City Lights

City Lights is a 1931 American romantic comedy-drama that Charlie Chaplin wrote, produced, directed, and starred in. Though it has no spoken dialogue, the film was released with a synchronized musical score and sound effects. The plot follows Chaplin’s Tramp as he falls for a blind flower seller (Virginia Cherrill) and forms an unpredictable friendship with a wealthy alcoholic (Harry Myers). Chaplin began developing the script in 1928, when talking pictures were becoming popular, but he chose to avoid dialogue and use only music and sound effects.

Music

Filming ran from December 27, 1928, to September 1930. This was the first time Chaplin composed the score for one of his own films, writing it in six weeks with Arthur Johnston. The main theme, a leitmotif for the blind girl, is “La Violetera” (“Who’ll Buy My Violets”) by Spanish composer José Padilla. Chaplin lost a lawsuit for failing to credit Padilla.

Accolades

Released on March 7, 1931, City Lights was an immediate hit, earning positive reviews and over $4 million in worldwide rentals. Today, many critics regard it as Chaplin’s finest work and one of the greatest films ever made. Biographer Jeffrey Vance calls it “not only Charles Chaplin’s masterpiece; it is an act of defiance,” since it premiered four years into the sound-film era that began with The Jazz Singer (1927). In 1949, critic James Agee described the final scene as “the greatest single piece of acting ever committed to celluloid.” In 1991, the Library of Congress selected the film for preservation in the National Film Registry as “culturally, historically, or aesthetically significant.” In 2007, the American Film Institute ranked it 11th on its list of the best American films.

A monument to “Peace and Prosperity” is unveiled, revealing the Little Tramp asleep on one of its statues. He flees the angry crowd and wanders the city. He meets a blind flower girl on a street corner, buys a flower, and realizes she cannot see.

Plot

She mistakes him for a rich man when a car door slams as he leaves. That night, the Tramp saves a drunken millionaire from suicide. The millionaire takes him home for champagne and a party. The next morning, the Tramp sees the flower girl on her way to work.

He gets money from the millionaire, buys all her flowers, and drives her home. She tells her grandmother about her kind, wealthy friend. Later, the sober millionaire does not recognize the Tramp and throws him out. That evening, drunk again, the millionaire invites him to another party, but the next morning kicks him out once more.

The Tramp finds the girl not at her corner and goes to her apartment, where he hears a doctor say she has a fever. He takes a job as a street sweeper to help, bringing her groceries on his lunch break. He reads her a newspaper story about a Viennese doctor’s blindness cure. “Wonderful, then I’ll be able to see you,” she says.

He discovers an eviction notice her grandmother hid and promises to pay the rent, but is fired for being late. A boxer convinces him to fight in a fixed match for a share of the prize money. The boxer is replaced by a tough fighter who knocks the Tramp out despite his dodging. The Tramp meets the drunken millionaire again and is taken to the mansion.

He explains the flower girl’s situation and receives money for her operation. Burglars knock the millionaire out and steal the rest. The police find the Tramp with the money, but the millionaire—dazed—does not remember giving it.

The Tramp escapes long enough to give the girl the money, saying he will be away for a while, and is arrested. Months later, the Tramp is released. He goes to her street corner but does not find her. The girl, now able to see, runs a flower shop with her grandmother.

She still thinks of her mysterious benefactor and briefly mistakes a wealthy customer for him. The Tramp passes the shop, where she is arranging flowers in the window. He picks up a discarded flower and sees her watching him. He freezes, then smiles. She giggles to her employee, “I’ve made a conquest!” She offers him a fresh flower and a coin.

Embarrassed, he tries to leave, but she insists. She takes his hand, presses the coin into it, then stops. She runs her fingers along his arm and shoulder and gasps, “You?” He nods and asks, “You can see now?” She replies, “Yes, I can see now,” and presses his hand to her heart with a tearful smile. As the film fades, the Tramp smiles back.