At a time when synchronized sound was the standard in
moviemaking, there was increasingly less room for the silent stars, especially
comedians who relied so heavily on pantomime to make their comedy work. Charlie
Chaplin’s Tramp character was universal in being voiceless and without language
he had no firm ties to a particular geographic location. He could be Russian or
Japanese or Brazilian. The sentimentality of his stories could be understood
anywhere in the world. Chaplin’s last completely silent feature film, City Lights, was released in 1931, four
full years after Al Jolson’s profession, “You ain’t heard nothin’ yet,” in The Jazz Singer ushered in a new era for
motion pictures. Chaplin made Modern
Times between 1932 and 1936 and though it is for all intents and purposes a
silent film, it does utilize sound effects, a synchronized musical score and
some spoken dialogue. It was Chaplin’s way of sticking to the type of film
making he knew best while giving a small tip of the hat to the new mode.
