What age rating is City Lights?

In Spain, City Lights is rated suitable for all audiences.

When does City Lights come out in Spain?

City Lights hits Spanish theaters on April 4, 1931.

How much did City Lights gross?

City Lights grossed $4.3M worldwide on a budget of $1.5M.

City Lights

Name: City Lights
Director: Charlie Chaplin
Genre: Comedy, Drama, Romance
Released: 1931-02-06
Duration: 1 h 27 min
Rating: 8.2
Cast: Charlie Chaplin, Virginia Cherrill, Florence Lee, Harry Myers, Al Ernest Garcia

1931

Become a fan of its genres:

8.2/10

Release Date

06/02/1931

Popularity

🍅 Rotten Tomatoes

95%

🎬 Internet Movie Database

85%

Ⓜ️ Metacritic

99%

A romantic comedy in pantomime.

A homeless tramp, known as the Little Tramp, wakes up in the lap of one of the figures of a newly unveiled monument to "Peace and Prosperity." The crowd gathered at the ceremony is outraged to see him, and he flees the event to wander the city aimlessly. His steps lead him to a corner where a young woman sells flowers. She cannot see, and the tramp, with his scruffy appearance and meager means, falls in love with her at first sight. Charles Chaplin wrote, directed and starred in the film, which opens with this contrast between a city celebrating its wealth and a man who has nothing.

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Facts about City Lights

Releases, age ratings, box office, post-credit scenes and more.

Post-credits sceneNone

Recommended ageSuitable for all audiences

Spain releaseApril 4, 1931

Worldwide premiereJanuary 30, 1931

Runtime1 h 27 min

Original languageEnglish

Original titleCity Lights

CountryUnited States

Production companiesCharles Chaplin Productions

Budget$1.5M

Worldwide box office$4.3M

Return on investmentx2.8 Box office hit

Trailer views146K

More ratings

4.3/5Letterboxd81/100Trakt8.6/10Metacritic (público)4.0/4Roger Ebert

Awards for City Lights

1total awards

0total nominations

Awards won

—National Board of Review: Top Ten Films

City Lights Cast

Charlie ChaplinA Tramp

Virginia CherrillA Blind Girl

Florence LeeHer Grandmother

Harry MyersAn Eccentric Millionaire

Al Ernest GarciaHis Butler

Hank MannA Prizefighter

Albert AustinStreet Sweeper / Burglar (uncredited)

Eddie BakerBoxing Fight Referee (uncredited)

Henry BergmanMayor / Blind Girl's Downstairs Neighbor (uncredited)

Buster BrodieBald Party Guest (uncredited)

Jeanne CarpenterDiner in Restaurant (uncredited)

Tom DempseyBoxer (uncredited)

James DonnellyStreet Sweepers' Foreman (uncredited)

Ray ErlenbornNewsboy (uncredited)

Robert GravesPolice Officer (uncredited)

Charles HammondStreet Passerby (uncredited)

Joseph HerrickBoxing Match Spectator (uncredited)

Austen JewellNewsboy (uncredited)

Willie KeelerBoxer (uncredited)

Robert ParrishNewsboy (uncredited)

John RandTramp Who Dives for Cigar (uncredited)

W.C. RobinsonMan Who Throws Away Cigar (uncredited)

Cy SlocumBoxing Match Spectator (uncredited)

Tony StabenauVictorious Boxer - Later Knocked Out (uncredited)

Mark StrongMan in Restaurant (uncredited)

Tiny WardMan in Elevator in Front of the Art Shop (uncredited)

Stanhope WheatcroftDistinguished Gentleman in Cafe (uncredited)

Florence WixWoman Who Sits on Cigar (uncredited)

Granville RedmondSculptor (uncredited)

Wyn Ritchie Evans(uncredited)

Joe Van MeterBurglar (uncredited)

Johnny AberNewsboy (uncredited)

Jack AlexanderBoxing Match Spectator (uncredited)

T.S. AlexanderDoctor (uncredited)

Victor AlexanderSuperstitious Boxer (uncredited)

Harry AyersCop (uncredited)

Edward BibyNightclub Patron (uncredited)

Betty BlairWoman at Center of Table in Restaurant (uncredited)

Marie CooperDancer (uncredited)

Peter DiegoMan in Mix-Up with Coat and Hat (uncredited)

Ruth GarciaWoman at Left of Table in Restaurant (uncredited)

Milton GowmanStreet Passerby (uncredited)

Ad HermanBoxing Match Spectator (uncredited)

A.B. LaneBoxing Match Spectator (uncredited)

Eddie McAuliffeEddie Mason - Boxer (uncredited)

Leila McIntyreFlower Shop Assistant (uncredited)

George NardelliNightclub Patron (uncredited)

Margaret OliverStreet Passerby (uncredited)

Mrs. PopeDiner in Restaurant (uncredited)

James SheldonYoung Man (uncredited)

Jack SutherlandTall Man at Party (uncredited)

Emmett WagnerSecond (uncredited)

Cast of City Lights by the numbers

43average cast age in years

19years of age gap between the leads

16%women in the cast

5%women in the crew

The youngest in the main cast: Virginia Cherrill, age 22 at release. The oldest: Henry Bergman, at 63.

Cast ages at release

Charlie Chaplin41 years old
Virginia Cherrill22 years old
Harry Myers48 years old
Al Ernest Garcia44 years old
Hank Mann43 years old
Albert Austin48 years old
Eddie Baker33 years old
Henry Bergman63 years old
Buster Brodie45 years old

Crew

AddressCharlie Chaplin
WritingHarry Crocker, Charlie Chaplin, Harry Carr
MusicCharlie Chaplin
PhotographyRoland Totheroh, Gordon Pollock
EditingWillard Nico, Charlie Chaplin
Production designHenry Clive
CastingAl Ernest Garcia
ProductionCharlie Chaplin

Trivia about City Lights

Chaplin lost a lawsuit against Spanish composer José Padilla, author of "La Violetera," for failing to credit him in the film. The song is used as the blind flower girl's leitmotif.

Chaplin fired Virginia Cherrill during filming and later rehired her to finish the movie. She demanded and received a salary of $75 per week.

Virginia Cherrill was the first actress who could convincingly and subtly fake blindness on camera, according to the source, due to her nearsightedness.

At the gala premiere on January 30, 1931 in Los Angeles, Albert Einstein and his wife were the guests of honor, and the film received a standing ovation.

It is said that Woody Allen based the ending of his film Manhattan, from 1979, on the final shot of City Lights.

The shoot lasted two years and eight months, with nearly 190 days of actual filming, and Chaplin ended up investing more than two million dollars of his own money in the production.

Chaplin replaced Henry Clive, who played the millionaire, after he refused to jump into the water during a scene; Harry Myers took over the role.

To film the first scene between the tramp and the flower girl, Chaplin repeated the take for five days until he got the performance he was after.

Sources: Wikipedia (English)

What it's about City Lights

blindness and impaired visioneye operationoperationlove of one's lifesuicide attemptflower shopflower girltramploveblack and whitemillionairesilent filmblind girlboxingfeelgoodhilariousromanticcomforting