Sir Charles Chaplin
considered his 1931 film City Lights to be his masterpiece. The story follows
the Little Tramp as he struggles to help a poor, blind flower girl as best he
can. Though he has no work, he is driven by this newfound determination and
finds work by several jobs. He paints a touching portrait of the human nature,
using his eloquent silence to prick our hearts with possibly the greatest
ending ever filmed.
Some less
enlightened persons consider Chaplin to be just another unfunny chap who tries
to get laughs from silly gags or mishaps, but they do not have a good
understanding of the man that Chaplin was. Early on in his career, Chaplin made
quite a few lesser films that were crude for his style. But that was OK;
quality wasn’t job one. All he had to do was make a film with a plot and a few
interesting scenes of slapstick humor that would bring in the people to pay a
dime or however much the price was. And he had a killer salary for that period
of time. As years went on, however, he progressed, and so did the Tramp. In
City Lights, the Tramp is no longer a crude character, but rather humane. And
nine years later, when Chaplin filmed The Great Dictator, he was the epitome of
humanity.
Related
Links:
Trivia about City Lights:
Credited
cast overview:
Virginia Cherrill .... A Blind Girl
Florence Lee .... Blind Girl's Grandmother
Harry Myers .... An Eccentric Millionaire
Allan Garcia .... Eccentric Millionaire's Butler
Hank Mann ....
A Prizefighter
Charles Chaplin .... A Tramp
