FEBRUARY 2012 - ISSUE 01 - Massive Magazine

38REVIEWSTHE GREAT DICTATORElizabeth BeattieFILMDirected byCharlie Chaplin, Wheeler DrydenProduced byCharlie ChaplinStaringCharlie Chaplin, Paulette GoddardCharlie Chaplin’s character ofthe little tramp is well known forfighting bullies and tough guys,but when Chaplin set out to directand act in The Great Dictator, hehad his sights set on a major historicalvillain. Disgusted by theNazi Party’s persecution of theJews and the fact that Americawas still neutral at the time thefilm was being made, Chaplin,the silent-film actor, spoke outabout the madness of the politicalsituation in Germany. He latersaid that if he had understood theextent of the persecution or knewabout the death camps, he wouldnever have attempted a comedyfilm revolving around suchevents. Even so, The Great Dictatorhas many powerful scenesabout humanity and the goodnessof people. Chaplin plays two characters,“Henkil” aka Hitler, andhis familiar little tramp character,a Jewish Barber who, after servingin WWI, suffers memory loss,making him unaware of Henkil’sgrowing power.The thing which is so powerfulabout this movie is that it’snot a propaganda film designedto drum up anger. Chaplin wasaware of the economic climate inGermany and the manner throughwhich Hitler had manipulated hisway into power, and he uses thefinal few moments in the film tospeak about what happens whenwe allow ourselves to live by hate.Chaplin’s great passion emphasisesthe good that exists inhumanity. “We all want to liveby each other’s happiness, notby each other’s misery. We don’twant to hate and despise oneanother. Even now my voice isreaching millions throughoutthe world, millions of despairingmen, women, and little children,victims of a system that makesmen torture and imprison innocentpeople. To those who canhear me I say “Do not despair”.”The Great Dictator was Chaplin’smost successful movie, andwith such a powerful message ofhope and call for peace it is alsohis most enduring. Like The DailyShow of its time, it pointed to theterrible and said “what are we doingabout it?”THE RUM DIARYElizabeth BeattieFILMDirected byBruce RobinsonProduced byJohnny DeppStaringJohnny Depp, Aaron EckhartMy first Hunter S Thompsonexperience was reading Fear andLoathing in Las Vegas. I instantlyloved the book’s bombastic styleand callous, witty narration (thebest way to ingest his work is inone sitting while drinking manycoffees). The concept of adaptingHunter S Thompson for thescreen seems fraught with danger.His books are precariously balancedin a way that, if you changeaspects of them then the whole artof his characteristic style couldeasily crumble. The Rum Diaryfilm leaves me with mixed emotions.At times, the visual pairingsand narration is excellentbut at the same time the scriptoften feels a little stilted and unnatural.There are very obviouslines which come straight fromthe book and don’t fit the mouthof the actor who utters them, andthey feel wasted.Johnny Depp plays Paul Kemp,a journalist who starts workingfor a dying newspaper writinghoroscopes and who, fuelled onrum, stumbles into various situationsand opportunities. Depp issuccessful in keeping Kemp interesting,and delivers droll observationslike a pro. His sidekick, BobSala, played by Michael Rispoli,trails after him, and the duo endup in many awkward situations,and experience crises regularly.The movie certainly feels likeHunter S Thompson world – aworld where everyone is an alcoholic,every woman has questionablevalues, and every cynic isright. But the it is able to maintaina sense of fun as well, largelydue to Depp’s performance andthe way rum is used as a cure forevery trouble encountered. Ultimately,however, the movie lacksdirection and although there arecolourful scenes and many greatone-liners, it feels rambling.Though rambling in writing isHunter S. Thompson’s strength,adapted into a movie context itbecomes a bit of a chore to watch.There are moments when all aspectsof the film come togetherwell, but not often enough tomake the movie truly enjoyable,and the audience is left to ponderif some books are best left as theyare.