Ember's analysis
- Pacing
- Brisk
- Intensity
- Moderate
- Complexity
- Easy to follow
- Violence
- Mild
- witty
- irreverent
- sardonic
- classic cinema night
- silent film program
What critics said
Critics broadly regard the film as a richly inventive and important Chaplin comedy, especially praising its economical construction, physical storytelling, and sharp ironic edge.
What sets it apart
May contain story progression spoilers
Charlie escapes prison in preacher's clothes and is mistakenly accepted as Devil's Gulch's new minister.
The famous sermon retelling David and Goliath is staged as an extended act of physical storytelling.
The sheriff takes Charlie to the Mexican border, where he must confront incompatible choices between imprisonment and danger.
The film's concluding border predicament undercuts a simple happy ending with pointed ambiguity.
Films like The Pilgrim, and why
The Gold Rush
silent slapstick comedy, mistaken identity, and a sympathetic outsider navigating a hostile community
The Kid
silent comedy built around an itinerant underdog, physical storytelling, and bittersweet social irony
Go West
silent-era western comedy, imposture, and comic tension at the edge of law and society
Movie Details
- Director
- Charlie Chaplin
- Release Date
- 1923-02-19
- Runtime
- 47 min
- Rating
- 6.9 / 10 (163)
Cast
- Charlie Chaplin
- Edna Purviance
- Sydney Chaplin
- Mai Wells
- Dean Riesner
- Charles Reisner
- Tom Murray
- Kitty Bradbury
- Mack Swain
- Loyal Underwood
Where to watch in United States
- Streaming
- Criterion Channel, FILMBOX+ Stream, FilmBox Live Amazon Channel
Streaming options come from TMDB and change over time.
Common questions
- What is The Pilgrim about?
- A fugitive in clerical disguise finds unexpected authority as a small-town preacher before the law pushes him toward an uneasy borderland choice.
- What is The Pilgrim like to watch?
- Ember's analysis rates the pacing of The Pilgrim as brisk, its intensity as moderate and its storytelling as easy to follow.
- Is The Pilgrim violent?
- Only mildly. Ember rates the violence in The Pilgrim as mild.
- What did critics think of The Pilgrim?
- Critics broadly regard the film as a richly inventive and important Chaplin comedy, especially praising its economical construction, physical storytelling, and sharp ironic edge.
- Which films are like The Pilgrim?
- Films with a similar feel include The Gold Rush, The Kid, and Go West.
- How long is The Pilgrim?
- The Pilgrim runs 47 minutes.
- Where can I watch The Pilgrim?
- In United States, The Pilgrim streams on Criterion Channel, FILMBOX+ Stream, FilmBox Live Amazon Channel.
