Double Je(u) Retrospectives 2023

The Great Dictator

Charlie Chaplin

United States

1940 Fiction 2h05

On his return from the Great War, a little Jewish barber has lost his memory. After years in hospital he regains it and goes back to his barber's shop in the ghetto. But he discovers a world of madness. A hysterical dictator, Adenoid Hynkel, his perfect look-alike, is spreading terror throught the country. With the help of his girlfriend Hannah, the barber stands up to the SS who are threatening the little community, and despite himself he finds himself caught up in this tragic farce…

With : Charles Chaplin, Jack Oakie, Reginald Gardiner, Henry Daniell, Billy Gilbert, Grace Hayle, Carter DeHaven, Paulette Goddard
Screenplay : Charlie Chaplin
Image : Karl Struss, Roland Totheroh
Sound : Glenn Rominger, Percy Townsend
Editing : Willard Nico
Music : Charles Chaplin, Meredith Willson

Production : Charlie Chaplin Productions
Distribution: Théâtre du Temple

In 1937 producer Alexander Korda put the idea to Chaplin of making a film about the resemblance of his character the Tramp's moustache to Hitler's. But the development took a long time and became a real hell (Chaplin received a number of death threats) with the outbreak of World War 2 in Europe. Horrified but courageous, Chaplin remained steadfast and the film was released on American screens in October 1940, and was a resounding success. “Chaplin was known for his reticence about the talkies, but embraced speech in the film, with the Hitlerian tirades (that audiences were familiar with from the newsreels) and also an anonymous voice speaking out. Thanks to his innovative use of sound, the best-known director of the silent era created a comedy of unequalled depth. The little tramp with his cane and bowler appeared for the last time, as if offered as a sacrifice to the tragedy underway”. (Charlotte Garson; Lycéens et apprentis au cinéma)