Cast overview, first billed only: | |||
Charles Chaplin | ... | A Factory Worker (as Charlie Chaplin) | |
Paulette Goddard | ... | A Gamin | |
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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) | |
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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 |
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. Written by Colin Tinto <cst@imdb.com>
Part satire, part slapstick comedy, part melodrama; the great pioneer of film, Charles Chaplin, has created his own monument with this film. At the same time, 'Modern Times' was Chaplin's last goodbye to the era of silent film - which, remarkably, had already ended almost a decade earlier.
After nearly 80 years, this screen marvel still makes me laugh, cry - and think about the ongoing automatization of practically every trivial little thing in our lives. Modern times, indeed.
To me, this film is as entertaining and funny today as I imagine it was then, and it's certainly as relevant as it was then.
The tramp still rules. My vote: 9 out of 10.
Favorite films: http://www.IMDb.com/list/mkjOKvqlSBs/
Lesser-known Masterpieces: http://www.imdb.com/list/ls070242495/
Favorite Low-Budget and B-Movies: http://www.imdb.com/list/ls054808375/
Favorite TV-Shows reviewed: http://www.imdb.com/list/ls075552387/