Charlie Chaplin: official website
Anyone looking to get into silent film, I&#x27;d strongly recommend comedies (including, and perhaps especially, Chaplin and Keaton) as a good starting point. I&#x27;ve gotten to the point that I can truly enjoy a lot of silent dramas, but IMO the comedies are far more approachable for a modern audience. Good gateway drug.<p>Just off the more famous films (<i>The Great Dictator</i> and <i>Modern Times</i> and maybe <i>City Lights</i> for Chaplin, or <i>The General</i> for Keaton, say) I&#x27;d recommend <i>The Kid</i> for Chaplin, and <i>Sherlock, Jr.</i> for Keaton. And of course both made numerous short films, in addition to their features. Though the very-famous ones are all great, too—I especially love <i>City Lights</i>, personally.<p>Been meaning to check out Harold Lloyd (responsible for one of the most enduring and imitated images in Hollowood, the guy hanging on the clock on the side of a building, featured in <i>Safety Last</i>) but haven&#x27;t made it to him yet. I bet he &quot;reads&quot; pretty well to a modern viewer, too.<p>[EDIT] Some beginner drama recommendations, for those who feel ready:<p>Metropolis (duh... though it&#x27;s a bit on the long side, maybe skip if you can&#x27;t tolerate longer movies, and it&#x27;s maybe a bit <i>belabored</i> for modern sensibilities)<p>The Passion of Joan of Arc (just... <i>damn</i>. This is a perfect movie.)<p>L&#x27;Âge D&#x27;or (The Golden Age—but, uh, maybe just if you appreciate things a bit more <i>art house</i>)<p>Le Voyage dans la Lune (A Trip to the Moon—it&#x27;s short, and, if one plays with various accompanying soundtrack options, including some more modern ones, one may find it <i>transcendently</i> good)<p>M (yes Fritz Lang made this very short list twice, because <i>fuck you</i> this movie is amazing, this is maybe the most modern-feeling of this whole bunch)