Modern Times (1936)

The Tramp struggles to live in modern industrial society with the help of a young homeless woman.

Director:

Charles Chaplin (as Charlie Chaplin)

Writer:

Charles Chaplin (as Charlie Chaplin)

Stars:

Charles Chaplin, Paulette Goddard, Henry Bergman

Top Rated Movies #40 | 4 wins & 1 nomination.

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
Charles Chaplin	...	A Factory Worker (as Charlie Chaplin)
Paulette Goddard	...	A Gamin
Henry Bergman	...	Cafe Proprietor
Tiny Sandford	...	Big Bill (as Stanley Sandford)
Chester Conklin	...	Mechanic
Hank Mann	...	Burglar
Stanley Blystone	...	Gamin's Father
Al Ernest Garcia	...	President of the Electro Steel Corp. (as Allan Garcia)
Richard Alexander	...	Prison Cellmate (as Dick Alexander)
Cecil Reynolds	...	Minister
Mira McKinney	...	Minister's Wife (as Myra McKinney)
Murdock MacQuarrie	...	J. Widdecombe Billows (as Murdoch McQuarrie)
Wilfred Lucas	...	Juvenile Officer
Edward LeSaint	...	Sheriff Couler (as Ed Le Sainte)
Fred Malatesta	...	Cafe Head Waiter

Storyline

Chaplin's last 'silent' film, filled with sound effects, was made when everyone else was making talkies. Charlie turns against modern society, the machine age, (The use of sound in films ?) and progress. Firstly we see him frantically trying to keep up with a production line, tightening bolts. He is selected for an experiment with an automatic feeding machine, but various mishaps leads his boss to believe he has gone mad, and Charlie is sent to a mental hospital - When he gets out, he is mistaken for a communist while waving a red flag, sent to jail, foils a jailbreak, and is let out again. We follow Charlie through many more escapades before the film is out.

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Plot Keywords:

jail | actor director writer | music score composed by director | factory | satire | 

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Taglines:

You'll never laugh as long and as loud again as long as you live! The laughs come so fast and so furious you'll wish it would end before you collapse!

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Genres:

Comedy | Drama | Family | Romance

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Certificate:

G

Details

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Release Date:

25 February 1936 (USA)

Also Known As:

The Masses

Filming Locations:

Santa Clarita, California, USA

Box Office

Budget:

$1,500,000 (estimated)

Opening Weekend USA:

$35,809, 28 December 2003

Gross USA:

$163,577

Cumulative Worldwide Gross:

$456,009

Company Credits

Production Co:

Charles Chaplin Productions

Technical Specs

Runtime:

87 min

Sound Mix:

Mono (Western Electric Noiseless Recording Sound System) Silent

Color:

Black and White

Aspect Ratio:

1.37 : 1

Did You Know?

Trivia

Alfred Newman, musical director for United Artists, was brought in to record and conduct the score. Charles Chaplin had been dissatisfied with the orchestral work on City Lights (1931), so this time he sat in on all recording sessions, interrupting often, ordering retakes, overruling Newman's instructions to the orchestra, and taking the recording sessions into the early morning hours. During one especially tense all-night session, he accused Newman of laziness. The conductor stomped out and never worked with Chaplin again. Newman's assistant, Eddie Powell, took over conducting for the remainder of the work.

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Goofs

(at around 59 mins) After Chaplin rushes through the crowd with unemployed workers, and enters through the gate, one of the men on the inside seems to be locking the gate, however the gate opens slightly when he walks away.

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Quotes

President of the Electro Steel Corp.: [first lines]
President of the Electro Steel Corp.: Section 5, speed her up, 401.

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Alternate Versions

The laserdisc edition contains an extra scene that the film was never released with. An extra verse of the Tramp's gibberish song "Titina" appears (33 seconds in length) at Chapter 13: frames 36235 - 37009 which corrects a continuity jump. This was obviously a last minute removal on Chaplin's part, before the initial release, but was never removed from his 35mm lavender preservation masters which were used to master the laserdisc. The last verse of the Tramp's gibberish song is also shown as a deleted scene on the Chaplin Collection version of Modern Times and with lyrics to it as a karaoke piece.

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Connections

Referenced in Digital Afterlives (2018)

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Soundtracks

Hallelujah, I'm a Bum
(uncredited)
Music from the traditional folk song "Revive Us Again"

User Reviews

Charles Chaplin masterpiece finds him playing a factory worker who becomes involved in problems and strikes

This mostly silent movie deals with a little man , a disgraced factory worker who goes insane from his repetitious job at an assembly líne . At the same time the exigent boss demands him for greatest efficiency and speed at work . As the unfortunate man moving from hapless factory worker to singing waiter and ultimately triumphing along the way .

An interesting and thought-provoking Chaplin film encompassing the tyranny of Machine over man, this great film has more relevance nowadays than ever. The pic contains a sour denounce on capitalism , industrialization and human explotiation . This is a vintage flick much in the fashion that sound films offended his pantomimist's sensibilities . This is a silent movie , being the only dialogue a song sung by Chaplin in gibberish Italian .Chaplin gives an awesome and sympathetic performance as a labourer who goes crazy and triumphs over adversity , just as Charles the film director proved victorious over sound . Chaplin also composed the score which incorporates the charming tune : Smile. His spouse to be Paulette Goddard is attractive in the femenine lead , playing a poor orphan. Look for a young Gloria de Haven , as one of Paulette Goddard's Sisters . She is the real-life daughter of Chaplin's assistant director .

The motion picture was masterfully directed by Charles Chaplin .This was one of the longest ones to that date . Chaplin previously directed 2 or 3 reel short movies, such as : Our hero, The fireman, Night at the show , The adventurer, The floorwalker, The cure , The inmigrant , The circus , Burlesque on Carmen , among others . After that , he made long feature films such as : The gold Rush , The kid , City lights , The great dictator , Monseur Verdoux , Limelight, A king of New York and his last one : A countess from Hong Kong . Rating 8/10 . Better than average . Well worth watching .