Review by Anand Ramachandran

In Richard Attenborough's biopic Chaplin, Charlie chides himself for his prosperity during the Great Depression. The result was the intelligent and insightful Modern Times.

The film finds the Tramp and Paulette Goddard's orphan girl enduring misfortune and misunderstanding in the pursuit of an honest living. The multi-talented Charlie Chaplin makes this deft analysis of industrialization, labor rights, the Great Depression, and the plight of the common man in America without uttering a word.

Talkies eliminated silent films years before, but Chaplin unwaveringly maintained his allegiance to silent film. The only voice we hear is that of the President of Electro Steel Corporation. He is a shiftless overlord who speeds up the assembly line, considers eliminating the lunch hour to goad greater productivity out of his workers, and won't even let the Tramp enjoy a peaceful smoke during a sanctioned break. Investing only this despicable character with a voice also demonstrates Chaplin's contempt for the talkies.

Ultimately, comedy allows Chaplin to embed a social message behind the slapstick shenanigans of Modern Times without seeming preachy. Modern Times simultaneously pats us on the back and says everything will be OK as long as we keep trying.

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