however the French girl is caught and arrested for aiding the Allies. Before the French girl is assaulted by a German soldier, Doughboy manages to save her. Then the Kaiser shows up and Doughboy, disguised as a German officer, saves his comrade from capture again. All three of them now disguised as German officers chauffeur the Kaiser and his allies towards the Allied front. At the front they are greeted with applause and praise from the Allied troops. Doughboy then wakes up back at bootcamp, revealing all was his dream. Credited cast Charles Chaplin as Charlie, the Doughboy Edna Purviance as French girl Sydney Chaplin as The sergeant, Charlie's Comrade / The Kaiser Jack Wilson as German Crown Prince Henry Bergman as Fat German sergeant / Field Marshal von Hindenburg / Bartender Albert Austin as American Officer / Clean Shaven German Soldier / Bearded German Soldier Tom Wilson as Dumb German Wood-Cutter John Rand as U.S. soldier J. Parks Jones as U.S. soldier (credited as Park Jones) Loyal Underwood as Small German officer W.J. Allen as Motorcyclist L.A. Blaisdell as Motorcyclist Wellington Cross as Motorcyclist C.L. Dice as Motorcyclist G.A. Godfrey as Motorcyclist W. Herron as Motorcyclist Reception Shoulder Arms proved to be Chaplin's most popular film, critically and commercially, up to that point. A review in the October 21, 1918 New York Times was typical: "'The fool's funny,' was the chuckling observation of one of those who saw Charlie Chaplin's new film. Shoulder Arms, at the Strand yesterday—and, apparently, that's the way everybody felt. There have been learned discussions as to whether Chaplin's comedy is low or high, artistic or crude, but no one can deny that when he impersonates a screen fool he is funny. Most of those who go to find fault with him remain to laugh. They may still find fault, but they will keep on laughing." The film was very revolutionary for its time, introducing a new genre of comedy. Previously, films had treated war as a serious subject. This is believed to be the first comedy film about war. See also List of World War I films References External links Shoulder Arms on Amazon Prime Video Shoulder Arms on Pantaflix Short films directed by Charlie Chaplin 1918 films 1918 comedy films American black-and-white films Silent American comedy films American silent short films American World War I films Military humor in film Surviving American silent