorable: upon seeing a couple kissing on a park bench, Charlie parodies their ardor by embracing a tree. On another park bench, a woman demands a present as proof of her fiancé’s love. The man (Chester Conklin) steals a watch as his gift. Charlie manages to procure the watch from the pickpocket and presents it to the woman himself. Their flirtation and the ownership of the watch creates pandemonium in the park with everyone but Charlie and the girl ending up in Westlake Park lake. Chaplin recalled in his autobiography how simple little tunes gave him the image for his comedies. For Twenty Minutes of Love 'full of cough stuff and nonsense in parks, with policemen and nursemaids, I weaved in and out of situations to the tune of ‘Too Much Mustard,’ a popular two-step [sic] in 1914.' Chaplin may be referring to story or gags. Chaplin’s claim to both story and direction is supported by the fact that he returned to the same premise the following year with In the Park (1915). Finished and shipped: March 28, 1914 Released: April 20, 1914 Scenario: Charles Chaplin Producer: Mack Sennett Director: Joseph Maddern/Charles Chaplin Length: One reel
- DVD & Blu-ray :