By Matt Brunson

Flicker Alley's superb box set, Chaplin at Keystone, ultimately may not be the best DVD release of the year (though it certainly ranks in the upper echelons), but it's safe to state that, from a historical standpoint, it will remain the most important.

Charles Chaplin began his remarkable film career signed to a one-year contract with the Keystone Film Company, appearing in 36 films throughout 1914. This four-disc collection includes 34 pictures in their entirety and one as an excerpted bonus feature, with only one title (Her Friend the Bandit) seemingly lost for good. It's a remarkable accomplishment on the part of the international film companies (in Britain, Italy and France) who pooled their resources to present these restored offerings, and it allows viewers to see that Chaplin and his beloved creation, the Tramp, have been together almost from the start.

After appearing as a duplicitous dandy in his film debut, Making a Living, Chaplin then adopted the famous Tramp outfit for Mabel's Strange Predicament, although, based on release dates, the public first saw — and fell in love with — this odd character in Kid Auto Races at Venice, Cal. Chaplin honed his routine in the series of shorts (and one feature, Tillie's Punctured Romance) presented in this grandly entertaining collection, an essential companion to Warner Bros.' invaluable feature-film Chaplin box sets from 2003-2004.

DVD extras include a 40-page booklet offering synopses and other information on all the films Chaplin made at Keystone; a 10-minute featurette on the production of this set; a 12-minute piece examining various shooting locations for Keystone films; and the 1916 cartoon Charlie's White Elephant.

(For photos from an extraordinary Chaplin exhibit, go here. For more new DVD releases, see this week’s upcoming View From The Couch column in print and on this website.)