Afouotos Although it has its amusing moments, in eneral the plot does not convince.

Rio Hayward All of these films share one commonality, that being a kind of emotional center that humanizes a cast of monsters.

Zlatica One of the worst ways to make a cult movie is to set out to make a cult movie.

Stephanie There is, somehow, an interesting story here, as well as some good acting. There are also some good scenes

JLRMovieReviews Charlie Chaplin loses his tramp personality but still keeps some qualities in this dark broad comedy of murders, "Monsieur Verdoux." It concerns a gentleman who had worked for years in the banking business until the crash of the late 1920s and then he went into a life of crime to make ends meet, for his wife and son. The film fades in on his tombstone. His narration tells us all this information and tells us the following story is history. It's hard to give an unbiased review of a film I have seen more times than I can count. It costars Martha Raye in an unforgettable role, Isobel Elsom in one of her best movie roles, and the gifted William Frawley. But all of the supporting cast are excellent, especially Marilyn Nash as a young lady he helps and Almira Sessions, who is part of a family trying to find their doomed sister Thelma Varney, who fell victim to Chaplin's mercenary plans. Thelma is never seen. Chaplin has a wife or lover in every province or region of France, and when he needs immediate ready cash, it's off to another victim. We see Lydia as one. I could go on and on about the social significance and symbolism of this film, but it's too much to get into right now. Suffice it to say, that Chaplin was like Welles (who sold him the idea, inspired by a true criminal), Hitchcock and other directors of his time. Everything you see on the screen was deliberately planned down to the minutest details. He wrote and directed this all by himself, just like all of his other films. The pace, shadows, the tone of voice, the editing, the music which he composed – all these come together to form a suspenseful and very funny film, which was banned and panned at the time, even making him more of an outcast than he already was. He had already been considered anti-American for his political views. Despite the off-putting, and some say anti-God, content, most viewers will have to admit this is a masterpiece in every way possible. I get more out of it every time I see it. If you've never seen Charlie Chaplin's "Monsieur Verdoux," then this should be a real treat. Expect nothing like "The Circus" and his other silent films and this will blow your mind. As they say, there's nothing like discovering a great film for the first time. I wish I was discovering this for the first time. But I keep finding more layers and meanings in each viewing I have of Chaplin's masterpiece, "Monsieur Verdoux."

kenjha An unemployed man supports his family by marrying and murdering rich women for their money. Chaplin made only a handful of films after the silent era and this one followed "The Great Dictator" after a seven-year gap, a period over which the great comedian seems to have lost his gift for laughs. Perhaps this was just the result of Chaplin in his autumnal years wanting to do something more substantial, but he seems unsure of whether he's doing comedy or drama. This is the first film in which Chaplin speaks English, but he hardly says anything that is funny. After a slow start, this turns out to be a decent film but it seems the premise had potential for much more humor than is mined here.

