Dhruvita Dhameliya: Frame study of Modern Times

Hello everyone,

I am Dhruvita Dhameliya. I write this Blog on movie based on 20th century.As part of syllabus we watched movie named 'MODERN TIMES' and the 'THE GREAT DICTATOR' by Charli Chaplin.

Who is Charli Chaplin??

Sir Charles Spencer Chaplin was an English comic actor, filmmaker, and composer who rose to fame in the era of silent film. He became a worldwide icon through his screen persona, the Tramp, and is considered one of the most important figures in the history of the film industry. His career spanned more than 75 years, from childhood in the Victorian era until a year before his death in 1977, and encompassed both adulation and controversy.

Comedian, actor, producer, writer, and director Charlie Chaplin is widely regarded as the greatest comic artist of the screen and one of the most important figures in motion-picture history. In 1972 he received a special Academy Award for “the incalculable effect he has had on making motion pictures the art form of this century.”

Setting of 20th century :-

From 1901 to 1925, English literature was directed by mental attitudes, moral ideals and spiritual values at almost the opposite extreme to the attitudes, ideals and values governing Victorian literature. The old certainties were certainties no longer. everything was held to be open to question. Standards of artistic craftsmanship and of aesthetic appreciation began to change fundamentally. What the Victorian had considered beautiful their children and grandchildren thought hideous. The treasured bric-a-brac of Victorian mantel shelves and whatnots was thrown into Edwardian and Georgian dustbins, though before the reign of George V was out many of the rejects had become 'antiques' and collectors' pieces. This all things we found in movies by Charli Chaplin 'Modern times' and 'The great dictator'.

Modern times : -

Modern Times is a 1936 American silent comedy film written and directed by Charlie Chaplin in which his iconic Little Tramp character struggles to survive in the modern, industrialized world. The film is a commentary on the desperate employment and financial conditions many people faced during the Great Depression - conditions created, in Chaplin's view, by the efficiencies of modern industrialization. The movie stars Chaplin, Paulette Goddard, Henry Bergman, Tiny Sandford and Chester Conklin. It is notable for being the last time that Chaplin portrayed the Tramp character and for being the first time Chaplin's voice is heard on film.

Character of the movie: -

Tramp and Gamin

Frame study :-

1)Time :-

Time - Modern or old but is always symbol of change and in this movie how modern time affects the life of people mostly the people of working class.

Movie's first scene was about time - how time change and with the change of the time everything is changing one by one and people of that time can't able to run with time.

In ancient time there is no watch system so people live life according to sun. They don't have that much awareness and value of time, because whatever season is there they live according to sunrise and sunset. But in modern time there is watch system we can say that mechanical life, people's life controlled by watch they planned everything according to watch. We also found this thing in movie that how people work and take break on time. Workers have to complete their task in given time because they have too much value of time.

This watch also show that how was the time in 20th century's people facing.

2) Sheep - people = SHEEPLE

In this movie we found that there is crowd of workers and they roaming like sheep - sheep never look up they just follow each other without looking anywhere and same thing was happened in modern times opening scene in which people just run towards thair work place. The people of Lower class and some who go for job and other for finding the job. Charli Chaplin want to shaw the impact of industrialism and unemployment.

Machine + Technology = unemployment

3) Technology :-

How technology overpowered the men. This thing we can saw in movie.

Technology use to control man. In this movie boss watch the workers through camara everywhere in washroom too and through this he control the workers. There is one incident when Tramp go to washroom and boss called him for do his work that time he thrown cigarette in washroom and short-circuit was happened in T.V. we can easily get Idea that how technology control men specially the workers, they are in control of somebody and if they become lasy they lost their job because somebody constantly looking them.

In today's time we have CCTV camera to watch people's activity and there is no need of person.

Another scene when somebody stuck into machine and there was time for lunch so he couldn't do anything without wait to came out from machine so we can sat that everything is controlled by technology and man can do nothing in this.

“More than machinery, we need humanity. More than cleverness, we need kindness and gentleness.” — CHARLIE CHAPLIN

4) power of three 'M' :-

1) Muscle

2)money

3)mind

In this movie we saw that power of money and mind can buy the Muscle power. There is one Muscle power man whose work to put on T.V. and wait for the order of boss and then put off it. And other side workers like Tramp who doesn't have any 'M' power they have to obeyed the boss and other man.

5) Advertisement:-

During that time people attracted easily towards technology and machine for saving time.

In this scene there was food machine for workers and boss want to purchase it but when advertiser give demo they can not got success and it's not work according to men. The machine has everything and food was put into mouth by machine but due to some issues it goes into nose and outside of the mouth and when machine tries to wipe mouth but due to issues it's wipe ti-shirt. Boss want this machine not for sake of workers but saving the time of break and workers do more work if they invest less time in lunch.so here we saw that how life became Mechanical.

6) Unemployment :-

Technology is too fast than human and our protagonist don't able to match the speed of machine and that's why workers and boss send him to mental hospital for treatment.

7) Fight for human right :-

Then he started living life without job. And because of unemployment many workers do suicide and did strike because space of human taken by machine and human lose their job. Coincidentally Tramp involved in them and took flag and police arrest him without knowing anything.

Chaplin criticising the government who didn't allow people to asking for their right.

When someone tried to breakdown the system that time political party take some actions against them to stop them and set example of not doing and asking for right.

And people feel fear and stoped doing that.

7) Orphan child - Hunger :-

During the time of Modernism there is people , who does not able to get food and shelter. Gamin the women protagonist - a orphan girl who steal Bananas for her sisters.We saw the happiness of getting food. When her father came to home she share banana with him and came to know that his father lose his job due to industrialism. During the fight of right , somebody shoot her father , here Charli satire on society that whenever someone ask for right they have to give thier life and always middle class and working class have to suffer for it.

8) Letter :-

This letter was symbol of trust. When Tramp saved to police from thief and that time police give to him as trustworthy person to give job. And by this letter he got job couple of time.

8) Newspaper headline :-

Strike became headline of next day's newspaper.

9) Dream :

Dream about having such house and when they entered in reality everything got changed and completely different.

They have every dream about having food, so we can observe that how kind of situation people facing during that era.

10) Mall - big shop

Big stole - shop which was for rich people. But people of middle class visit there and satisfied their dreams by seeing this and by experienced because they can't afford it.

In today's time we called it mall which open for all and everyone can visit there and enjoyed.

11) wait - waiter and Dance :-

When nobody give him job that time he was ready to do job of waiter and lying about his singing sake of money and work. So we can say that when someone lied for small reason that time it was not became problematic for large number of people but when High rank people lie that time many people have to suffer for it.