Film

In his satirical jab at Hitler and fascism, Chaplin is by turns brilliant, maudlin, a master of physical comedy and strangely awkward as a filmmaker. He may have been (depressingly) insufficiently pessimistic about the horrors Hitler was unleashing on the world, but nearly 70 years later Dictator still takes some pleasingly sharp bites at the vanity and folly of Adenoid Hynkel (Chaplin), the ruler of Tomania. Before most people in the U.S. were paying any serious attention to Hitler’s campaign against the Jews, Chaplin used it as a central plot point.

Chaplin alternates between Hynkel’s plans to invade neighboring Osterlich and the story of a Jewish barber (Chaplin again) who bears an uncanny resemblance to the Tomanian leader. The section in which Hynkel meets with Benzini Napaloni (Oakie), the dictator of Bacteria, is a textbook example of broad comedy, and Chaplin graciously lets Oakie get the funniest gags. Other parts, like a long introduction set during WWI, feel a bit flabby and in need of a good editor.

Dictator is best remembered for the closing speech, an impassioned plea for a world of freedom and love. The surprise, viewed through 21st-century eyes, is that Chaplin counters fascist rhetoric with his own set of big buzzwords and empty phrases. “Don’t fight for slavery! Fight for liberty! Let us fight to free the world.” It’s heartfelt, but we can think of a few modern-world leaders who have used similar phrases to justify pointless wars.