The Great Dictator The Great Dictator The Great Dictator is a 1940 American political satire comedy-drama film written, directed, produced, scored by and starring British comedian Charlie Chaplin, following the tradition of many of his other films. Having been the only Hollywood filmmaker to continue to make silent films well into the period of sound films, this was Chaplin's first true sound film. Chaplin's film advanced a stirring, controversial condemnation of Adolf Hitler, Benito Mussolini, fascism, antisemitism, and the Nazis. At the time of its first release, the United States was still formally at peace with Nazi Germany. Chaplin plays both leading roles:
The Mistress of the World Murphy and Maud's son, who is supposed to have died shortly after his birth. In the end, mother and son fall into each other's arms. Austrian film producer Joe May conceived the idea for filming "The Mistress of the World", which he loosely based on the novel "Die Herrin der Welt" by author Karl Figdor, in early 1919. May produced "The Mistress of the World" as a serial film, which Carjels argues was more influenced by the French serials of the time rather than the American 'cliff-hanger' serials. Whereas the popular American serials were filmed over two reels, making them