Charlie Chaplin is considered to be one of the most influential personalities to have ever been a part of the film industry. The usual fashion of this blog is to critique contemporary movies that are currently in theaters but sometimes it is suiting to take a look back at talent that has molded some of the films we see today. Charlie Chaplin is a talent to thank in a moment like this. A lot of individuals, especially those born within the last 30 years, are becoming unaware of the work Charles Chaplin embodied during his career that spanned over five decades and made arguably the biggest impact over any one person in movies.
When I was about 5 or 6 years old, my family had a collection of about 10 VHS tapes of Chaplin's greatest short films. Being a kindergartner at the time, I found him kind of scary looking but liked the slapstick, self-sacrificing humor he stole every show with. After a little while I did lose interest and it wasn't until I was a freshman in college that I even gave him another shot. Now that I am almost 22 years old I have a deeper appreciation for this man that was so far ahead of his time and knew what entertainment truly was. Although I still consider myself an amateur when it comes to knowing his work besides his big hits on the silver screen, it does not take much at all to be captured by his presence onscreen and to keep wanting more. Right now it is nearly 3am and I've just finished watching his most acclaimed film, The Great Dictator (1940) that is a satire of Adolf Hitler and his Nazi party that is included with probably the most powerful monologues ever given in a movie and is still recited by many today. Throughout the film, I was laughing out loud at his character's clumsiness antics and one-liners that could give a pointer to today's most experienced comedy writers. The dictator is named Adenoid Hynkel of Tomania and there is a lowly Jewish barber that looks like his identical twin (also played by Chaplin) that ends up in the mix with the Tomanian army. --One thing to pay close attention to if you would like to check out this movie is a scene where Hynkel is aware of his worldly impact and begins playing with a globe in a childlike manner--. Sure, the movie poster pictured here makes him look scary and uninviting and who really wants to watch a movie about a guy that looks like Hitler? Even if it is the greatest comedic genius of all time...
His style of acting and directing resembles that of Mel Brooks or even Steve Martin and it is easy to see how most funnymen got their inspiration; from that British guy with the funny mustache. Chaplin's smooth, lower voice and perfect delivery of every joke or tripping over his own feet are exactly what every comedian or actor nowadays draws from to gain laughs. Charlie had it figured out. A side note about him is that he actually entered a "Charlie Chaplin Look-A-Like Contest" and placed third. This does point out the lack of perception by the judges but also that he was a man who can have fun in any way possible which is what this industry is all about, right? I don't want to seem like I'm rambling on but I feel it pertinent to make the point known, coming from a kid like me, that Charlie Chaplin is the innovator behind most of the way show biz is in the 21st century. He took creativity to a whole new level and created a sense of humor that is the epitome of "timeless".
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