Chaplin in ‘The Kid’

Actors will often say that to get a true measure of a performance, turn down the sound and simply watch. The face, the body, the interplay between actor and space can be rich with texture, the story told without words. For that, it doesn’t get much better than Charlie Chaplin’s 1921 classic, “The Kid,” a Father’s Day special at the Aero Theatre on Sunday at 3, screening as part of a full tribute to Chaplin that begins Thursday and continues through June 27. Beyond the brilliance of watching Chaplin’s Little Tramp and young Jackie Coogan as the Kid, its themes are a reminder of how little has changed: the birth mother with regrets, the single dad doing the best he can and the painful choices a parent faces when the best interest of the child is at stake. So let yourself laugh, cry and be moved by this powerful piece. And if you can, take your dad. www.americancinema theque.com or (323) 466-FILM.

-- Betsy Sharkey