Search/Recent Changes
DBTropes
...it's like TV Tropes, but LINKED DATA!

Limelight

 Limelight
type
TVTItem
 Limelight
label
Limelight
 Limelight
page
Limelight
 Limelight
comment
Advertisement:propertag.cmd.push(function() { proper_display('tvtropes_mobile_ad_1'); })Limelight is a 1952 comedy-drama film written by, directed by, and starring Charlie Chaplin, co-starring Claire Bloom, Sydney Chaplin, Nigel Bruce, Norman Lloyd, and Buster Keaton. The music score was composed by Chaplin and arranged by Ray Rasch.London, 1914. Calvero (Chaplin), once a famed stage clown but now a washed-up drunk, saves a young ballet dancer, Thereza "Terry" Ambrose (Bloom), from suicide. As he nurses her back to health, he also helps her to regain her self-esteem and resume her dancing career. While doing this he also begins to regain his own self-confidence, although his attempts at making a comeback are less successful. Terry wants to marry Calvero in spite of their age difference, but he believes that Ernest Neville (Sydney Chaplin), a young composer she's befriended, would be better suited for her. In order to give them a chance together, Calvero leaves home and becomes a street entertainer. Some time afterward Terry, who's now starring in her own show, finds Calvero and persuades him to return to the stage for a benefit show. Reunited with an old partner (Keaton), Calvero gives a triumphant comeback performance but immediately suffers a heart attack and dies in the wings... while just a few feet away from him Terry, the second act on the bill, dances on stage. This represents the end of one generation and the coming of another, the fading of age and the emergence of youth under the Limelight, as said during the initial credits.Advertisement:propertag.cmd.push(function() { proper_display('tvtropes_mobile_ad_2'); })Chaplin's last Hollywood film, Limelight was released amidst public controversy, and passed over by most American theaters, as at that time Chaplin was refused re-entry to the U.S. on alleged grounds that he was a communist sympathizer. It was re-released in the United States in 1972, and because the film played in a Los Angeles theater for the first time that year, Chaplin was honored with the only competitive Academy Award of his career (for Best Original Score) two decades after the film's initial release.
 Limelight
fetched
2022-08-24T20:41:21Z
 Limelight
parsed
2022-08-24T20:41:21Z
 Limelight
isPartOf
DBTropes
 Limelight / int_116f6f1c
type
Self-Plagiarism
 Limelight / int_116f6f1c
comment
Self-Plagiarism: Chaplin wanted to include a flea circus gag in The Circus and The Great Dictator, but couldn't fit it in either film.
 Limelight / int_116f6f1c
featureApplicability
1.0
 Limelight / int_116f6f1c
featureConfidence
1.0
 Limelight
hasFeature
Limelight / int_116f6f1c
 Limelight / int_1b65dfad
type
The Cameo
 Limelight / int_1b65dfad
comment
The Cameo: Buster Keaton's brief appearance near the film's end is the only time that he and Chaplin, the two biggest stars of the silent film era, appeared in a movie together.
 Limelight / int_1b65dfad
featureApplicability
1.0
 Limelight / int_1b65dfad
featureConfidence
1.0
 Limelight
hasFeature
Limelight / int_1b65dfad
 Limelight / int_234fa9ba
type
May–December Romance
 Limelight / int_234fa9ba
comment
May–December Romance: Between young Terry and elderly Calvero, though the latter refuses to admit his feelings and decides to leaves in order to let Terry pursue a relationship with Neville.
 Limelight / int_234fa9ba
featureApplicability
1.0
 Limelight / int_234fa9ba
featureConfidence
1.0
 Limelight
hasFeature
Limelight / int_234fa9ba
 Limelight / int_2aff6a25
type
Death of the Hypotenuse
 Limelight / int_2aff6a25
comment
Death of the Hypotenuse: Calvero.
 Limelight / int_2aff6a25
featureApplicability
1.0
 Limelight / int_2aff6a25
featureConfidence
1.0
 Limelight
hasFeature
Limelight / int_2aff6a25
 Limelight / int_2d394bcb
type
Commedia dell'Arte
 Limelight / int_2d394bcb
comment
Commedia dell'Arte: At one point Calvero and Terry perform together in a ballet based on the Harlequinade characters.
 Limelight / int_2d394bcb
featureApplicability
1.0
 Limelight / int_2d394bcb
featureConfidence
1.0
 Limelight
hasFeature
Limelight / int_2d394bcb
 Limelight / int_392372f9
type
Actor Allusion
 Limelight / int_392372f9
comment
Actor Allusion: When Calvero turns down Postant's offer to be rehired, he insists that he's always liked performing outdoors and that he's always been a "bit of a tramp", referring to Chaplin's most famous role. Likewise, there's at least one poster in the background that describes Calvero as a "tramp comedian".
