Tag: The Kid

Frasier (1993) s05e04 – The Kid

This episode picks up the morning after last episode, with Kelsey Grammer having to apologize to Peri Gilpin—who’s already decided she’s keeping the baby—for telling a party full of strangers about it. Grammer’s supportive, but thinks Gilpin needs to tell the dad.

Skip ahead to the apartment and David Hyde Pierce is also apologizing—him for being blotto at the party and making absurd accusations—before Gilpin comes over for dinner. There’s a short running gag about the Crane boys making Jane Leeves answer the door even though she’s cooking them dinner and a little about John Mahoney freaking out over Gilpin being unmarried, but pretty soon the supporting cast is out of the episode and it’s all Gilpin and Grammer.

Specifically it’s Gilpin, who’s got to tell the completely unawares dad-to-be (guest star Todd Babcock), with Grammer around for support. Babcock doesn’t react particularly well, which leads to some dramatics before the episode gets to a solid resolution. It’s easily the most Gilpin-focused episode of the series so far (fifth season and she had to get pregnant, but at least it’s not a disappointing Gilpin-emphasis episode like before).

The episode handles the friendship between Gilpin and Babcock exceedingly well, enough to make up for Grammer’s sort of baby steps into the dramatics of being a supportive friend. Grammer handles the parenting-to-be conversations fine (including a solid Lilith joke), though getting there isn’t easy. There’s an awkward eavesdropping on Gilpin and Babcock at the cafe sequence involving Mahoney; it’s actually a repeated gag from earlier (where it’s done a lot better).

The other big highlight is Gilpin getting to prank Dan Butler, which starts iffy but ends up glorious.

It’s an excellent episode for Gilpin, dramatically speaking, it’d just be nice to see her get a more comedically minded showcase as well.

The script credit is to Jeffrey Richman and Suzanne Martin (who got solo credit on the first episode in the pair); Jeff Melman directs. Not flashy direction from Melman but good and thoughtful, sort of like the script. The episode handles the seriousness of the situations well, even if they’ve rife with comedic potential (like what makes Babcock a peculiarity in Gilpin’s dating life), and emphasizes the character work first.

It’s a very successful episode. Even if it makes Mahoney seem way too old fashioned with the “getting herself a husband” stuff.

The Kid (1921, Charles Chaplin), the director’s cut

Some time after the halfway point in The Kid, it becomes clear the film isn’t going to end badly for its leads. Charlie Chaplin is the tramp, Jackie Coogan is his ward (a tramp in training). Chaplin, as a director, is fairly restrictive. Most of the action takes place on a few streets, primarily outside their apartment. Coogan breaks windows, Chaplin fixes them. They cook for each other. It’s adorable, if only because Coogan’s really cute and Chaplin’s very sincere in his performance as the unlikely caregiver.

But there’s not much depth to the relationship. Chaplin knows how to get an effective scene–he looks into the camera, sad, Coogan screams for him–but none of the scenes come off as honest. There’s an artifice to them. The Kid is pleasant enough to watch as the artifice is competent and the performances sincere, but Chaplin–as director–gets a lot more mileage out of scenes where he loses track of Coogan than ones with him.

With the notable exception of a rooftop chase sequence (Chaplin’s on the rooftop, Coogan’s in a car).

But when Chaplin’s unknowingly flirting with the local beat cop’s wife or trying to get out of a fight with the neighborhood bully? Those moments have a lot more creative energy.

Maybe it never really feels like Coogan’s part of the gag. Sometimes he is the gag.

And the ending is way too nice; following a Heaven-set dream sequence, it’s narratively awkward.

But The Kid is all right. Enough.

2.5/4★★½

CREDITS

Written, edited, produced and directed by Charles Chaplin; director of photography, Roland Totheroh; music by Chaplin; released by First National Pictures.

Starring Edna Purviance (The Woman), Jackie Coogan (The Child) and Charles Chaplin (A Tramp).

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