City Lights Review

The fictionalized events of the Best Picture winning 2011 film The Artist were a reality faced by Charlie Chaplin when he began production on his timeless classic City Lights. The world of silent cinema was at a crossroads as the public began to embrace the magic of sound and Chaplin had to make a decision: move away from the style that made him one of the biggest stars of motion pictures or continue on, seemingly a step behind the progression of the medium. 

Chaplin continued on and released City Lights the way he had originally intended, and it is not only considered by many to be his finest personal achievement, it is one of the highest regarded pictures in history. Safe to say he made the right choice.

Chaplin portrays his iconic Tramp and he falls in love with a blind girl who dreams of being able to afford a medical procedure that may return her sight. The romance is touching and truly beautiful. The comedy is top notch as usual, as Chaplin always finds a way to make me laugh and fill me with joy, and the final sequence of the picture resonates so deeply it is impossible to forget. 

While Modern Times continues to be Chaplin's masterpiece, City Lights is just a slight notch beneath it. An amazing film that the world still flocked to see despite the world of cinema leaving that era behind, and what a treasure to know City Lights was close to never existing. Thank goodness it does.

4.5/5

The Circus Review

Here I go again, expressing more fascination and admiration for the life and career of the great Charlie Chaplin. I recently decided to take my first journey with him to The Circus, a setting that certainly could play to the comedic strengths of The Tramp and his brilliant handle of what was needed to make slapstick funny. It did just that, as all the usual laughs were present and accounted for and on a purely entertainment level, Chaplin did not disappoint yet again.

What is remarkable is what Chaplin went through off screen while The Circus was in production, proving that once the camera started rolling, he could flip the switch and transition from a painful existence to a charmed fiction with ease. All while this one film was being made, the man behind the character had to deal with the death of his mother, a bitter divorce from his second wife and the IRS coming after him for unpaid back taxes.

Despite all of this, The Circus is an absolute joy of a silent film which is something I say often about the work of Chaplin. The utilization of amazing set pieces and his ability to entertain so naturally work together in harmony throughout, and my love for Chaplin continues to grow.

4.5/5

The Kid Review

"A picture with a smile -- and perhaps, a tear."

The more I learn about the real Charlie Chaplin and just how complicated life was for the man behind the Tramp persona, the more I respect his work as an artist. His father, Charles Chaplin Sr., left the family when Charlie was merely a year of age. His mother, Hannah, had a complete mental breakdown only a handful of years later and Charlie was sent to live in the Hanwell School for Orphans and Destitute Children. 

Feeling abandoned at such a young age took its toll on Charlie, and thus his 1921 film The Kid is far more intimate and meaningful than it might seem on the surface. Sure, it resonates emotionally regardless because of the touching on screen relationship between The Tramp and the young child (played by Jackie Coogan), but think of what this role must have meant in a deep and profound way to Charlie. A story about rescuing and taking in an abandoned child, with a much happier resolution than what he experienced.

The story, though, is not without its fair share of heartache, on screen and also behind the scenes. The narrative of the film finds ways to tug at the strings of your heart, but the tears really fall when you discover that in real life Charlie lost his infant son only days before production began on the movie. Days before he was embracing a young Jackie Coogan on screen, holding him so tight you could tell he never wanted to let go, his actual son passed away. So while as expected The Kid is filled with all sorts of perfectly executed slapstick comedy, the type of material that made Chaplin a star, those dramatic scenes that expertly balance the laughs with the tears were not just the product of fictional storytelling. This wasn't just acting. 

The Kid is painfully autobiographical and as a result, it is timeless.

4.5/5

Chaplin Review

My wife recently began working on a presentation for grad school and she had to pick a subject to do it on, a breakdown of how a psychological theory would apply to a specific person. She picked Charlie Chaplin, a sublime choice because while the world giggled at the comedic follies of The Tramp, there was a darkness and lack of morality in play behind the scenes. Chaplin was one of the most gifted entertainers in the history of film and yet many of the laughs were derived because of pain.

