Charlie Chaplin Sound Analysis

1386 Words3 Pages
bulb-icon

Recommended: Sound in classic hollywood films academic essay

What do you consider to be the strengths and weaknesses in the use of sound in Modern Times? In 1927 the world had first debuted the first ever-sound movie, The Jazz Singer, however, just over a decade later in 1937, the infamous Charlie Chaplin still continued to create silent film as we can see in Modern Times (1936). In this essay I will discuss the advantages and weaknesses of Chaplin’s decision of not using sound besides music and sound effects. In particular I will discuss how he used these decisions to his benefit. Modern times was a risk to be taken for Chaplin as Sound film had started just a decade before it was released, yet as “ the most famous man in the world” and with his success all thanks to the silent era, Chaplin thought …show more content…

There is a part of the film where Chaplin adds a sound effect of bones cracking to the music score. This adds humour as the sound effects adds emphasis to the characters action on screen, and also creates laughter with the audience as he successfully syncs the noise with the screen. So the use of sound effects became an advantage to Chaplin. Sound effects would help him in the creation of his comedy. They would help his scenes add more humour and allow him to experiment. There is also a scene where he uses sound effects for humour also. The scene where he is sat next to a socially accepted and respected lady, the minister’s wife, drinking coffee. As she drinks the coffee her stomach starts to rumble. The little tramp also does the same and his stomach starts rumbling too. This scene shows a great example of Chaplin’s own sound effects he created. He would record himself blowing bubbles through a straw in a glass. This sound effect created the uncomfortable gargling noises of their stomachs, adding extra humour to the acting of the scene as we watch the dog get frightened. Chaplin turns on the radio next to him and we hear a somewhat advert for stomach pains. His reactions and facial expressions alongside the sound effects create a blissful humour. Thus, another great example of why sound effects had become to an advantage for Chaplin in Modern

Show More
Related

  • Sunset Boulevard Film Analysis

    966 Words  | 2 Pages

    Sound was first introduced into film by the film The Jazz Singer (1927). The transition for silent films to talkies was an experimental period in film history considering that, “[m]ost of the early talkies were successful at the box-office, but many of them were of poor quality - dialogue-dominated play adaptations, with stilted acting (from inexperienced performers) and an unmoving camera or microphone” (Kirk). When film was transitioning into sound a lot of silent film aspects disappeared. Many of the early talkies lacked in visuals because most of the filmmakers' attention was on sound. Another aspect of silent film making that was lost were the stars. Some stars transitioned into talkies; while others did not transition. The character Norma Desmond in Sunset Boulevard reflects the struggle many of the silent film actors and actresses faced because of talkies. There are many reasons as to why some silent film actors didn’t transition into talkies. Some reasons actors did not transition include: audiences did not like actor’s voices, actors did not like making talkies, and some actors could not speak english. In Sunset Boulevard, there are many silent film stars who did not transfer into talkies such as, Buster Keaton and Gloria Swanson.

    Read More

  • The Film Industry In The 1920s

    1018 Words  | 3 Pages

    The decade was largely dominated by silent films, but the creation of movies with sound followed afterwards. These innovations greatly improved the movies and made them more immersive and exciting for the viewer. Soon after the invention of sound in movies, the silent era movies...

    Read More

  • Time Periods Represented in "The Kid" and "Iron Jawed Angels"

    1321 Words  | 3 Pages

    New and exciting technologies have always played a huge role in the culture of American people. When the motion picture came out it was no surprise that both consumers and producers were more than happy to get in on the action. Back in the 1920’s film was still pretty new and was only in black and white with no sound, but the films were always accompanied by orchestral pieces to help set the mood. The art of movie-making has come a long way since then with the addition of not only color and audio, but new techniques and new ideas. Both The Kid and Iron Jawed Angels are very popular films about the early 1900’s. Although they share some common thoughts, but because they were made in two completely different time periods their focuses are far off from one another and their ideas contrast for the most part.

    Read More

  • Little Caesar: Gangster Life in New York City

    2304 Words  | 5 Pages

    ...netti, Louis, and Scott Eyman. “The Talkie Era.” Flashback: A Brief History of Film. Ed. Leah Jewell. 4th ed. New Jersey: Prentice Hall, 2001. 140-145. Print.

    Read More

  • Compare And Contrast The Sound Era And The Silent Era

    1303 Words  | 3 Pages

    The silent era in film occurred between 1895 through 1929. It had a a major impact on film history, cinematically and musically. In silent films, the dialogue was seen through muted gestures, mime, and title cards from the beginning of the film to the end. The pioneers of the silent era were directors such as, D. W. Griffith, Robert Wiene and Edwin S. Porter. These groundbreaking directors brought films like first horror movie and the first action and western movie. Due to lack of color, the silent films were either black and white or dyed by various shades and hues to signal a mood or represent a time of day. Now, we begin to enter towards the sound era and opposed to the silent era, synchronized sounds were introduced to movies. The classic movie, The Jazz Singer, which was directed by Alan Crosland, was the first feature length film to have synchronized dialogue. This was not only another major impact in film history, but it also played a major part in film technology and where film is right now.

