The Great Dictator Final Speech (1940)

[Samael]

The Great Dictator Final Speech to Hans Zimmer's Time 1080p

Recently a friend of mine showed me this clip, and I just cannot stop watching it.

I feel the things he says, more than 70 years ago, are more relevant than ever.

All the things he brings up are things we see nowadays. There is still an immense amount of injustice and inequality out there.

I don't want to say too much though, and just leaves this here, for those who may not have seen it yet.

I think this speech is just something everyone should watch at least once.

[Autumn Sativus]

We took at look at this in one of my classes last week and I spread it all around. I have a great appreciation for it. It's interesting to know that the intention was for this to be a comedy, then the war took a turn and this became a more serious film.

[Shjade]

That sounds a lot more like an endorsement of anarchy than democracy to me.

Not that that's a bad thing.

[Xanatos]

The fact that he looks like Hitler makes him harder to take seriously. I keep waiting for him to crack some punch line. Besides, he speaks of an idealic way of life. That right there takes his serious level to the bottom of the barrel.

[Shjade]

The fact that he looks like Hitler makes him harder to take seriously. I keep waiting for him to crack some punch line. Besides, he speaks of an idealic way of life. That right there takes his serious level to the bottom of the barrel.

It's interesting to know that the intention was for this to be a comedy

It's freaking Charlie Chaplin, man.

[Autumn Sativus]

He is supposed to look like Hitler. If you watch the whole film (it's not bad) he is a German dictator who accidentally switches places with a Jewish Barber - the Barber is sent off to become the new Dictator (and you saw how that went) and the actual Dictator is shipped off to the concentration camps.

[Oniya]

Chaplain himself was very uneasy about doing talkies.  He wanted to make sure that if the 'Little Tramp' ever broke his silence, it would be for something meaningful.

As for the comedic aspect, there's one scene where he does a dance with a giant beach-ball-style globe that's pretty funny.

(For what it's worth, I've heard that prints of this film were among the many things that the Nazis collected to burn in Germany.  Hitler was furious with it.)

[Autumn Sativus]

Mussolini actually made a comment about it after watching (there is a character in the film to represent him).

The globe scene is actually quite great.

The Barber Shop scene is also awesome, you can find it under that name on youtube.

[Shjade]

(For what it's worth, I've heard that prints of this film were among the many things that the Nazis collected to burn in Germany.  Hitler was furious with it.)

I can't imagine why.