The best scene of Charlie Chaplin’s “Modern Times” is its
last. The final 30 seconds gave purpose
to the previous 80 minutes. In that
scene, the film’s protagonist, together with his love, walks into the
distance. At the film’s end they are
homeless, and many of their problems have not been conclusively dealt
with. Regardless of the police that
undoubtedly still pursue them, and their wont for a home of their own, the two
characters are smiling. They are happy.
The message I received from the film was simple: happiness
is not the result of circumstance.
From its beginning, the film comments on the common American
idea of happiness. Crowds of people find
transportation to the factory where they perform mundane tasks for pay that
sustains them long enough to wake up and do it again the next day. Chaplin criticizes this model of living very
early by opening with a shot of sheep herds, then fading to a shot of human
crowds. The parallel between the two is
obvious, and makes the viewer reflect on the absurd repetition of some human
behavior.
For the near entirety of the movie, Chaplin’s character is
in search of an idea. He believes that
by maintaining a job, living by the law (and staying out of prison, which
proves so difficult for him), and finding a comfortable home, he will be
happy.
In the end, he finds that none of those things were
necessary for his happiness. By merely
facing life’s challenges, together with someone he loves, he is able to be
happy.
“Modern Times” is a simple film that seems light-hearted and
innocent, but I believe its motivations were deep. Its message of optimism was desperately
needed by the 1930s society into which it was released. People wandered without a home. They found it difficult to maintain a
job. They needed Chaplin’s light humor
and the assurance that they would get through their hard times.