Many of the stories Chaplin told were autobiographical in some ways, and learning about him on a deeper level was a welcome experience to allow me to appreciate his work even more as an artist. Thus it felt like a good time to finally see the 1992 film Chaplin by Richard Attenborough, a movie that at times soars thanks to the inspired performance from Robert Downey Jr. as Charlie Chaplin, but it still manages to fall victim to those pesky biopic tropes that bother me so.

A certainly fascinating journey, to see some of the experiences that haunted Chaplin's personal life acted out but I actually found that Chaplin as a whole played it pretty safe. Sure, it painted a picture of a very flawed man, but the strokes of Attenborough's brush still could have went bolder and portrayed more of the depth of his issues. I also didn't really care for the storytelling choice to have it be told during an interview with an elder Chaplin recounting the stories of his young and rise to fame. I actually would have preferred if it would have been played straight and traditional, just tell the story without utilization any narration.

I would use the word nice to describe Chaplin, which is both a compliment and a complaint. I would recommend this film to anyone curious to learn the basics about what made the man so complicated and Downey Jr. is excellent in the lead role, but at the end of the day Attenborough used a whole lot of words and still didn't come close to the nuance and power crafted by the real Chaplin in silence.

3/5

Decades of Cinema - 10 Best of the 1930's

I began this journey of listing my ten favorite films from each decade with the 1920's (which you can see here). Now we head into the 1930's, these are the ten shining achievements from those ten years.

10. L'Atalante 

Written and directed by Jean Vigo, L'Atalante tells the story of the captain of a river barge who lives on the ship with his new wife Juliette, along with other members of the crew. Marriage can always be tough, but especially so in such close quarters and with the jealousy of the other men on the boat paying attention to the only woman they see. Eventually Juliette finds an opportunity to quietly exit the boat once it is docked and see Paris on her own, and this decision has troubling ramifications.

A poetic and visually rich film, at less than 90 minutes you can't go wrong with L'Atalante.

9. Vampyr

At the top of my last list, the ten best of the 1920's, you will notice my passionate admiration for the film The Passion of Joan of Arc. The man who created that masterpiece, Carl Theodor Dreyer, is back again here with Vampyr, a horror film that is far more effective of giving me the creeps than most modern genre efforts despite being over 80 years old. A strange, haunting piece of cinema and one of the ten best of the 1930's. 

8. Stagecoach

A game changer for the western genre and the breakthrough performance from legendary actor John Wayne, this John Ford classic has been regarded as one of the most influential films in history. If you watch it today, not much about it may seem special when compared to many of the great westerns released since, but it's possible none of those films would exist if it weren't for Stagecoach paving the way for them.

7. Partie de Campagne (A Day in the Country)

A beautiful, moving film from the brilliant mind of Jean Renoir that works wonderfully despite being quite literally incomplete. Running at a length of only 40 minutes, Renoir had plans to include more material but shut down production due to his dealing with a "creative block". It's quite amazing that his unfinished work is regarded as one of his best nonetheless. 

6. Duck Soup

I would be lying if I said I was very familiar with the work of the Marx Brothers', as I still have plenty to see, but Duck Soup is a terrifically funny film filled with various iconic comedic sequences. Another very short film, running just over an hour, this one is filled with laughs throughout.

5. Gone with the Wind

What needs to be said? A sweeping epic, one of the most famous films of all time. Gone with the Wind is big, beautiful, romantic cinema. Sure, it's long and bloated but honestly, it wouldn't be the same if it wasn't. Gone with the Wind deserves every one of its 222 minutes. It is a majestic picture and one of the finest of its decade.

4. City Lights

Buster Keaton may have won my 1920's list, but he will be entirely absent from this round of ten films where as Charlie Chaplin is the star this time around (hint: this isn't the last of him). The beauty of City Lights is the fact that it almost never happened the way we see it today, as he was in the midst of production when the talkie revolution took over cinema and it put pressure on the silent stars to adapt to modern times (look at that wordplay, another hint). 

Chaplin decided to finish the film the way it started, as another silent picture and thank goodness he did. City Lights is a wonder of a film.

