An impoverished woman (Edna Purviance) feels compelled to abandon her child in the hope that he might find a better life - so she leaves him (with a short note) in the back of a car. The two men who find the little bundle don't want anything to do with him, so plonk him down behind some rubbish where de is discovered by the tramp (Charlie Chaplin). Now he's not that keen on children either, but the presence of an attentive policeman means can't just leave his new package in the pram of a woman nearby. Skip on five years and the two have become quite a formidable double act - the lad (Jackie Coogan) chucks stones at windows and his father-figure does the mending! Meantime, the mother finds success treading the boards and the boy's real father, likewise, succeeds - but that relationship is toast and she gradually starts to pine for and then search for her lost child. When the authorities cotton on to the lucrative acts of vandalism of the two, they attempt to seize the kid and put him in an orphanage - and that's when things all start to come to an head. There's a delightful bond that develops here between Chaplin and the enthusiastic young Coogan with Chaplin's direction showcasing both their skills and the extent of the poverty amidst which they lived and which drove people to make horrendous decisions to part with their children. The ending is exactly as it should be, so don't go expecting much jeopardy on that front - and the scenes with the angelic wings towards the end mix determination and comedy effectively, too. It makes you smile and pulls at the heart strings and is truly a classic piece of cinema.
