Review of City Lights (1931) by Rainer K — 07 Dec 2012
City Lights may not be the brightest or smartest piece of film and definitely not even above average in terms of cinematography and production design, but heck, it's a fine comedy with a lot of heart.
Chaplin plays the Tramp, as usual, but what I've seen, this is his best Tramp performance. The script is also brilliant in giving him enough scenes to work with.
He has one awesome over-the-top drunk scene, which might be instantly one of my favourite drunk scenes ever. Add one incredibly ludicrous box fight and you can count me in. There are also a lot of other silly slapstick scenes (although not the quality of Keaton's stunts) and there's a romantic subplot that isn't as generic as usual.
Especially the end is greatly moving. And moving me is not an easy task for any film, and especially for a silent and/or comedy this means something.
The millionaire character with alcohol-related amnesia was also quite funny, I liked him even more than the Tramp, and I can relate with him to some degree.
I can't say I fell in love with City Lights as much as the Tramp with the flower girl but I must admit, it's the best Chaplin film I've seen so far, and I'll certainly expand on my silent slapstick viewings.
This review of City Lights (1931) was written by Rainer K on 07 Dec 2012.
City Lights has generally received very positive reviews.
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