In the spring of 1889, Charlie Chaplin was born to almost unknown parents of music hall artists. The boy grew up to be the biggest international star in the American silent comedy film. He also became the first media superstar of the 20th century, the first artistic creator. Chaplin was the world’s first recognized artistic genius, recognized by the influential generation of artists and moviegoers.
While audiences have forgotten many stars of the silent film era, Charlie Chaplin remains a household name in most of the world.
Charlie Chaplin had to face a very troubled childhood. His parents separated even before he was three years old. His mother, actress Lily Harvey, lived with Charlie. Little Charlie also lived in different places before he and his brother were sent to Kennington Road School and later to a school for the poor, due to their financial situation. These came as a shock to the sensitive child and the pain and agony of desperate poverty were subsequently reflected in the characters in his films. The themes of his films were greatly influenced by the incidents and experiences of his childhood.
His genius was essentially pantomimic, ideal for the silent film era. Chaplin’s early comedies used extreme physical comedy and exaggerated gestures. But his pantomime was more subtle. The visual gags were pure fun. The tramp character aggressively attacked his enemies with kicks and bricks. People loved him, although critics noted that his comedy bordered on vulgarity.
During the period from 1918 to 1922, he made such films as A Dog’s Life, The Kid, The Idle Class, and The Pilgrim. After some short films such as Essanay, Mutual Film Corporation and First National, he became involved in different facets of cinema such as acting, directing and producing. Some of his films were A Woman from Paris (1923), The Gold Rush (1925) and The Circus (1928). He also made the masterpieces City Lights (1931), as well as Modern Times (1936). Although they were silent movies, they were immensely popular and had their own music and sound effects. City Lights was by far his most balanced film, dealing with comedy and feelings.
His Hollywood-made talkies include The Great Dictator (1940), Monsieur Verdoux (1947), and Limelight (1952). Although Modern Times (1936) is not a talkie, it contains dialouges from inanimate objects such as a radio. The reason behind this was that during the silent film period viewers were not used to the concept of listening to dialogue and watching a performance simultaneously. In fact, The Circus (1928) was the first film in which Chaplin’s voice was heard.
Talkies had become the dominant and popular way of making films since 1927, but Chaplin was reluctant to the idea as he considered cinema to be a pantomime art. Let’s now look at some of his films in detail.
Limelight tells the story of a great stage comedian, whose career failed and led to alcoholism. The man finally saves the life of a dejected dancer from a suicide attempt. Monsieur Verdoux is a fiery black comedy released in 1947. Chaplin plays Henri Verdoux, a civilized monster who marries rich women, then murders them, and uses their money to support his real family.
A Woman of Paris was written and directed by Charlie Chaplin. It was designed to launch Edna Purviance into a serious acting career. The Circus tells the story of a failed circus that recruits the little tramp who bursts into the center ring of the marquee and wows the audience. The circus owner discovers that he is only funny when he doesn’t try to be. He tricks The Little Tramp into joining the circus as a prop man who wreaks havoc in everything he does and unknowingly becomes the star of the show.
The Gold Rush is one of his best works. The little tramp is a prospector who has ventured into Alaska in search of his fortune. He gets involved with some pretty scary characters, while falling in love with a beautiful girl named Georgia. The gold rush has beautiful cinematic moments.
City Lights considers himself his own child. He wrote the script and set the music and also directed, produced and edited this classic film. Made in 1931, City Lights was made as a movie without speech. The film is about the ups and downs of the little tramp, in love with a girl who thinks he is someone else.
Modern Times is a glorious movie that is probably as relevant today as it was in 1936. The movie makes incredibly clever use of sound with its pretty sophisticated sound effects. Modern Times explores the dehumanization of work. The movie then depicts factory closings, reflecting the Great Depression in the US economy in that period.
The Great Dictator is much darker than most other comedies. It is a film with a serious message with satirical overtones. The Great Dictator explores the growing Nazi threat during the late 1930s and early 1940s.