Review: Modern Times

I saw Modern Times for the first time recently. Here are some notable things I enjoyed about the movie:

• The gamin character is seem scavenging (thieving) near the waterfront. This was possible in the days before containerization; not anymore.
• The scene of the factory manager doing a jigsaw puzzle in his office. This was the pinnacle of management back in those days, I guess. Have your people work harder so you don't have to lift a finger.
• The feeding machine. This was filmed in the heydey of the engineers, back when there was great faith that you could "design" a better society. Eugenics would get discredited the following decade.
• Amusing scenes like roller skating in the department store, feeding the trapped mechanic his lunch, and the Nonsense Song are pure gold.
• The idea of labor unions going on strike and parading in the streets (along with their conflicts with police) are a thing of the past.

One of the things I'll miss about Netflix is its treasure trove of old movies. There are a lot of titles that simply won't be available in digital/streaming format, and I'm trying to knock out as many as possible before the service ends.