In the final years of his life in Switzerland, Charles Chaplin allowed filmmaker Peter Bogdanovich to come into his home and film him while he spoke of his life, both in front of and behind the camera. He didn't get along well with the young filmmaker and wanted to scrap the whole idea. His filmed footage was neither impressive or flattering to Chaplin. Oona Chaplin, best of friends with Carol Matthau, urged that the project be completed and with the help of husband Walter, they travelled to Vevey, Switzerland and worked out the rough spots to ensure Charlie's cooperation on the project. Richard Patterson took whatever footage could be salvaged (very little) and sprinkled it with sequences from seventeen classic (and copywritten) Chaplin films and turned it into the most loving and often honestly brutal documentary. Containing scenes from Chaplin's work that never appeared before in any documentary, the footage is as sharp and clear as any Chaplin footage as ever been seen before. Footage from films, newsreels, private home movies, cartoon parodies and even his triumphant return to the states in 1972 at the Academy Awards are included. Narrated by Walter Matthau, with additional comments from Laurence Oliver, Jack Lemmon, Len Weinrib, Alan Oppenheimer and Richard Dawson, this loving tribute concludes with a final walk down the road as we see Chaplin, now using his cane as a real aid and his wife Oona walk down a grassy path. His final filmed trip down the road gives us comfort as he is not alone. Only 25 16mm prints were made of this beautiful film but, happily, it is on video from MPI. Look for it because it is a must!
