The Mesmerising Menace. The Dark Tower is directed by John Harlow and is adapted to screenplay by Brock Williams from the play George S. Kaufman and Alexander Woollcott. It stars Ben Lyon, Anne Crawford, David Farrar, Herbert Lom and William Hartnell. Music is by Jack Beaver and cinematography by Otto Heller. A failing circus employs a mysterious hypnotist to boost the coffers, which with his skills working superbly makes the show a huge success. However, as Torg (Lom) begins to realise his worth to the show, and starts to make designs on the leading lady of the high-wire act, things quickly turn nasty... The play of the same name had already been adapted to the big screen in 1934, where titled as "The Man with Two Faces" it was directed by Archie Mayo and starred Edward G. Robinson. Here this version differs, but on core principals the story remains thematically the same. It's not a particularly strong plot, with it being a variation on the Svengali story, it never really breaks free of safe narrative projection. Yet it's well constructed by Harlow and in fourth billed Lom (the acting highlight by some distance) the pic has a character to really boo and hiss at. Comic relief comes in the form of Frederick Burtwell and Elsie Wagstaff as a married couple dominated by the wife, while all the various circus acts we see, notably Crawford's high-wire hypnotised balancing act (well shot for breath holding rewards), are hugely enjoyable - even if some come off as padded filler. Having the talents of Heller on photography duties is a plus point, he knows how to light a scene for atmospheric gain, though he would be seen at his noirish best in "Queen of Spades (1949)". While of note is that ace Hammer Horror director Terence Fisher is on editing duty here, though he certainly was a better director than an editor... It's no must see unless you be a fan of the stars, mainly Lom in this instance, but in spite of a daft revelation at pic's end, this is above average and holds its own as a competent circus based thriller. 6/10
Herbert Lom is superbly pervasive in this drama about the hypnotic "Torg", who alights on a struggling circus run by "Phil" (Ben Lyon) and his brother "Tom" (David Farrar). He introduces them to a game-changing acrobatic act that soon has the crowds turning up in droves. As success starts to come, "Torg" seeks more from the pair, and from his high-flying partner "Mary" (Anne Crawford) and when they start resisting his demands, things start to take a some distinctly threatening turns. At times, it's got a really effective feel to it, this film - the cast work well together and Lom really has an eeriness and creepiness about his personality that exudes as good a degree of menace as I've seen in ages. Unfortunately, though, the dialogue is poor as is the overall pace of the story - far too many distracting circus routines and romantic sub-plots that drag it down when "Korn" isn't driving the storyline. Pity. Had John Harlow focussed more on his best asset - the nasty and increasingly egregious character we could have had a better film. Still, it is a good watch.
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Dara and Karan, the sons of two of the victims of dacoit Jogi Thakur, wait many years to exact their revenge. When the Thakur's colleague Raja Singh cheats him and runs away with his loot, Jogi is arrested and sentenced for life imprisonment. Years later Jogi escapes from the prison to get hold of Raja and take back his booty, but finds his face on all the posters in the village to find him dead or alive with a reward of fifty thousand rupees. When Karan gets to know Jogi has escaped he goes looking for him. Dara also join hands with Karan to even the score with the dreaded dacoit.
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The arrival of a travelling circus sends ripples through the inhabitants of a remote Keralan village.
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Set in a 1910 circus, young Charlotte travels from city to city with her acrobat family who perform on the Trapeze. With her training almost complete, she already takes on the daring Blindfolded trick. Despite never having successfully completed the trick, Charlotte is determined to do the trick at the upcoming performance. But worries about that take a back seat when Charlotte learns about the circus potentially going out of business. She's determined to find the truth about whether or not she- and her daring Trapeze act- are the secret to saving the circus. But to do that, she will have to get into the Forbidden Train Car Z.
After Clown Teddy lost his son, he lost his gift for laughter. He opened a joke shop and lives above the shop. His landlady has had a foster son since birth, and Teddy decides to raise the child, who always believed that Teddy was his father. When the mother suddenly appears five years later and wants her son, Teddy decides to run away with the child and goes back onstage with his son. Will the family catch up with them, or will the mother never get her son back?
Focusing on the predicaments of those born with genetic defect causing dwarfism, the film is the love story between Khoka and Soma.
Love triangle in an acrobatic trapeze act results in a missed catch and a death, but was it on purpose?