This quarter I took a really cool class called Psychology of Film Music, and for my final paper, I compared Chaplin’s City Lights and The Great Dictator (didn’t see that coming, did ya? :P). One was a silent film and one was a talkie, but it’s interesting how much they overlapped in certain aspects. For instance, with the exception of a couple of lines (also, if the title of the film wasn’t so blatantly there), it’d be hard to tell if the following clip was from the silent movie or the talkie:
I think it’s cool that Charlie still used a LOT of silent film techniques even in his later movies, and that it was still super effective. It’s one of the reasons I love him. :)
Supplementary videos:
– More from The Great Dictator: Hynkel and Napaloni
– Contains spoilers, but AHHHH it’s just so good: City Lights ending. If I’m in the right mood, this scene will make me cry, no joke. And the music really does add a lot, especially the part where she realizes who he is.
– Someone made a Great Dictator remix using the final speech and scenes from the rest of the movie. It is AMAZING.
Flip the Record 