Chaplin knew how to act.

Monsieur Verdoux (1947) directed by Charlie Chaplin

This film was a big eye opener for me.I had always held the belief that Charlie Chaplin was just a highly acclaimed clown indeed buffoon who did nothing but just jump around in order to make people laugh.I think that Monsieur Verdoux is the only serious film which Chaplin ever made in his life.Although the film's topic is touching as it is tragic there is still scope for comedy as the title character Verdoux fools people as he is aware of their vulnerability.The film is based on sociological reasons as many men died during the two world wars and there was an acute shortage of men in Europe.This is where a trickster named Verdoux comes in picture as he had no other decent job but to fool innocent women by making them believe that they loved him and finally kill them.The film is based on a real life character called Landru.A similar film was also made by Claude Chabrol called Landru which starred Charles Denner.Both the versions are OK as they highlight the same notion of human weakness,greed and crime.