Chaplin - A perfect biography

There's a throwaway line in 'Chaplin' where a costume designer asks Charlie Chaplin (played of course by the excellent Robert Downey Jr). "Would you like a suit of armour?" He clearly couldn't predict the amount of time RDJr would end up spending encased in an, albeit flying, suit of armour.  But, before he became famous for saving New York by flying a nuclear missile through an alien wormhole and wiping out their entire fleet, he was far more of a character actor, taking on the big role of one of the greatest icons in film ever.

I don't know an awful lot about Charlie Chaplin.  I only saw a few of his 'best' films during Film Studies classes, so I can claim to know how exact the story sticks to his life.  However, it was based on his own biography, so I guess what we're seeing is Chaplin's take on his own life story.  You may think that this would mean that he's portrayed sympathetically all the way through.  Luckily, it's actually quite balanced.  No doubt he was a decent man, but his first love always seemed to be the spotlight and the fame, rather than his (ever expanding) family.

This film would be nothing without Robert Downey Jr and, even at this young age, he shows why he was always destined for mega-stardom and carries (or rather MAKES) this film entirely.  Yes, overall the cast is quite a heavyweight ensemble with everyone from Dan Ackroyd and Anthony Hopkins to David Duchovney and Milla Jovovich, but none of them can ever come close to how well RDJr portrays the silent screen actor.

I was never really a massive fan of Chaplin himself, but this film is so good it can probably be enjoyed by anyone.  If you don't know an awful lot about the man himself then this will certainly go through all the major phases in his life.  And, if you're already a fan, you should appreciate the complex and dignified portrayal Robert Downey Jr gives of this icon.

9/10 almost as perfect as The Godfather