Hi all.
I'm currently writing a feature screenplay about Charlie Chaplin and the production of The Great Dictator (I'm going for a "aging artist's last hoorah"). Think "Hitchcock" (2012) meets "Trumbo" (2015). It's going well but I can't settle of a title. The working title is currently "The Jewish Barber" (the name of the main character in the film), but I don't like it. The other ideas I've had (and disliked) include;
The Tramp Speaks
The Tramp's Speech
Hynkel V Hitler/Tramp V Hitler
The Great Dictator/Greatest Dictator
Hail Hynkel
I just can't decide on anything. In terms of tone I'm going for a biopic drama with some comedic moments. It's a fascinating piece of history, not just in Hollywood but in America and the world. I want to do it fully justice.
Any suggestions would be appreciated. Thank you.
2 people like this
You'll be the judge of that, but here's a little anecdote that might inspire you...when they said to Chaplin that Hitler actually saw the movie...twice, Chaplin responded I'd give all of my fortune to know his impressions...
3 people like this
"Charlie Chaplin and the production of The Great Dictator" by Conor Matthews.
2 people like this
The Fascist and the Tramp
2 people like this
CHAPLIN AND DER FUHRER.
4 people like this
As the great Frances Marion once wrote, fashions in titles change. But her advice still seems valid today: “The audience reacts definitely to titles. First of all, it wants titles that it can understand. . . . There is more significance than humor in the fact that many persons assumed that The Doll’s House was a picture for ‘the kiddies,’ that Sky Pilot dealt with aviation, the Admirable Crichton with the Navy, and that The Four Horsemen of the Apocalypse was a Western. Not only must titles by easily understandable, but they also must be easy to pronounce. . . . Misleading and tricky titles, promising something the picture does not give, are annoying.”
3 people like this
I say "Hail Hynkel." Grabs attention, says much with little wording. Alliteration is always great.
2 people like this
Conor: I go for something more subtle. I'd write down a lot of options.
4 people like this
Thank you everyone for the suggestions :)
FYI: The name "Charlie Chaplin" and a lot of other IP associated with him is still protected by copyright.