There’s no better time to be a movie fan than near the beginning of the month on Amazon Prime Video. Almost everything new on Prime Video drops on the 1st of the month, and April is no exception. This month, Prime Video has added classic films like Chinatown, To Catch a Thief, and Gunfight at the O.K. Corral, as well as more modern films, including Memoirs Of a Geisha, The Station Agent, and Fighting with My Family. But if you have to watch only one Amazon Prime Video movie in April, it has to be Chaplin.
The late Richard Attenborough directed this 1992 biopic about one of the most beloved stars in the history of Hollywood: Charlie Chaplin. Robert Downey Jr. memorably played Chaplin, as the narrative covers decades in his life, from his reign in the silent film era to his decades in exile before returning for one final bow. At the time of its release, Chaplin was greeted by mixed reviews, but it has withstood the test of time over three decades later. Now, we’re going to share five reasons why you should watch Chapin on Amazon Prime Video during your next movie night.
Robert Downey Jr. gives one of his best performances
Downey only recently won his first Oscar for Best Supporting Actor, thanks to his performance in Oppenheimer. But Chaplin gave Downey his first-ever Oscar nomination for Best Actor when he was only 27. Downey had already established himself in the industry before this with such films as Weird Science and Less Than Zero, but Chaplin served notice that Downey was one of the best actors of his generation.
It certainly helped that Downey had more than a passing resemblance to Chaplin, but that wouldn’t have been enough by itself. Downey recreates Chaplin’s physical mannerisms, his shifting accent, and he becomes lost in the role. For the duration of the movie, it’s easy to believe that Downey is Chaplin.
It gives Charlie Chaplin his due as a Hollywood icon
Considering that Chaplin’s filmography extends back to 1914, he’s not as well-known among modern movie fans as he should be. Frankly, there’s not a big audience for silent films in the present, and it says a lot about Chaplin’s impact that he’s still remembered to the extent that he is.
Chaplin has been criticized for cramming so much of its subject’s life within a film that’s just under two-and-a-half hours, but there was no other way to tell his story short of making it a TV miniseries. If you take away nothing else from this movie, you’ll appreciate Chaplin’s comedic genius and his uncanny cinematic instincts that are on full display in archival footage from his films.
It blurs the line between Downey and Chaplin
The first two reasons on this list feed into the third. Even with modern filmmaking techniques, it would be difficult to recreate fully what Chaplin pulled off in his movies.
Chaplin actually tries to do that a few times, but it works even better during the brief scenes when the film actually incorporates footage of the real Chaplin into the movie. As joyous as it is to see Downey and the cast recreate the early Chaplin films, nothing replaces the impact of seeing Chaplin himself.
The cast is incredible
Downey gets the majority of the spotlight in this movie, but he’s also surrounded by an incredible cast throughout. Anthony Hopkins appears as the editor of Chaplin’s biography, George Hayden, but even he’s overshadowed by the fantastic performances of Kevin Kline (pictured above as another Hollywood icon, Douglas Fairbanks), Dan Aykroyd, James Woods, and David Duchovny (The X-Files).
The women in Chaplin’s life are also well-represented, with Moira Kelly in dual roles of Chaplin’s first love, Hetty Kelly, and his fourth wife, Oona O’Neill. Chaplin’s other wives are portrayed by Milla Jovovich, Deborah Moore, and Diane Lane. Even Chaplin’s real daughter, Geraldine Chaplin, has a role in the film as his mother, Hannah Chaplin.
The film gives Chaplin a Hollywood ending
Compared to the focus that Chaplin spends on the actor’s early years, the film doesn’t dwell too long on the scandal that basically ended his career in America. Chaplin was accused of fathering the child of a young actress, Joan Barry (Nancy Travis), out of wedlock at a time when that was considered a major scandal.
To give the film a Hollywood ending, Attenborough skips ahead a few decades to Chaplin’s return to America for the 1972 Oscars when he finally gets recognized for his contributions to cinema. More importantly, the film ends with extended footage of the real Chaplin, which gives the actor one more happy ending.
Watch Chaplin on Amazon Prime Video.
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