3. The Wizard of Oz

Many people would list The Wizard of Oz in their ten favorite films of the 1930's. Hell, many people would likely list it in their ten favorite films ever made, and with that comes the assumption from others that it had been a beloved movie since they were a kid. The first time I saw The Wizard of Oz was literally 3 months ago, and despite being a 30 year old man at the time, I instantly loved it. A magical experience worthy of all the admiration it has earned over the years.

2. M

A psychological thriller that feels just as chilling and relevant today as I am sure it did when it was released in 1931. The pursuit of a child murderer on the loose and a bystander with the brilliant idea to literally make the top suspect with a letter M so he could be easily caught by the police, M is brilliant, eerie cinema. Also, neat little tie in to the previous list from the 1920's, this is the second consecutive appearance of a Fritz Lang film in the #2 spot. 

1. Modern Times

Ahhh here is that second Charlie Chaplin selection of the decade, and it is the best film of the bunch. Modern Times is such a delightful, perfectly crafted masterpiece and it is almost troubling how much it applies today despite being a representation of a society dealing with the great depression at the time it was released. Constantly laugh out loud funny and a touching love story that transcends their painful lack of financial resources. Modern Times is one of the great achievements in the history of film, and it is the best work of the 1930's.

The next list will cover my ten favorites from the 1940's. The image above is from one that is certainly worthy of the recognition.

Decades of Cinema - 10 Best of the 1920's

In high school I took a film studies class and it opened my mind up to the idea that cinema was an art form rather than just an entertaining distraction. At one point during the class, our teacher announced that we would be watching the Alfred Hitchcock masterpiece Vertigo soon and one of the other students made their lack of excitement abundantly clear to the whole room. The teacher asked her to share her frustrations and she said "Isn't that movie old? Is it even in color?"

I never shared such concerns with that young lady, as I have always had an open mind for the history of film and even (gasp!) movies that were filmed in black and white. That being said, it wasn't until relatively recently, the past few years to be exact, that I really started to explore eras of cinema like the silent pictures of the 1920's. I now know what a shame it would be to ignore such a decade and write it off as "too old", as even 90 years later, so many movies from that era truly are treasures.

Thus I have decided to do a decades project, counting down the ten best films from each starting with the 20's.

10. Seven Chances

The silent era of film featured three comedic stars, all of which will be making appearances in this list of ten. One of those men was Buster Keaton and his film Seven Chances is a delight. The story revolves around a man named Jimmy Shannon (played by Keaton) who discovers that he stands to inherit seven million dollars from his grandfather as long as he is married by 7 P.M. on his 27th birthday, which just so happens to be the very day he discovers this news. 

The plot is absurd of course, but one shouldn't look to the silent era comedies for realism. What matters here is how funny Seven Chances is, because the slapstick material is executed wonderfully by Keaton and some of the set pieces are remarkably memorable.

9. Steamboat Bill Jr.

Two films down, two Buster Keaton entries, and much of what I said about Seven Chances would apply here because the style of comedy is the same and the execution is still top notch. If you are a fan of films from this era or Keaton in general and have not seen either of the two listed thus far, I do suggest you check both out. A lot of laughs to be had here.

8. Sherlock Jr.

That's right, make it three for three. Same as above only even funnier this time around, and the beauty of these Keaton films is their ability to fit into practically any schedule. Very short running times packed to the brim with fun.

7. Man With a Movie Camera

An experimental and groundbreaking film, Man With a Movie Camera is a non-narrative silent documentary and in order to truly appreciate it, you have to recognize the way it changed cinema forever. Featuring some breathtaking and exciting shots, this is a film that was way ahead of its time.

6. The Gold Rush

Obviously you knew this wouldn't be a list simply loaded up with Buster Keaton yet totally void of any Chaplin, right? One of the greatest entertainers of all time, Charlie Chaplin had a brilliant mind for comedic timing and delivery and also how to form a meaningful, emotional narrative around it. The Gold Rush is a wonderful example of all of this.

5. Sunrise: A Song of Two Humans

The work of F.W. Murnau is still for the most part unfortunately unseen by me, but one of the few efforts of his I have had the pleasure to witness is the silent classic Sunrise: A Song of Two Humans. Featuring a surprisingly dark and twisted premise about a man who plans to kill his wife so that he can run off with his mistress, what comes out of it is a powerful story of true, profound love, painful regrets and forgiveness. A film that can be described as beautiful in more ways than one.

