There are two elements that often appear in Chaplin's films: one is the fate of the little people; the other is love.
1. Big Times and Little People
Chaplin's comedies are "elegant": after making you laugh, the aftertaste is always sad. Because in its comedy, there is helpless tragic consciousness. In his films, the most prominent figures are the ups and downs of the big era. The most famous image is the bum with the bowler hat, the mustache, the ill-fitting fat trousers and leather shoes, and the bamboo cane. In "The Gold Rush" there is a line: "To play the part of a gentleman without the millionaire was difficult, but he did his best, which accurately annotated this image.
Chaplin paid special attention to the fate of the little people because of his early His life experience was bumpy: his parents were separated since he was a child, and he was sent to an orphanage because his mother was unemployed. Later, he left the orphanage and became a homeless child. In order to survive, he worked in various odd jobs, until he met Carneau, a Bole, his Life is like a drifting duckweed. Chaplin, who grew up like this, must not have any good feelings for the society. Therefore, in his films, the society always stands in an indifferent image, and the little people also All have the meaning of fate, give up struggle and follow the trend. This is most vividly expressed in "Modern Times": man becomes a screw in the big social machine, his spirit and emotion are ignored, and a screw falls. Now, there are thousands of people to replace it. In the film, Chaplin went crazy because of fitting screws with the faster and faster production line. He finally recovered, but he lost his job. Later, the factory reopened, and Chaplin was crowded. A broken head gets a job, and then loses his job because of a strike. When the weak are cornered by society, they fight for their rights by hurting themselves, and strikes are one of them.
Chaplin once said: "I was and am always studying people." In fact, his insight into human nature is a kind of insight that is almost innate. The tramp created by Chaplin shows us the same humanity behind the ragged clothes. He always adheres to the gentleman's demeanor: when others are violent, he does not kill with anger, but takes off his hat with an apologetic smile; when he is hungry and cooks leather shoes, he still gracefully pours soup and eats shoelaces ("Gold Rush") ; When facing the girl he likes, he is only in love and polite, and gives silently in a way that is almost a spare tire. He has small vanities, such as pretending to be rich in front of flower girls; ("City Lights") But what is most precious to him is that even though life is not easy, he never underestimates himself, never gives up optimism, Share and dedicate these beautiful qualities. So Chaplin's movies don't always end too bad. I think, even in life, such people will not be bad luck.
In addition to the vivid portrayal of the protagonist, the images of other classes in Chaplin's films are vivid.
For example, the public authority represented by the police is supposed to be an existence to "eliminate violence and maintain social order", but in the film, it has completely become a social accomplice - not distinguishing between black and white, and wrongly arresting good people. In "City Lights", Chaplin chased a thief, but was caught by the police as a thief; in "Modern Times", it was even more extreme - an innocent little civilian played by Chaplin, who was caught five times by the police. One of them was a deep irony. Because he helped the police get out of prison ahead of schedule, he was down and out, so he deliberately turned himself in to return to prison.
In "City Lights", there is a very distinct image of a butler. The male host would call Chaplin his brother when he was drunk, but the butler was always arrogant and looked down on Chaplin. This image depiction is amazing, and it also proves Chaplin's mastery. In history, those who have persecuted the same kind the most are those of the same background, because even if they have abandoned their original identity on the surface, they are still not recognized and discriminated against in the new identity group, so they Doubling your performance to gain favor. In the eyes of the master, the butler is just a servant; but in the eyes of the butler himself, he is already a member of the upper class, so he spared no effort to drive Chaplin away. It can be said that the butler is the epitome of many images in history, and it is still being staged to this day.
2. Love
The little man played by Chaplin never gave up the pursuit of romance, and love is the representative. The girl Chaplin fell in love with in the film has a beautiful appearance and a heart of gold. Before Chaplin met the girl, what we saw of his life was a chaotic mess. Until he fell in love with the girl, he became diligent, and his life began to be orderly, that is, from "passive" to "active", for the audience, the plot line became clearer. From part-time jobs to boxing matches to money grabs, for the sake of the girl, he went through fire and water. Chaplin really hit the girl's weakness - he will love because he is moved, although he doesn't have handsome appearance and money, but he has a sincere heart, given time...
But I personally think that the most successful love created by Chaplin In "Modern Times", that is the real "phase" love. Chaplin met a homeless orphan girl. The two escaped the pursuit of the police and sat on the lawn imagining: If one day, we will have a home of our own... The plot after that is that they have been working hard in this direction. Although the wandering orphan girl was moved by Chaplin's help in the past, their love began when they shared adversity. More importantly, the relationship is equal. Interestingly, in reality, after the performance of "Modern Times", Chaplin secretly married Paulette Goddard, the wandering orphan in the film.
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