The Most Dangerous Game

This is a really good movie but if this was the "restored" version I'd hate to see it before that. I know 1932 is a while ago so I don't expect perfect clarity and sound, I'm very forgiving with. I could probably record a better dvd copy from TCM.

I only know about The Most Dangerous Game because it was mentioned in the Zodiac film as a possible inspiration for that serial killer. For something made in 1932 it’s pretty good. There’s a Ukrainian count played by Leslie Banks on an isolated island that hunts people. He finally has a worthy opponent when big game hunter Joel McCrea gets shipwrecked. Banks plays his character with an intensity and a hint of craziness that is perfect for the role. When he starts getting psychotic he rubs a scar on his face.

Directed by Irving Pichel and Ernest B. Shoedsack (the other half of the original King Kong team) and based on the classic short story by Richard Connell, this 1932 thriller is much more than another second feature on a double bill. The plot revolves around the terrifying adventure of big game hunter Bob Rainsford (Joel McCrea) who survives a freak boating accident and swims ashore into greater danger on the private Caribbean island owned and occupied by Russian aristocrat and hunting enthusiast Count Zarkoff (Leslie Banks). Rainsford is introduced to other guests, flirty Eve (Fay Wray) and her booze-hound brother Martin (Robert Armstrong), also survivors of sea tragedies.Cocktail chit-chat soon, inevitably, turns to hunting and Zarkoff taunts Rainsford to join him in hunting "the most dangerous game." A gruesome, mounted human head confirms that Zarkoff is referring to hunting man.Rainsford and Eve flee into the wilds of the island as part of the one-sided gambit that will allow them to go free if they can survive until dawn. If they fail, they will join the mounted trophies in the count's den.This brisk (only 63 minutes) adventure still works today, thanks in part to the screenplay, nice direction, fast pace, and McCrea and Wray's obvious on-screen charisma. The other big component is the wonderful jungle sets used from the previous year's King Kong production.About two years ago, stop-motion master animator Ray Harryhausen supervised a digital color version that adds another layer of verisimilitude to this venerable enterprise to say nothing of amping the eroticism of Wray.Fay Wray's natural beauty is often the focus of the expertly lighted cinematography as well as Wray's intentionally flimsy wardrobe. In spite of the years since its release, Wray still seems a very modern woman.Instead of Kong, the monster on this island is Zarkoff. It's fun to watch him reveal his insanity and we first realize something is seriously wrong when he gives his soliloquy, a kind of ecstatic ode to the hunt. The excellent music is by Max Steiner, one of film's great composers. Look for the color-enhanced version from Legend Films. I found it new on Amazon for about five bucks including shipping!

Richard Connell's famous short story that dates back to 1924 about a deranged Russian nobleman who shipwrecks vessels passing by his remote island and hunts down the survivors is still anthologized today. Like many works of naturalistic fiction, Connell's tale is a disquisition on the thin line separating civilization and the state of nature. When the sportsman Sanger Rainsford--the latest victim to arrive at Zaroff's front door--realizes what the madman is up to, he reacts in horror, rejecting the General's invitation to join the latter in his favorite pastime, and the hunter soons finds himself the hunted. At the conclusion, however, Rainsford not only defeats Zaroff but takes his place in the latter's bed. In effect, the two men have exchanged not just places but roles--the struggle for survival has transformed Rainsford himself into another Zaroff. The 1932 screen adaptation, directed by Ernest Schoedsack and Irving Pichel, eliminates the bitterly ironic reversal of the original story and turns the grim fable into a straightforward survivalist sermon. In addition, the movie dubiously improves on Connell's mano a mano conflict between Rainsford and Zaroff by introducing a love interest, another shipwrecked refugee played by the all-purpose virginal heroine Fay Wray, who becomes the principal stake in the contest between the two men. There seems to be some uncertainty about the circumstances of the film's production. Professor Bruce Kawin, who wrote the notes accompanying the DVD, says that The Most Dangerous Game was made to induce RKO into shooting King Kong, while Carlos Clarens in An Illustrated History of Horror and Science fiction Films states that the two films were made simultaneously. Whatever the truth might be, there are such striking similarities between them that The Most Dangerous Game almost resembles an extended trailer for King Kong, especially in its use of a jungle setting like that of Skull Island for much of the action. But if The Most Dangerous Game anticipates King Kong it also seems to be making a nod in the direction of a horror hit from the previous year, Tod Browning's Dracula. In the Schoedsack production, Zaroff, who is always called "General" in the story becomes a count, and the main hall of his residence has interesting similarities to that of Dracula's castle, although it is opulent rather than derelict. As the sadistic Zaroff, the gifted British actor Leslie Banks makes a stylish villain although his enunciation of Russian sounds as convincing as W.C. Fields doing Vogul. In the role of Rainsford, however, Joel McCrae, who played a similar part in King Vidor's Bird of Paradise--also produced at RKO for David Selznick in the same year--is a classically handsome leading man and gives a far better performance saving the hapless Fay than the rather inert Bruce Cabot gives executing the same office for her in King Kong.

Insane hunter played by Leslie Banks is on an island and orders shipwrecks as so survivors will be stranded on his island. Here he 'beefs' them up so to speak before hunting them, because animal hunting has become so boring. Fay Wray and Joel McCrea play the humans being hunted in the jungle. It's quite tame stuff but with this movie being made in 1932 it was always going to be. However the bodycount actually doesn't come from any hunting at all but from the actual shipwreck at the beginning where we see a shark attack a sailor, blood n' all.The setting in the eerie castle is done well and Wray lets out her infamous screams KING KONG style, indeed many of the sets in this movie have been used from the same film. Banks as the hunter is usually good however his Russian accent wavers between a few countries, most notably a hint of Scottish. The chase scene is the outstanding segment and the movie was directed by two directors. The only real down side to the movie is that it all ends in very predictable fair, even though Zaroff the killer isn't one too lie down too easily.This edition comes with a great picture and we have the choice to watch in original black and white or colour. The colour is literally stunning. You would never know, trust me. Also included is a Ray Harryhusen very short interview, some documents on screen and a trailer.

Great

Very poor quality picture, unwatchable!

absolutely first class

This review is for the 75th Anniversary Edition of The Most Dangerous Game from Legend Films. This RKO film from 1932 was originally shot at around the same time as the original King Kong, & it was made by many of the same people - Merian C. Cooper, Ernest B.Schoedsack, & it also stars Fay Wray. Many of the same sets were also used in the production. The plot: An evil Russian game hunter traps unsuspecting shipwreck survivors on his remote island and hunts them like animals for sport.This version has been colorized, but it also features a fully restored black & white version - I am typically NOT a big fan of colorization. However, to produce a color version the producers needed to work from the best source materials available, so the image quality on both is top notch. Ray Harryhaussen oversaw the colorization process & made suggestions. There are tons of extras included, interviews, featurettes, & trailers. Unless you are willing to shell out big bucks for Criterion's excellent release, then this is undoubtedly the best way to go. You've also got the option on how you would like to view the film, I enjoyed both versions.