Write a paragraph or two that discusses your personal reaction to seeing Charlie Chaplin’s film, "The Great Dictator." Please post your response as a comment and bring a copy to class next week for us to discuss together.
“Greed has poisoned men's souls; has barricaded the world with hate; has goose-stepped us into misery and bloodshed. We have developed speed, but we have shut ourselves in. Machinery that gives abundance has left us in want. Our knowledge has made us cynical; our cleverness, hard and unkind. We think too much and feel too little. More than machinery, we need humanity. More than cleverness, we need kindness and gentleness. Without these qualities, life will be violent and all will be lost.”—Charlie Chaplin; from his speech at the end of The Great Dictator
No matter what came before (and I liked much of what I saw), I know now that the film, for Chaplin, was something much more than only a film. He wanted the chance to speak to us directly, although he had already been speaking to humanity for years through his persona, the tramp.
His words, no matter how misplaced they might be in the film, ring true even today. How much more greedy we are now! That “kindness and gentleness” is surely lacking in our communities here in Vancouver (and no, I don’t only mean the Stanley Cup riot or the gang shootings here). Charlie Chaplin gave us his best and, in the end, it did not matter; he was only one man, after all. The film was popular, true, but it lead to criticism of his politics and his eventual exile to Switzerland.
One scene stands out in my mind, the famous one with Chaplin (as the dictator) and his balloon version of the world. I laughed at his audacity (the bounce off his bum was a favourite), but got the “point” literally when the balloon exploded to end the ballet. Chaplin’s physical comedy never fails to amaze me. He was nearly 50 as the film was made! I have never ever been disappointed by Charlie Chaplin.
Great Dictator To me, the first impression of the movie “Great Dictator” was shock. Normally, I thought Adolf Hitler was a power dictator, and never committed to be teased by anyone. I almost can’t image in what a situation the author got such a excellent brainstorm and even expressed them out thoroughly in a comic way. Perfectly, Chaplin performed both on a little tramp and Hilter. There were two lines laid out in front of me. One was a strong power man’s commanding above all, another was a little tramp and his pettiness. Sometimes, they were in totally different way which would never interect. Sometimes, they seemed somewhat similar which made me thinking about who really had a spirit of a tramp and who was superior. The two lines were cutaway freely in the movie that composed the comedy. (137)
“Greed has poisoned men's souls; has barricaded the world with hate; has goose-stepped us into misery and bloodshed. We have developed speed, but we have shut ourselves in. Machinery that gives abundance has left us in want. Our knowledge has made us cynical; our cleverness, hard and unkind. We think too much and feel too little. More than machinery, we need humanity. More than cleverness, we need kindness and gentleness. Without these qualities, life will be violent and all will be lost.”—Charlie Chaplin; from his speech at the end of The Great Dictator
ReplyDeleteNo matter what came before (and I liked much of what I saw), I know now that the film, for Chaplin, was something much more than only a film. He wanted the chance to speak to us directly, although he had already been speaking to humanity for years through his persona, the tramp.
His words, no matter how misplaced they might be in the film, ring true even today. How much more greedy we are now! That “kindness and gentleness” is surely lacking in our communities here in Vancouver (and no, I don’t only mean the Stanley Cup riot or the gang shootings here). Charlie Chaplin gave us his best and, in the end, it did not matter; he was only one man, after all. The film was popular, true, but it lead to criticism of his politics and his eventual exile to Switzerland.
One scene stands out in my mind, the famous one with Chaplin (as the dictator) and his balloon version of the world. I laughed at his audacity (the bounce off his bum was a favourite), but got the “point” literally when the balloon exploded to end the ballet. Chaplin’s physical comedy never fails to amaze me. He was nearly 50 as the film was made! I have never ever been disappointed by Charlie Chaplin.
QinHe
ReplyDelete65654
Oct2,2014
Great Dictator
To me, the first impression of the movie “Great Dictator” was shock. Normally, I thought Adolf Hitler was a power dictator, and never committed to be teased by anyone. I almost can’t image in what a situation the author got such a excellent brainstorm and even expressed them out thoroughly in a comic way. Perfectly, Chaplin performed both on a little tramp and Hilter. There were two lines laid out in front of me. One was a strong power man’s commanding above all, another was a little tramp and his pettiness. Sometimes, they were in totally different way which would never interect. Sometimes, they seemed somewhat similar which made me thinking about who really had a spirit of a tramp and who was superior. The two lines were cutaway freely in the movie that composed the comedy.
(137)