    Read More

  • Sound Analysis: Psycho By Alfred Hitchcock

    1069 Words  | 3 Pages

    Sound is an incredibly relevant part of filmmaking. Although often misunderstood, it helps to generate a more realistic episode by recreating the sonic experience the scene needs. Its main goal is to enhance the emotions that each section is trying to convey by adding music and effects alongside moving images. Psycho (Hitchcock, 1960), is one of the most popular films of the XX Century (Thomson, 2009). Commonly recognised as a masterpiece for its cinematographic, editing and musical values, it changed cinema forever by “playing with darker prospects (…) of humanity such as sex and violence (Thomson, 2009)”. This paper will analyse the sound effects used in the shower scene and its repercussions

    Read More

  • The Jazz Singer

    860 Words  | 2 Pages

    The Jazz Singer, released in 1927, is a black and white film that centers on a young man who wishes to conquer his dreams in becoming a professional jazz singer. This film, directed by Alan Crosland, demonstrates new developments from the decade of the 1920’s. During the decade, many new advances; such as the introduction of musicals and other technological advancements, were created. The Jazz Singer utilized these new advances of the decade and incorporated them into each scene. This is evident due to the elements of being the first talkie film, the introduction of the new musical genre and the introduction of the Hollywood stars system. By utilizing the new advances of the decade, Crosland’s film, changed the way cinema would be seen forever.

    Read More

  • The Use of Sound in Coppola’s The Conversation

    2672 Words  | 6 Pages

    As an audience we are manipulated from the moment a film begins. In this essay I wish to explore how The Conversation’s use of sound design has directly controlled our perceptions and emotional responses as well as how it can change the meaning of the image. I would also like to discover how the soundtrack guides the audience’s attention with the use of diegetic and nondiegetic sounds.

    Read More

  • The explaination of ‘cinema of attractions’

    1161 Words  | 3 Pages

    Brownlow, Kevin 1994, ‘Preface’, in Paolo, C, Burning Passions: an introduction to the study of silent film, British Film Institute, London: BFI, pp. 1-3.

    Read More

  • Analysis Of Man With A Movie Camera

    1249 Words  | 3 Pages

    With the discovery of techniques such as continuous editing, multiple camera angles, montage editing, and more, silent filmmaking developed from simple minute-long films to some of the most beautiful, awe-inspiring films that have ever been created—in only a few decades. In Visions of Light, someone alluded that if the invention of sound had come along a mere ten years later, visual storytelling would be years ahead of what it is today. This statement rings true. When looking at the immense amount of progress that was made during the silent era of films, one must consider where the art of film has been, where it is, and where it is

    Read More

  • Music In The Film, Phantom Of The Opera

    1453 Words  | 3 Pages

    Sound is what brings movies to life, but, not many viewers really notice. A film can be shot with mediocre quality, but, can be intriguing if it has the most effective foley, sound effects, underscore, etc. Sound in movies band together and unfold the meaning of the scenes. When actors are speaking, the dialogue can bring emotion to the audience, or, it can be used as the ambient sound. Music is one of the main things to have when filmmaking. The use of Claudia Gorbman’s Seven Principles of Composition, Mixing and Editing in Classical Film gives audiences a perspective of sound, and, how it can have an impact on them.

    Read More

  • Analysis Of Modern Times By Charlie Chaplin

    781 Words  | 2 Pages

    The film “Modern Times,” directed by Charlie Chaplin, is set in the mid nineteen thirties. This time frame places the characters in the middle of the Great Depression and the industrial revolution. The film depicts the lifestyle and quality of living for people in this era by showing a factory worker who cannot take the monotony of working on an assembly line. The film follows the factory worker through many of his adventures throughout the film. The film’s main stars are Charlie Chaplin and Paulette Goddard.

    Read More

  • Importance Of Sound In Film

    1140 Words  | 3 Pages

    The introduction of sound to film started in the 1920’s. By the 1930’s a vast majority of films were now talkies. ‘If you put a sound consistent to visual image and specifically human voice you make a “talkie”’ (Braun 1985 pg. 97). In 1926 Warner Brothers introduced sound to film but, other competing studios such as FOX, didn’t find it necessary to incorporate sound to their motion pictures production, as they were making enough money through their silent movies. Warner Brothers decided to take what was considered a risky move by adding sound to their motion picture, a risk taken, as they weren’t as successful in the silent movie department. But this risk paid off with the hit release of ‘The Jazz Singer’ in 1927. Though sound in films was then acceptable and successful it wasn’t until the 1950’s that it became feasible to the public as sound was introduced to cinema by the invention of Cinerama by Fred Waller. The Cinerama used 35mm film strip and seven channels of audio.

    Read More

  • Why Do People Watch Movies?

    774 Words  | 2 Pages

    ‘Then came the films’; writes the German cultural theorist Walter Benjamin, evoking the arrival of a powerful new art form at the end of 19th century. By this statement, he tried to explain that films were not just another visual medium, but it has a clear differentiation from all previous mediums of visual culture.

    Read More

  • Biography of Charles Spencer Chaplin

    1290 Words  | 3 Pages

    Charles Spencer Chaplin was born on April 16, 1889 in London, England. His father, Charles Chaplin Sr., was a vocalist and an actor. His mother, Hannah Chaplin, was a vocalist as well as a character comedienne in the music halls of London. Chaplin also had a half-brother named Sydney, who was from a previous marriage of Hannah’s (Lynn). When Charlie was five years old, he sang for his mother on stage after she had fallen ill and was unable to speak let alone sing (Lynn). Everyone in the audience loved Charlie’s performance so much, that they threw coins onto the stage in show of appreciation of the young actor. By the age of 10, Chaplin’s childhood consisted of extreme poverty, working in the workhouses of London, and seeing his mother's mental health decline so much, that it had her institutionalized. Charlie and his brother Sydney were sent to an orphanage shortly after his mother was admitted into the asylum. Their father remarried, giving the opportunity to live with their father once more. The Chaplin brothers were often locked out of his father’s house because his new wife didn’t want to take care of his children. They were often left to search for food and shelter outs...

    Read More

More about Charlie Chaplin Sound Analysis

Open Document