 Limelight / int_392372f9
featureApplicability
1.0
 Limelight / int_392372f9
featureConfidence
1.0
 Limelight
hasFeature
Limelight / int_392372f9
 Limelight / int_3d7b1b61
type
Twice Shy
 Limelight / int_3d7b1b61
comment
Twice Shy: Both Terry and Neville comment on how they acted too shy during their encounters at the stationary shop.
 Limelight / int_3d7b1b61
featureApplicability
1.0
 Limelight / int_3d7b1b61
featureConfidence
1.0
 Limelight
hasFeature
Limelight / int_3d7b1b61
 Limelight / int_40cc0c7e
type
Bittersweet Ending
 Limelight / int_40cc0c7e
comment
Bittersweet Ending: Calvero dies happily after his triumphant comeback performance, essentially freeing Terry to pursue a more suitable relationship with Neville.
 Limelight / int_40cc0c7e
featureApplicability
1.0
 Limelight / int_40cc0c7e
featureConfidence
1.0
 Limelight
hasFeature
Limelight / int_40cc0c7e
 Limelight / int_60547993
type
I Want My Beloved to Be Happy
 Limelight / int_60547993
comment
I Want My Beloved to Be Happy: Calvero feels that the May–December Romance between him and Terry is not healthy for her, so he decides to leave and make room for Terry and Neville to get together.
 Limelight / int_60547993
featureApplicability
1.0
 Limelight / int_60547993
featureConfidence
1.0
 Limelight
hasFeature
Limelight / int_60547993
 Limelight / int_66907f54
type
Hourglass Plot
 Limelight / int_66907f54
comment
Hourglass Plot: First it is Calvero who cares for and mentally supports Terry who has given up on life, then the tides turn and Terry does her best to pick up depressed and down on his luck Calvero.
 Limelight / int_66907f54
featureApplicability
1.0
 Limelight / int_66907f54
featureConfidence
1.0
 Limelight
hasFeature
Limelight / int_66907f54
 Limelight / int_6fca80fd
type
Oblivious Mockery
 Limelight / int_6fca80fd
comment
Oblivious Mockery: When Calvero meets his old friend Griffin, the latter tells him he was testing for the clown part, as the current clown was performing poorly. Little did he know that it was Calvero he was talking about.
 Limelight / int_6fca80fd
featureApplicability
1.0
 Limelight / int_6fca80fd
featureConfidence
1.0
 Limelight
hasFeature
Limelight / int_6fca80fd
 Limelight / int_7eebe99c
type
The Alcoholic
 Limelight / int_7eebe99c
comment
The Alcoholic: Calvero has a tendency to drown his sorrows about his declining career in alcohol.
 Limelight / int_7eebe99c
featureApplicability
1.0
 Limelight / int_7eebe99c
featureConfidence
1.0
 Limelight
hasFeature
Limelight / int_7eebe99c
 Limelight / int_80491c2f
type
"Open!" Says Me
 Limelight / int_80491c2f
comment
"Open!" Says Me: In the opening scene, Calvero rams his shoulder into the door of Terry's room to break it open. It works on the third attempt.
 Limelight / int_80491c2f
featureApplicability
1.0
 Limelight / int_80491c2f
featureConfidence
1.0
 Limelight
hasFeature
Limelight / int_80491c2f
 Limelight / int_b707726f
type
Hypocritical Humor
 Limelight / int_b707726f
comment
Hypocritical Humor: When Calvero philosophizes about consciousness: "Can the sun think? Is it conscious? No, but you are!" ... (looking at Terry being sound asleep) ... "Pardon me, my mistake".
 Limelight / int_b707726f
featureApplicability
1.0
 Limelight / int_b707726f
featureConfidence
1.0
 Limelight
hasFeature
Limelight / int_b707726f
 Limelight / int_b9af5ef3
type
The Film of the Book
 Limelight / int_b9af5ef3
comment
The Film of the Book: Chaplin adapted the screenplay from an unpublished novella he wrote in 1948 called Footlights.
 Limelight / int_b9af5ef3
featureApplicability
1.0
 Limelight / int_b9af5ef3
featureConfidence
1.0
 Limelight
hasFeature
Limelight / int_b9af5ef3
 Limelight / int_be272a3
type
Time-Compression Montage
 Limelight / int_be272a3
comment
Time-Compression Montage: At one point we see Terry dancing in front of a shifting background, displaying various locations of her touring across the continent.
 Limelight / int_be272a3
featureApplicability
1.0
 Limelight / int_be272a3
featureConfidence
1.0
 Limelight
hasFeature
Limelight / int_be272a3
 Limelight / int_bf1edb7e
type
Comforting Comforter
 Limelight / int_bf1edb7e
comment
Comforting Comforter: In an early scene Calvero carefully tugs the blanket underneath sleeping Terry's feet.
 Limelight / int_bf1edb7e
featureApplicability
1.0
 Limelight / int_bf1edb7e
featureConfidence
1.0
 Limelight
hasFeature
Limelight / int_bf1edb7e
 Limelight / int_c0961831
type
Interrupted Suicide
 Limelight / int_c0961831
comment
Interrupted Suicide: Calvero smells the gas coming from Terry's room and saves her Just in Time before the sleeping pills and gas could do their work.
