The movie Marion Cotillard called “the masterpiece of the masterpieces”
In the main, we think of Charlie Chaplin as a silent movie star, and with good reason – it was how he found his fame, he was a master of the art of telling stories without speaking, and he was richly deserving of his place in history for it.
But as French star Marion Cotillard will attest to, once Chaplin transitioned to sound, he did that better than most, too.
This month, Cotillard was called in to the Criterion closet to be the latest actor to make their picks of the finest films of all time, and in doing so, she highlighted one of Chaplin’s as the one she goes back to endlessly – namely, 1940s The Great Dictator.
It was Chaplin’s first movie with sound, and it came right as the world had been plunged into global conflict for the second time that century, as Hitler moved his Nazi soldiers through Europe, resulting in the death of millions. The United States, however, hadn’t yet taken a stand against the Germans, and Chaplin’s movie, which lampooned not just Hitler but Italy’s Mussolini too, proved hugely influential to the American public.
Chaplin plays dual roles in the satire, which was inspired by the star’s viewing of Nazi propaganda films, which he found laughable. He wrote and directed his response, which he intended to help address the growing violence against Jewish people in Europe. Chaplin also felt there were similarities between him and the German leader, with their moustaches an obvious connection, but also the fact that they were born just days apart in the same year.
In picking out the film, Cotillard said it was: “Definitely my favourite movie, even if I know it’s hard to, like, choose or pick one movie, but that would be The Great Dictator. This is the most human movie of them all. This is the smartest, connected to the heart movie that I’ve ever seen. And each time I see it, I’m moved the same way.
“Each time it brings me to tears, just talking about it. This is a masterpiece. This is the masterpiece of the masterpieces.”
Academy Award-winning Cotillard grew up watching not just Chaplin, but other classic actors including Greta Garbo, and has previously spoken about her love for the golden era of Hollywood, singling out films like Singin’ in the Rain in addition to more modern classics like the brilliant surveillance movie The Lives of Others from 2006 and another Nazi-related masterpiece, Sophie’s Choice from Alan J. Pakula.
While in the Criterion closet, she also picked out movies, including the 2001 musical comedy Hedwig and the Angry Inch, another film set in East Berlin, plus a collection of the films of female French director Agnes Varda.
Cotillard said: “I think I saw all her movies, and actually, the one I hadn’t seen, I saw last year, and one of them, I loved. It was Lion’s Love. There’s something about this movie, about the peculiarity of the human soul, and human relationships that I absolutely adore. This is a piece of art.”
Cotillard, who was nominated for a second Oscar for her work on the will be seen next month in a modern fairy tale called The Ice Tower and is currently starring in season four of Apple TV+’s hit drama The Morning Show. She’ll also be seen in next year’s Tom Cruise movie Broadsword, again set in World War Two.
