Running Head: CITY LIGHTS

City Lights

(Name)

(University Affiliation)
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Any story, however long it might be, can conceivably take two hours or less to be told in

a film. It would require the filmmaker to carve up the action into discrete perfect shots and later

reassemble them coherently thus holding the audiences visual interest. Tentatively, the

filmmaker will be required to make expressive points through close-ups, long shots, high- and

low-angle shots to bring out the story clearly (Sikov, 2010).

Charlie Chaplins movie, City Lights is a well orchestrated film that gives the audience

two wide shots to set the scene: The director uses medium long shot to show Chaplins

clumsiness and gives the audience an over the shoulder shot as well. Additionally, the director

gives the audience a diagonal view of the square boxing Rink Camera Technique and

immediately the scene starts first with tempo-ed trumpets. With this unique onset, the audience

is left with a feel of anxiety thus wanting to see what will follow next. With the music, now

mostly low trumpets and high flute tones, a point of contrasting effects is clearly brought out

thereby making the scene more interesting more so when the music begins to pick up speed. The

sound of the violin is added in the scene to add emphasis to the dance itself.

Immediately the first round of boxing is over, the audience get to hear a more a more

soothing music. The director takes this opportunity to introduce Charlies blind crush to the

audience: the crush appears before Charlie. With the soothing music, the director manages to

carry away the audience and since there is no speech, the audience watches very attentively to

get the story as well as appreciate the plot. Further, sound is well used for instance when we see

Chaplin stalling in an effort to put off the fight. This gives the audience the impression that

Chaplin will most likely fail thus creating suspense.

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After the bell is rung, the editor skillfully cuts the camera to the rink to let Charlie and his

opponent to start their choreographed dance. In order to lay emphasis and comedy, the editor

chose not to cut away from the rink once and instead waited until the round was over. After the

first round, Charlie Chaplin is placed back down and the audience gets a medium close shot up

of his face as well as his trainers to attempt to rile him back. The editor did that to show the

audience Chaplins expression of exhaustion. In the same round, Charlie Chaplin who is the

referee together with the opponent has what seems like a boxing dance. This unexpected turn

of events indulges the audience into the unknown.

The audience is at first made to believe that Charlie will lose bitterly, however when the

director introduces a new technique of hiding behind the ref, Charlie manages to take the lead

and almost beat the opponent. The contrast in the scene helps the audience to stay engaged. From

the scene, it is evident that boxing rink is indeed light while on the hand the audience and the rest

of the stadium is pitch black. The editor does not stop the camera from rolling until the round is

over. The first camera shots make the audience to believe that Chaplin would end up failing, but

due to his dance, he manages the game quite well. As Charlie Chaplin dances, the background

music fluctuates accordingly. The director manages to use the high pitched tones to show that

something extravagant has happened while on the other hand uses low pitch tones to show that

something is about to happen. The director also uses a fade-in for instance when Charlies crush

appears before his eyes. Through the fade-in, the audience gets the fact that this is purely

Chaplins imagination due to the directors decision to go with the fade-in. Mis-en-scene Charlie

Chaplin keeps the audience interested throughout the entire film through interesting camera

angles, contrasting music, humor and clever editing.

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Charlie Chaplins film City Lights is categorized in the silent movies category. It is called

a silent movie because the film does not have a soundtrack or rather speech in its entirety. Most

of the early movies were screened with some form of live music (Sikov, 2010). City Lights is a

well casted masterpiece and has remained to be one of the most beloved movies of all times.

From the film, it is evident that a movie can be shot without speech and as such keep the

audience attentive thought out the scenes without getting bored while at the same time getting

the intended message.

Chaplins sense of comedy situations and physical expertise is a paragon of humor.

There is a specific scene in the movie where the Tramp admires a nude statue through a shops

window, just behind him; there is a trapdoor that opens in the sidewalk. Taking a few steps

backward, the tramp pushes up to the opening and thereafter walks forward again. He does this

three to four times. The physical perfection in this is amazing which makes the audience to

giggle all through.

The movie can be categorized, as a romantic comedy since Charlie Chaplins humor is

similar to that of Ben Stiller who more often than not uses physical happenings make his

audience burst out in laughter. Even though it is has been categorized in the silent movies, the

film City Lights was not entirely a silent movie. Though there is no dialogue, there are sound

effects throughout the movie, which includes music, and symbolic sound effects.

City of Lights was shot using a very basic technology that set the footsteps that the

modern movies followed. The film producers never used high-tech cameras, yet they managed to

put their point across. They managed this through using their original techniques together with

spellbinding storytelling. A simple and easy shot like the one Charlie used in the film was good
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enough, he successfully conveyed his point to the audience and how the viewers should feel at

that particular point in the movie.

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Works cited

Sikov, Ed. Film Studies: An Introduction. New York: Columbia University Press, 2010.