LIMELIGHT
DIRECTOR: CHARLIE CHAPLIN
UK, 1952
LIMELIGHT offers a glimmering homage to a bygone entertainment era and a bittersweet tale of an artist passing the torch to a new generation. Chaplin portrays Calvero (the “Tramp Comedian,” per an old theatrical poster in his room), who rescues a distraught ballerina (Claire Bloom) from suicide and mentors her to success. Among the film’s comedy highlights is a musical routine that’s anything but routine in the hands of legends Chaplin and stone-faced Buster Keaton. The extraordinary score by Chaplin, Raymond Rasch, and Larry Russell earned the screen legend his only competitive Oscar. (137 mins.)
Lauren A. Berg, Oregon Psychoanalytic Center, will lead a discussion after the screening on April 1.