Modern Times Review: Chaplin Versus the Machine
9/10 — Modern Times (1936)
Pros
- Brilliant physical comedy
- Timeless satire
- Charming Paulette Goddard
Cons
- Silent-film pacing
- Sentimental streak
Chaplin’s Tramp struggles to hold down jobs in an industrialised world, from the assembly line to a department store, while befriending a young woman in the Depression. It was Chaplin’s last film as the Tramp.
What works
The assembly-line scenes are comic genius, and the roller-skating sequence is a marvel of timing. Paulette Goddard is lively and charming, and Chaplin’s satire of mechanisation still resonates in an age of automation.
Where it falters
Silent film pacing and the sentimental plot may take a little adjustment for modern audiences.
Verdict
Funny, touching and wise, and still strikingly relevant.