4. Safety Last

I recall a discussion I heard about the two stars of the silent era, Buster Keaton and Charlie Chaplin. I have learned that it truly was a three horse race because Harold Lloyd was a gifted entertainer as well. I have seen a handful of his work now and without a doubt Safety Last is his finest achievement, so funny and some amazingly memorable moments (like the image above).

3. The General

Buster Keaton clearly wins the 1920's for me when it comes to most appearances in my top 10 of the decade, and The General is the finest of them all. As fast paced and exciting as the runaway train depicted in the movie, anyone who thinks silent film equals boring film needs to check this one out and honestly tell me they still feel the same when after it ends.

2. Metropolis

I recently made some adjustments to my 100 favorite films of all time list and I bumped the silent science fiction masterpiece Metropolis into my top ten...yet it is not #1 of its own decade, so you know something special is coming up next. Metropolis is a haunting, brilliantly strange film and it feels far more advanced than something that was released nearly 90 years ago. Directed by Fritz Lang, this remains a landmark piece of cinema to this day, and it only took roughly 5 minutes the first time I saw it to understand why.

1. The Passion of Joan of Arc

You don't merely watch The Passion of Joan of Arc, you experience it. Ranked as my #3 favorite film of all time, this silent wonder shows the trial and eventual execution of Joan of Arc and the lead performance from Renee Jeanne Falconetti is quite possibly the greatest and most emotionally arresting I have ever witnessed.

If and when you do decide to experience The Passion of Joan of Arc (and you should), make sure you watch the version that includes the Voice of Light musical composition by Richard Einhorn. I know I sound hyperbolic, but these words apply here: it is probably my favorite usage of music in a film ever. Absolutely perfect, and the film as a whole is the best of the 1920's. 

The next list will cover my ten favorite films from the 1930's. The image above is from one that will make the cut.

100 Favorite Films - #70 - #61

A continuation of my list counting down my 100 favorite films of all time.


70. Terminator 2: Judgement Day (1991)

I thought this was the coolest movie ever when I saw it as a kid. I think it is pretty damn cool as an adult, too.

Terminator 2: Judgement Day is one of those sequels that actually managed to rise above the original, and to be clear, I am a fan of the first one as well. The special effects were ground breaking and the action is intense and overwhelmingly fun, and the connection between a boy and a terminator actually managed to be pretty moving stuff. I revisited this film not too long ago and I had the biggest smile on my face, probably similar to the one I had back then.


69. A Man Escaped (1956)

My Review for A Man Escaped

On my previous list I included the film Stalker by Andrei Tarkovsky and I mentioned that he was quoted as saying the only two opinions he cared about with his film were Robert Bresson and Ingmar Bergman. A Man Escaped is a Bresson work that I treasure, a brilliant drama about a man named Fontaine, a member of the French Resistance who is incarcerated and vows to figure out a way to escape before his death sentence is carried out. Most of what happens throughout the film takes place inside his cell, making us feel just as claustrophobic and trapped as Fontaine, and the results are beyond riveting.



68. The Insider (1999)

Based on the true story of the controversy and chaos that surrounded an interview with Jeffrey Wigand on the show 60 Minutes, this is an expertly crafted film by Michael Mann. Wigand was an employee in the tobacco industry and he went against his confidentially agreement to do the interview, and the film highlights just how far a major corporation will go to keep their public perception from being tainted. Sure, the film is likely over-dramatized for entertainment purposes but that usually comes with the the territory for entertainment derived from true events. The Insider is a gem.


67. Moon (2009)

Duncan Jones may not be a household name like his father David Bowie, but his assured, compelling debut film Moon certainly put him on the map. A minimalist work of science fiction, a man named Sam Bell (played brilliantly by Sam Rockwell) is in the midst of a three year contract working on the moon, extracting a gas that has the potential to reverse the energy crisis taking place back on Earth. Back home a beautiful wife and daughter await him and Sam is eager to escape the isolation he feels from a lack of human interaction, but after an accident occurs secrets are revealed about the motivation of the company that hired him and his now questionable future.