ElMaruecan82 "Monsieur Verdoux" is inaccurately regarded as Charles Chaplin's first picture that didn't feature the iconic 'Little Tramp' while, in fact, ever since 1923, the audience rejected "A Woman of Paris" because of Chaplin's absence and the film's dramatic tone. And in 1940, "The Great Director" was his first officially talking feature with the Jewish Barber in "The Great Director" only bearing physical resemblance with the Tramp.It's however interesting that the two films foreshadowed Chaplin's imminent evolution as a director. "A Woman of Paris" was critically acclaimed and showed a great predisposition for drama from the comic icon, while the ending of "The Great Dictator" left the public with an unusual Chaplin, speaking for the first time, not as a character, but as political figure, inviting people of the world to unite in their legitimate pursue of happiness, against the dehumanizing effect of materialism. Ultimately, "Monsieur Verdoux", a powerful diatribe against capitalism and delightful black comedy of murders, confirmed that Chaplin was far from being a crowd-pleaser and hid a wider range of talent and substance.At the film's release, in 1947, Chaplin was 58, he no longer looked like the Tramp, a universal character who couldn't afford ageing. The arc of the Tramp was closed at the very moment Chaplin spoke for himself and expressed with sad eyes his total disillusion about the fate of humanity, with a light of hope that probably faded within the tragic aftermath of the Second World War, allowing him to detach from the light-hearted optimism of his previous work. To understand "Monsieur Verdoux" is to put it in its historical context, and it's not coincidental that the film was released at the pinnacle of the film-noir genre, that translated into dark stories the inner disillusions of and on humanity, more prone to greed, lust and self-satisfaction rather than an abstract conception of happiness."Monsieur Verdoux" is a film of its time, amoral but not without intelligence, controversial but not meaningless. The titular character is loosely based on Landru, a notorious French criminal who killed widows and naive women for money. The modern Blue-beard was a sinister-looking man but Chaplin turned him into a meek and gentle bourgeois clerk who, after 30 years as a bank-cashier, embodying the cynicism of the Great Depression, became a serial killer. His methods consisted on marrying old women, and killing them to attain insurance money and invest it in banks. The motives are detailed during the last part of the film, but Chaplin demonstrates a true acting talent through his ambiguous Verdoux: we don't necessarily root for him, but we try to understand or find attenuating circumstances to his actions.The film has been panned by critics for its anti-capitalistic undertones, and the inner amorality Verdoux constantly displays, but Verdoux remains a fascinating character nonetheless, luring us into our own contradictions when we condemn his actions less than his opinions, while the actions should cancel any interest on his opinion. Obviously a sociopathic murder, why is it so that his opinions interest us? This is approaching to the politically incorrect core of the film. Is Verdoux a victim of circumstances, and therefore his victims' collateral damages of his own decent into crime? Or is he a true villain, only redeemed by a rather charming personality? Is he cynical enough to believe he's innocent or is he trying to fool us? "Verdoux" is quite an intellectually challenging film and a triumph in screen writing.Never stingy on provocation, Verdoux says: "One murder makes a villain, a million, hero, numbers sanctify". This quote echoes Stalin's famous "one death is a tragedy and a million is statistic" only in reverse. Would we deny that numbers affect judgments? Were the Japanese who attacked Pearl Harbor viler than the Americans who dropped the bomb on Hiroshima? if I could ever use a movie line that defines the word 'cynicism", I would probably pick this one, and it's a credit to Chaplin to have constructed such a brilliant screenplay and enrich it with lines that were probably subversive for their time, but can hit a sensitive chord today. Was the film ahead of its time? Philosophically speaking, yes, as we're lead to wonder what makes a life worth more than another, and why a criminal can be sentenced to death for a crime, while he killed less people than a politician's order.The word 'cynicism' wasn't derogatory as there's always inconvenient truths hidden in cynicism, but while the Hayes Code ensured that audience would have darker criminals getting their comeuppance at the end, Verdoux' demise looks less as a failure than a triumph in the way it shakes our personal convictions. "I don't have problem with God, only men" says Verdoux, maybe this is Chaplin speaking, with one foot in Europe before McCarthyism would finally put a deathblow to his American career. History repeats itself, and "Monsieur Verdoux", like "A Woman of Paris", was victim of Chaplin's established popularity, and didn't even please the fans, not in America anyway when Chaplin was already suspected of communist sympathy. It was a triumph in Europe though and time finally did justice to "Monsieur Verdoux" which was later, internationally recognized as one of Chaplin's best.The film is two-hour long, maybe a bit too long considering the redundancy of some scenes, it contains many physical comedy that flirts too much with slapstick to really fit the purpose of the story. But apart from a few weak scenes, "Monsieur Verdoux" is brilliantly constructed, exuding its force during a powerful finale. I personally suspect that even the detractors were not indifferent to the film. After all, it was snubbed for many categories in the Oscars, Chaplin deserved a nod for Best Actor, Martha Raye for Best Supporting Actress, but the screenplay did get its nomination, no matter how controversial it was.A thin consolation for a film that deserved far more, but since when are geniuses appreciated in their time?

gkeith_1 Verdoux thinks he is no more a monster than Hitler or Mussolini, who kill by the thousands and think nothing of it. Verdoux just needs a little money, relatively speaking, to take care of his son and invalid wife.The humor lies in the well-financed lonely women Verdoux romances, and the comedic charm -- believe it or not -- continues with his different employment occupations he dreams up for his extra "wives". Martha Raye, as always, adds to the humor, and her finely-finessed comedic scenes are always priceless. The fact that Martha and Charlie, these two famous comedians who have perfect timing individually, have even more synchronized connections in this movie do not cease to amaze.Going to the guillotine: Verdoux is resolute, and proceeds with his hands tied behind his back. He has not begged the priest or guards to reconsider and save his life. This reminds me of the going-to-the-electric-chair scene with James Cagney in "Angels with Dirty Faces," where Jimmy screams and yells about not wanting to die. Verdoux acted calm and collected, while Jimmy went bizarro.Isobel Elsom is always aristocratically charming in movies I have seen. Besides this one, I have seen her in "My Fair Lady" (Mrs. Eynsford-Hill) and in "You Were Never Lovelier" (Aunt Maria). She always comes off as beautiful and sophisticated, while portraying elegant and sophisticated matrons.I enjoyed seeing Charlie Chaplin in a sound movie. His directorial techniques are excellent. When the train wheels turn between promises to each one of his wives, and on the way to his "business", the faithful old train wheels whiz back into action. This, also, shows that time elapses between each one of his escapades.The anti-war sentiment of Charlie in this is evident and unmistakable. Verdoux says war is just a business, with tons of people getting killed for profit. This may still be true today, that war is for money and innocent people have to pay the price.