The Great Dictator (1940)

Overview

The Great Dictator marks a seismic moment in cinema history: Charlie Chaplin’s first full sound film, and one of the earliest and most daring direct attacks on Adolf Hitler and fascism — released while the United States was still officially neutral in World War II. A dark political satire and social parable wrapped in comedy, the film is both a bold denunciation of tyranny and a plea for human decency.

Chaplin, who plays two roles — the fascist dictator Adenoid Hynkel and a humble Jewish barber — uses his signature style of slapstick, physical comedy, and heartfelt drama to confront the most dangerous ideologies of the 20th century. It's a film that balances humour and horror, parody and pathos, culminating in one of the most iconic speeches in cinematic history.

Plot Summary

The story unfolds in the fictional country of Tomainia, where the ruthless dictator Adenoid Hynkel (a direct parody of Adolf Hitler) is rising to power, persecuting Jews, and plotting world domination. Chaplin also plays a poor Jewish barber (unnamed in the film), a World War I veteran who suffers from amnesia and returns to find his community in a ghetto, under the brutal oppression of the Tomainian regime.

Through a series of farcical events, the barber is eventually mistaken for Hynkel. In the film’s climactic twist, he takes the dictator’s place at a rally and delivers an impassioned speech calling for peace, democracy, and brotherhood — a startling shift in tone that cements the film’s legacy.

Themes and Analysis

Satire as Resistance

At its core, The Great Dictator is a satirical attack on fascism, Nazism, and anti-Semitism. Chaplin uses humour as a weapon, turning the bombastic rhetoric of dictators into absurdity. Hynkel’s gibberish-laced speeches, his childlike tantrums, and his fawning advisers lampoon the delusions of grandeur and theatricality of real-life autocrats. By mocking them, Chaplin strips them of their mystique and fearsome aura.

But satire here is not mere entertainment — it is moral protest. Chaplin was one of the first mainstream figures in Hollywood to confront Hitler so directly, at a time when many still saw appeasement or isolationism as preferable.

Duality and Identity

The film’s dual roles — Hynkel and the Barber — allow Chaplin to contrast two extremes of human potential: the capacity for cruelty and the capacity for compassion. The dictator is obsessed with power, symbolism, and dominance. The barber is humble, kind, and apolitical — but becomes a vessel for truth. This duality reflects the choice societies face in the face of rising authoritarianism.

The Power of the Individual Voice

While Chaplin was a silent film legend, he deliberately chose to use sound here — not just for comedy, but to assert that speech, when used responsibly, is powerful. The film culminates in one of cinema’s most iconic moments: a direct-to-camera monologue that sheds all narrative pretence. The Barber’s final speech is not just the climax of the story, but a universal plea to humanity.

This moment — often called “The Final Speech” — is not a character's dialogue but Chaplin’s own voice breaking through. It’s earnest, impassioned, and devastating in its simplicity and sincerity.

Performances

Charlie Chaplin as Adenoid Hynkel / The Barber

Chaplin’s dual performance is masterful and bold. As Hynkel, he is grotesque, ridiculous, and chilling — a caricature of Hitler, complete with a moustache, flailing arms, and faux-German gibberish (“Juden! Jae Deutsch!”). His physical comedy is razor-sharp, whether he's ballroom-dancing with a globe balloon or climbing curtains in rage.

As the Barber, Chaplin returns to the innocence and gentleness of the Tramp — though technically not the same character, he embodies that spirit. He’s vulnerable, kind, and caught in the sweep of history, becoming the film’s moral centre.

Chaplin balances the two extremes — buffoon and everyman — with astonishing grace, and in doing so delivers a dual performance of historic proportions.

Paulette Goddard as Hannah

Goddard brings strength and dignity to Hannah, the Barber’s friend and eventual romantic interest. She’s defiant and grounded, playing a woman who refuses to give up her humanity even under constant threat. Though the role isn’t as large as her part in Modern Times, Goddard remains a vital emotional anchor.

Jack Oakie as Napaloni

As Benzino Napaloni (a parody of Mussolini), Jack Oakie is hilarious. His comedic duel with Hynkel — including a barber chair height competition — brilliantly mocks fascist pomposity. Oakie’s brash, exaggerated style pairs perfectly with Chaplin’s finesse, and their scenes together are riotously funny.

Direction and Style

Chaplin directs with intelligence and a firm command of tone. He shifts between broad comedy and quiet drama, between the absurdity of dictatorship and the tragedy of oppression. Sequences like the globe ballet or the goose-stepping parades are visually stunning and thematically loaded.

The film’s cinematography is crisp and expressive, using sharp contrast and imposing set design for Hynkel’s world (resembling Nazi aesthetics), while the ghetto scenes are shot more intimately. Chaplin emphasizes visual symbolism — notably the iconic balloon globe — and uses sound sparingly but deliberately to reinforce his satire.

Notable Scenes

The Globe Ballet: Hynkel dances with an inflatable globe, fantasizing about world domination. It's whimsical, beautiful, and chilling in its symbolism — a dictator treating the world like a toy.

The Gibberish Speech: Hynkel’s mock-German speech is a masterclass in parody. Chaplin imbues the nonsense language with perfect cadence and fury, revealing how empty yet powerful fascist oratory could be.

Barber and Hannah in the Storm: A quieter, poignant scene where the barber and Hannah take shelter from a storm. It reminds the audience what’s at stake — simple human lives, dreams, and relationships.

The Final Speech: A nearly five-minute direct address to the audience where Chaplin breaks character to plea for peace, kindness, and unity. Delivered with trembling urgency, it remains one of the most quoted and emotionally affecting moments in cinema.

Historical Context and Reception

Released in October 1940, a year before the U.S. entered World War II, The Great Dictator was provocative. Many found it controversial for satirizing Hitler, especially as America had not yet fully grasped the extent of Nazi atrocities. Some in Hollywood and the political elite were uncomfortable with the film’s boldness.

Chaplin later said that had he known the full horror of the Holocaust, he wouldn’t have made the film as a comedy. Still, the film was both a box office and critical success — Chaplin’s most profitable film — and nominated for five Academy Awards.

Criticisms and Controversies

Tone Shifts: Some critics note the film’s abrupt shifts from farce to drama as jarring. The tonal whiplash between slapstick and the brutal realities of fascism can be challenging.

The Final Speech: While now iconic, it was criticized at the time for being too didactic and earnest, breaking the narrative immersion. Yet, for many, this moment is the soul of the film.

Simplistic Representation: Chaplin simplifies complex geopolitics into a clear-cut moral fable. While effective as satire, it lacks nuance about the systemic nature of fascism.

Legacy and Influence

The Great Dictator remains a landmark of political cinema — the first major anti-Hitler film in Hollywood and a testament to the power of satire. Its influence spans generations, cited by filmmakers from Stanley Kubrick to Taika Waititi (Jojo Rabbit). The final speech continues to circulate widely on social media, especially in times of political unrest.

It represents the apex of Chaplin's transition from silent clown to global moral voice — a rare blend of artistry and activism.

In 1997, the film was selected for preservation in the National Film Registry for its cultural and historical importance.

The Great Dictator is not just a cinematic achievement; it is a moral act of courage. It confronts evil with laughter, tyranny with truth, and despair with hope. Chaplin uses his art to take a stand — not just to entertain, but to awaken.

Eighty years later, it remains relevant, riveting, and essential. In a world still grappling with authoritarianism and prejudice, The Great Dictator continues to speak — and to move — with undiminished power.