It is very difficult to believe the amount of pretentious waffle that has been written about this film. I am not a film student and so I can only guess that the film is taught to gullible undergraduates as an all-time masterpiece containing multiple levels of deep meaning concerning the loss of human identity in modern industrial society. It is nothing of the sort. It is a rather tedious mix of sentimentality and slapstick, and was anachronistic even when it was made in 1936 in that it pretends to be from the silent era, which had ended in 1927.
To be fair, there are a few funny scenes, all of which take place in the factory. The ones involving food are the best. All the scenes outside the factory are boring and many of them are hopelessly sentimental. The music, composed by Chaplin, is horrendous. Chaplin's wife is pretty, but can't act.
If the film had had a proper story developing the factory theme it could have been better. As it is, it is a typical collection of music hall / vaudeville set pieces which are only loosely connected. Many of these scenes do not advance the plot and aren't funny. The scene where Chaplin sings is also not at all funny.
In my view Chaplin was a one-trick pony with one character and a silly walk. What he does, he does well, but there is really no range in it, and those who claim there is are deceiving themselves.
In short - there is no deep meaning to the film at all - don't believe those who say there is.
To be fair, there are a few funny scenes, all of which take place in the factory. The ones involving food are the best. All the scenes outside the factory are boring and many of them are hopelessly sentimental. The music, composed by Chaplin, is horrendous. Chaplin's wife is pretty, but can't act.
If the film had had a proper story developing the factory theme it could have been better. As it is, it is a typical collection of music hall / vaudeville set pieces which are only loosely connected. Many of these scenes do not advance the plot and aren't funny. The scene where Chaplin sings is also not at all funny.
In my view Chaplin was a one-trick pony with one character and a silly walk. What he does, he does well, but there is really no range in it, and those who claim there is are deceiving themselves.
In short - there is no deep meaning to the film at all - don't believe those who say there is.