Every so often, when I look up the historical critical context of a film, I am surprised by what I find. Most often I see films that are schlock get undue praise, but since most of anything in life is bad (lest we'd not notice the good). This is not unusual. Then there are good or great films that are severely dissed. Almost every Stanley Kubrick film, post-1970, falls into this category. But, then there are films which are nice little films, not particularly bad, but also nowhere near great, that just elicit an off reaction from critics. Such a film is Richard Attenborough's 1992 film, Chaplin, on the life of filmdom's first true superstar. Is it a great film? No. It's a rather standard biopic, and pretty much in line with what the director did, a decade earlier, in Gandhi. Like that film, this one features a previously little known actor who 'arrived' via a career-making turn in the title role. In Gandhi it was Ben Kingsley. In Chaplin it is Robert Downey, Jr.
Most of the kvetching revolves around the fact that the film uses a flashback sequence, or that a character played by Anthony Hopkins is fictive, or that the film focuses too much on the personal and sex life of Chaplin. But, let's look at these plaints. First, that a work of art uses a standard technique does not mean that it is trite. It can be trite, or it can be used very effectively. This film splits the difference. It's neither here nor there in that regard. Second, so what that the Hopkins character was not 'real'? Again, it's a standard technique, and like the flashback structure, the use of a fictive character is neither here nor there. Third, a biopic could focus on the art of an artist, if the artist was not a film star, to great effect. But, since Chaplin was a film star, the reason the film exists is because everyone knows who he is, in his art. Therefore, only hints of his personal life are fodder for any extrapolation. And the only nudity the film shows is a rear view shot of Milla Jovovich's buttocks, as she portrays Chaplin's first wife, Mildred Harris.
That said, and despite the assorted sex scandals that littered his personal life, Chaplin's personal life was rather dull. The real flaw of the film is that which haunts most biopics, and that is it tries to do the cradle to grave schtick, instead of picking a specific period of the comedian's life, and expounding upon it. One of the best biopics of all time, Patton, follows this method. The DVD, by LionsGate, is the 15th Anniversary Edition. Despite that honorific, the DVD is not top notch. Yes, the film transfer, in a 1.78:1 aspect ratio, is well done, but there is no audio commentary on the disk. This is an alarming trend on many DVDs, especially considering that the costs for producing them has dropped precipitously in the last decade. There are a few bonuses, but they are meager. There's a brief home movie of Chaplin and Paulette Goddard cruising on his yacht off the California coast. There's a featurette on Chaplin's life and career, on eon his life, and also one called The Most Famous Man In The World, on the phenomenon of Chaplin becoming the first truly global superstar. There's also the original theatrical trailer. The box for the DVD mistakenly lists the film's running time at 135 minutes; although it is 144 minutes long.
Most of the kvetching revolves around the fact that the film uses a flashback sequence, or that a character played by Anthony Hopkins is fictive, or that the film focuses too much on the personal and sex life of Chaplin. But, let's look at these plaints. First, that a work of art uses a standard technique does not mean that it is trite. It can be trite, or it can be used very effectively. This film splits the difference. It's neither here nor there in that regard. Second, so what that the Hopkins character was not 'real'? Again, it's a standard technique, and like the flashback structure, the use of a fictive character is neither here nor there. Third, a biopic could focus on the art of an artist, if the artist was not a film star, to great effect. But, since Chaplin was a film star, the reason the film exists is because everyone knows who he is, in his art. Therefore, only hints of his personal life are fodder for any extrapolation. And the only nudity the film shows is a rear view shot of Milla Jovovich's buttocks, as she portrays Chaplin's first wife, Mildred Harris.
That said, and despite the assorted sex scandals that littered his personal life, Chaplin's personal life was rather dull. The real flaw of the film is that which haunts most biopics, and that is it tries to do the cradle to grave schtick, instead of picking a specific period of the comedian's life, and expounding upon it. One of the best biopics of all time, Patton, follows this method. The DVD, by LionsGate, is the 15th Anniversary Edition. Despite that honorific, the DVD is not top notch. Yes, the film transfer, in a 1.78:1 aspect ratio, is well done, but there is no audio commentary on the disk. This is an alarming trend on many DVDs, especially considering that the costs for producing them has dropped precipitously in the last decade. There are a few bonuses, but they are meager. There's a brief home movie of Chaplin and Paulette Goddard cruising on his yacht off the California coast. There's a featurette on Chaplin's life and career, on eon his life, and also one called The Most Famous Man In The World, on the phenomenon of Chaplin becoming the first truly global superstar. There's also the original theatrical trailer. The box for the DVD mistakenly lists the film's running time at 135 minutes; although it is 144 minutes long.