 Limelight / int_c0961831
featureApplicability
1.0
 Limelight / int_c0961831
featureConfidence
1.0
 Limelight
hasFeature
Limelight / int_c0961831
 Limelight / int_c3c18143
type
Hope Spot
 Limelight / int_c3c18143
comment
Hope Spot: When Postant is thinking of replacing Calvero with someone else in the harlequinade act because he doesn't think he's funny enough, he has second thoughts when he hears that the clown in question is Calvero under a fake name and decides to keep him employed regardless, saying that the comedy is just a minor part of the act. Unfortunately for Calvero, Postant already called in the replacement for a tryout, who turns out to be an old friend of Calvero's and who he happens to meet before being told about his tryout being cancelled, resulting in Calvero thinking that he's not wanted anymore as described below, causing him to become a street performer.
 Limelight / int_c3c18143
featureApplicability
1.0
 Limelight / int_c3c18143
featureConfidence
1.0
 Limelight
hasFeature
Limelight / int_c3c18143
 Limelight / int_e016e53f
type
Throwing Off the Disability
 Limelight / int_e016e53f
comment
Throwing Off the Disability: Happens twice - first dramatically, then played for laughs. Having failed at suicide, Terry has convinced herself that her legs are paralyzed so she can't keep pursuing her thus far unsuccessful dream of becoming a dancer. Half-way through the movie, during a Rousing Speech to Calvero she suddenly notices that she can walk again. Later, during one of her ballet performances, she feels paralyzed, not able to go on with the show. Calvero is unimpressed and slaps her in the face which immediately sends her out of her paralysis.
 Limelight / int_e016e53f
featureApplicability
1.0
 Limelight / int_e016e53f
featureConfidence
1.0
 Limelight
hasFeature
Limelight / int_e016e53f
 Limelight / int_eb8f64a6
type
No Good Deed Goes Unpunished
 Limelight / int_eb8f64a6
comment
No Good Deed Goes Unpunished: Terry gets fired from her clerk job after helping Neville out with some change to buy food by giving him too much change for his note papers and giving him extras.
 Limelight / int_eb8f64a6
featureApplicability
1.0
 Limelight / int_eb8f64a6
featureConfidence
1.0
 Limelight
hasFeature
Limelight / int_eb8f64a6
 Limelight / int_ed503b22
type
Match Cut
 Limelight / int_ed503b22
comment
Match Cut: When Calvero dreams of himself performing the flea circus act, it ends with a close-up on his face looking devastated at the empty seats in the theatre. The shot slowly dissolve to Calvero looking the same way sitting up in his bed.
 Limelight / int_ed503b22
featureApplicability
1.0
 Limelight / int_ed503b22
featureConfidence
1.0
 Limelight
hasFeature
Limelight / int_ed503b22
 Limelight / int_f42f96fa
type
Would Hit a Girl
 Limelight / int_f42f96fa
comment
Would Hit a Girl: Calvero, slapping Terry hard to pull her out of her temporary paralysis.
 Limelight / int_f42f96fa
featureApplicability
1.0
 Limelight / int_f42f96fa
featureConfidence
1.0
 Limelight
hasFeature
Limelight / int_f42f96fa
 Limelight / int_f88f2449
type
Downer Beginning
 Limelight / int_f88f2449
comment
Downer Beginning: The film opens with Terry attempting suicide.
 Limelight / int_f88f2449
featureApplicability
1.0
 Limelight / int_f88f2449
featureConfidence
1.0
 Limelight
hasFeature
Limelight / int_f88f2449
 Limelight / int_fe5dda42
type
Talent Double
 Limelight / int_fe5dda42
comment
Talent Double: Hayden Mellissa, a well-known Canadian ballerina, performed as the dance double for Claire Bloom in the film.
 Limelight / int_fe5dda42
featureApplicability
1.0
 Limelight / int_fe5dda42
featureConfidence
1.0
 Limelight
hasFeature
Limelight / int_fe5dda42
 Limelight / int_name
type
ItemName
 Limelight / int_name
comment
 Limelight / int_name
featureApplicability
1.0
 Limelight / int_name
featureConfidence
1.0
 Limelight
hasFeature
Limelight / int_name
 Limelight / int_name
itemName
Limelight

The following is a list of statements referring to the current page from other pages.

 Limelight
hasFeature
Death of the Hypotenuse / int_c21b9027
 Limelight
hasFeature
Dueling-Stars Movie / int_c21b9027
 Limelight
hasFeature
Interrupted Suicide / int_c21b9027
 Limelight
hasFeature
Match Cut / int_c21b9027
 Limelight
hasFeature
May–December Romance / int_c21b9027
 Limelight
hasFeature
Suicide by Pills / int_c21b9027
 Limelight
hasFeature
Throwing Off the Disability / int_c21b9027