The Most Dangerous Game

The Most Dangerous Game (1932)

A ship full of hunters returning from their latest adventure is lured onto the rocks and sinks in shark-infested waters. Veteran hunter Bob Rainsford survives the shipwreck only to find himself trapped on an island with the crazed Count Zaroff. Zaroff is a wealthy Russian that has built his life around hunting, only to discover that after hunting and killing all sorts of predators he is bored. In an effort to recapture the thrill of the hunt he has set himself up on the island so that he can capture and hunt the survivors of the shipwrecks he causes. Zaroff at first wishes Rainsford to join him in the hunt, but after refusing Rainsford becomes the hunt. At stake is another of Zaroff’s prisoners, the lovely Eve (Fay Wray). All Rainsford has to do is beat Zaroff at his own game, armed only with a knife and his wits.

The term classic is tossed around way too much for my tastes, but in this case is appropriate. The Most Dangerous Game is a wonderful movie that is well paced and exciting from beginning to end. The movie establishes the characters quickly and then gets right to the action. This includes creating the villain of the movie Count Zaroff. Right from the start there is something creepy and threatening about his demeanor that puts the audience on edge. I’ve always found that when I’m watching a movie like this I’m always way more interested in the villain than I am the hero, so having a good bad guy makes a movie like this even better.

The cast is perfect with the lovely Fay Wray (King Kong) as Eve, the woman that Zaroff menaces and Rainsford hopes to save. Also good is Joel McCrea as the hero Bob Rainsford, who is appropriately brave and sneaky. But the real gem of a performance is from Leslie Banks who in my opinion steals the movie as Count Zaroff. In spite of his pleasant appearance and conversation you can tell right from the start that something is off about him. Overall the performances might come off as over the top and dramatic, but this is what film actors were doing in the early 30s. Remember that sound was relatively new and the only training that actors had in delivering dialogue was in the theater. And in the theater you had to make sure that the 30th row heard it just as well as the 1st row did. So in lot of these old movies the performances come off as very “large” with exaggerated body language.

The effects are where the movie comes off as the most dated. There is some miniature work at the start with the shipwreck that looks pretty good for the 30s, but is clearly just a model. Also the shark “attacks” are kind of silly, but are just about what I would expect for a movie from this time in Hollywood. Also the jungle that they are chased thru is obviously a set, but they didn’t shoot movies on location back in the day. Speaking of the sets they are light nicely and help create a spooky atmosphere.

I’ll admit that the movies from the 30s are an acquired taste and might leave some modern viewers bored. But I really encourage everyone to give at least some of these movies a chance. Check out the new DVD of The Most Dangerous Game from the nice people at Legend Films. It contains both a black and white version, which by the way is beautifully restored, and a color version. For more information check them out at www.legendfilms.net

3 out of 4

reviewed by John Shatzer