Claire's social satire before he emigrated to Hollywood, which reveals the bourgeois society's mechanical control and exploitation of workers, with a light comedy style, is an early classic. The film tells the different experiences of two homeless people in the wave of industrialization and automation, one becomes a rich man, the other is only infatuated with nature. After the protagonist escaped from prison, he built a record factory (an innuendo to EMI), and the assembly line production made the whole atmosphere almost the same as that of a prison. This film is the inspiration of Chaplin's Modern Times, and its sharp thought is no less than Chaplin's. (the film's studio sued Chaplin for infringement, but Claire dropped the lawsuit, saying "it would be my honor if I could inspire Chaplin," and admitted that the tramp in his work originated from Chaplin. The film is shot without a script and is played live by the actors. The use of music in the film is groundbreaking and is regarded as one of the best film soundtracks in film history.
7.5
