Charlie Chaplin is tickled that CITY LIGHTS is an IFC Center classic pick
WEEKEND CLASSICS: CITY LIGHTS (Charles Chaplin, 1931)
IFC Center
323 Sixth Ave. at West Third St.
April 29-30, May 1, 11:00 am
Series continues weekends through June 26
212-924-7771
www.ifccenter.com
A genuine American treasure, City Lights is one of Charlie Chaplin’s most thoroughly entertaining masterpieces. Serving as writer, director, editor, producer, and composer, Chaplin also stars as the Little Tramp, a destitute man who instantly falls in love upon seeing a blind Flower Girl (Virginia Cherrill). When she mistakes him for a millionaire with a fancy car, he decides to pretend to be rich so she might like him, but when he actually becomes pals with the business tycoon (Harry Myers), he thinks he might eventually be able to get the money for her to get a new operation that could restore her eyesight. The only problem is that the millionaire, who parties wildly with the Little Tramp every evening, taking him to ritzy nightclubs and even giving him his car at one point, remembers nothing the next morning, and doesn’t want anything to do with him. It all leads to an unforgettable conclusion that pulls at the heartstrings. Despite the availability of sound, Chaplin chose to make City Lights a silent picture, although he did incorporate sound effects and, in one section, distorted speech. Although the film features several hysterical slapstick bits, including the opening, when the Little Tramp is sleeping on a statue entitled “Peace and Prosperity” as it is unveiled, and a scene in which he saves the millionaire from a suicide attempt, virtually every minute comments on the social reality of depression-era America and the widening gap between the rich and the poor. Metaphors abound as the Little Tramp tries his best to maintain a smile and search out love during the bleakest of times. City Lights is screening at 11:00 am April 29, 30, and May 1 in the “Weekend Classics” film series “Classic IFC Center,” consisting of favorite films selected by the theater’s managers, projectionists, and floor staff; City Lights was chosen by administrative staffer Asha P., who notes, “If only one of Charles Chaplin’s films could be preserved, City Lights would come the closest….” The festival continues through June 26 with such other greats as Black Narcissus, Ace in the Hole, The Godfather, Shadow of a Doubt, and Loves of a Blonde.