“I’m sorry, but I don't want to be an emperor. He takes the opportunity to make an impassioned plea for unity and humanity - while in the story, Chaplin’s character is speaking to the massed ranks of the Dictator’s supporters, in reality he’s speaking directly to the audience, claiming: After the tyrant is mistaken for his double and sent to a concentration camp, the barber has to impersonate the ruler and make a speech to his troops. Chaplin played Hynkel and his identical double, a nameless Jewish barber who experiences persecution.Īs Hynkel’s ambitions grow, the barber is drawn into a plot to remove him, thanks to his uncanny resemblance to the dictator. The Great Dictator was made just as World War II was declared in September 1939 and told the story of a thinly-disguised parody of Hitler, Adenoid Hynkel, ruling tyrant of a fictional European country called Tomainia. The film-maker decided to hit back and add his voice, properly for the first time, to the growing disapproval and horror at what was happening in Europe. A trip to Berlin in 1931 had seen the comic mobbed by fans, but the Nazi Party disgustedly denounced him as a “Jewish acrobat” (despite Chaplin not being Jewish). Moving into features in 1921 with the classic comedy The Kid, Chaplin kicked against the advent of sound films at the end of the decade and continued to make silent pictures well into the the 1930s.Ĭharlie Chaplin directs and stars in the film 'The Great Dictator'.īut one subject changed his mind: the rise of Adolf Hitler and the Nazis. His Little Tramp character soon became a huge hit around the globe - everyone could identify with Chaplin and his humour. Born in South London, he moved to the US to pursue fame in the rapidly-growing movie business in Hollywood. In 1939, Charlie Chaplin was a superstar.
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