An emotionally stirring, thematically rich film, if you haven't seen Moon yet check it out.


66. The Spirit of the Beehive (1973)

My Review of The Spirit of the Beehive

Perplexing, symbolic, and imaginative, The Spirit of the Beehive was the debut film by Victor Erice and is the influence behind Guillermo del Toro making the modern masterpiece Pan's Labyrinth. The film has a natural, gorgeous glow to it, as if you spend the entire feature stuck inside a beehive, and the concept of a child becoming lost in a film in order to escape her reality is one that really resonates with me.


65. Jurassic Park (1993)

One of the finest blockbuster films ever made, Jurassic Park is a cinematic spectacle that evokes terror and delight from the audience, and I still remember being totally in awe of every single moment when I saw it on the big screen as a child. Despite being released over twenty years ago now, nothing about this work feels dated and the special effects still completely hold up against more recently released summer fare. The magic of the park is still alive with every single viewing.


64. The Dark Knight (2008)

The single greatest superhero film ever made, Christopher Nolan's middle installment of his Batman trilogy transcends the sub-genre because in actuality it is a brilliant crime thriller that just so happens to feature iconic comic book characters. Heath Ledger is the definition of perfection in his turn as the Joker, a role that posthumously won him an Academy Award, and every gritty moment of The Dark Knight is top notch entertainment.


63. Modern Times (1936)

My Review of Modern Times

Charlie Chaplin brought quite a few fantastic silent features to the cinema, but for me none have more heart and imagination and entertainment value than Modern Times, a film filled with tons of laughs but also an emotional pulse that beats through the story and the central romance. Taking place during the Great Depression, the film is remarkably relevant even today as our recent economic recession makes the concept of love transcending financial wealth all the more poignant.



62. Fight Club (1999)

A film that is already firmly established as a contemporary classic, Fight Club is a remarkably entertaining social satire that is so expertly put together by David Fincher it almost defies logic. Honestly, I still recall the first time I saw a trailer for the film and I assumed I was going to absolutely loathe it. A club of dudes fighting each other in basements? Nothing could sound more boring, which is why my mind was blown when I actually got a chance to witness this unlikely masterpiece.



61. Full Metal Jacket (1987)

I know for many this is a film that is made up of a masterful first act and then a disappointing second, but I actually appreciate the entire experience that is Full Metal Jacket. Sure, the first half telling the story of Leonard Lawrence, nicknamed "Gomer Pyle" after quickly standing out to Gunnery Sergeant Hartman for all the wrong reasons, is far more memorable than the rest of the film. In fact it is probably one of the most memorable and beloved halves of a film in cinematic history, but I still admire the brutal anti-war sentiments of Stanley Kubrick that seep out of the narrative of the second half of the film.

The next list will continue on with #60 through #51. Above is an image from a film that will appear on that list.

Modern Times Review

I love animated films, and there is absolutely nothing wrong with them, but I remember when my daughter exclusively watched only that genre at a very young age and I was thinking to myself, at what point can I show her more? When will she be ready to explore cinema beyond talking animals and snappy songs?

While she has been beyond that point for a while now, something happened the other day while watching the Charlie Chaplin masterpiece Modern Times that I was not anticipating. There I am, lying on the couch mesmerized by the film when I realized I wasn't alone. Not in the literal sense, I knew the soon to be seven year old was sitting across the room playing with toys, but the playing had stopped. She couldn't take her eyes off of Chaplin, and they never wavered from the screen for the remainder of the film.

It wasn't just the slapstick comedy that did it either. She was asking me questions about the story, she was expressing concerns about the relationship between the Factory Worker and the Gamin, but yeah, sure, she was also laughing hysterically at the brilliant comedic presence of Chaplin. She asked me to rewind the film multiple times so she could see specific scenes over and over again.

Modern Times was released 78 years ago, yet it managed to fill a 30 year old man and 6 year old girl with joy on a Saturday afternoon in 2014. It's an amazing achievement, a step above the also wonderful City Lights, and I can't wait to keep exploring his work.

Never imagined I would be doing so with a first grader, which makes the cinematic journey all the more special.



5/5