preppy-3 This takes place in 17th century England. A young noble mans son Gwynplaine (played as an adult by Conrad Veidt) is kidnapped by a political enemy. He then has a surgeon carve a monstrous grin on the boys face. Years later he's part of a freak show and in love with a beautiful blind girl (Mary Philbin). However his political personage becomes known and causes trouble.This is usually advertised as a horror film due to Veidt's hideous grin but it's not. It's a slow-moving and frankly boring historical drama. Universal spend a lot of money on this and it shows. The sets and costumes are very elaborate and it IS well-directed by Paul Leni. Also Veidt is great in his role. He had to convey all his emotions through his eyes and pulls it off. However I was bored silly and had my finger of the fast forward button more than once. Also Mary Philbin was terrible as the blind girl. Boring and uninvolving.

kidboots When Universal found that they had two monumental successes on their hands with "The Hunchback of Notre Dame" and "The Phantom of the Opera", both of whom had for their main characters a being so deformed and hideous, they turned once again to Victor Hugo for what they hoped would be another hit. But Lon Chaney was not available - he had gone to MGM in the meantime and was now established as their top star and they were not about to lend him. The late 1920s saw German expressionism at it's height in Hollywood and the studios at the forefront of the surge were Fox and Universal. So Universal turned to the country of it's founder's birth and in particular a thriller called "Waxworks" to find both a new director, Paul Leni, and a star, Conrad Veidt.The very grim Victor Hugo story is about an outlaw band - the dreaded Comprachicos, whose surgeon roves the country carving huge grotesque grins onto young children's faces, forcing them to grow up to become side show freaks. There are some chilling images in the prologue where Gwynplaine, as a child, wanders among bodies and human bones hanging from scaffolds as a blizzard whips up. The little boy then finds the blind Dea clasped in her dead mother's arms. The England that Paul Leni has conjured up is a bleak and haunted world.As the years go on Gwynplaine (Veidt) becomes the "laughing man", a strolling player in the troupe of Father Ursus (Cesare Gravina), the one person who didn't turn his back on the orphans, but to Dea (beautiful Mary Philbin), who cannot see his hideous grin, he will always be goodness and light. Chaney could not have bettered Veidt's performance in which his eyes are truly the windows to his soul. At Southwark Fair, one of the sideshow proprietors (George Siegman, a Griffith regular) realises that Gwynplaine is the missing heir to Lord Clancharlie's estates, now taken over by the seductive Duchess Josiana and the ambitious Barkiphedro who had Gwynplaine's father tortured and killed in the "Iron Lady" over 20 years before. Olga Baclanova is just a sensation - the censor must have been asleep - she has two nude scenes within her first introduction and she plays a Countess who loves nothing better than donning dirty peasant rags and mingling (and allowing them to take great liberties) with the ruffians down at the fair.The last part of the film is very Griffith influenced ("Orphans of the Storm"). Gwynplaine's castle and land have rightfully been restored to him but he is being forced into marriage with the lustful Josiana. Dea (like the blind Louisa in "Orphans") is thwarted at every turn until she and Ursus are forced from the city by the power hungry Barkiphedro, then it is Gwynplaine's turn to race through the town. His head was turned by Josiana and in the scene where she strips away his mask and, displaying both lust and loathing, kisses his deformed mouth, there is so much sensuality and passion in her performance, a reviewer at the time commented that "she burns holes in the screen".The Kino release that I have features a restored orchestral Movietone soundtrack, complete with a theme song "When Love Comes Stealing" that they may have hoped would be as popular as "7th Heaven's" "Diane" - but it wasn't.

MartinHafer THE MAN WHO LAUGHS starts exceptionally well and definitely gets your attention. In many ways, it seems reminiscent of a Rafael Sabatini novel--the same guy who brought many adventure tales to the screen (such as CAPTAIN BLOOD, SCARAMOUCHE and THE BLACK SWAN), though the actual story was by Victor Hugo. King James II of England (a particularly bad king according to most history books) has arranged for the death of an enemy in a very brutal scene. And, in a nasty move, he has the face of his enemy's young son, Gwynplaine, carved into a permanent smile by some bizarre group of evil gypsies. However, the boy does survive and makes his way in the snow to the wagon of a nice gypsy (the non-face carving kind) and on the way he discovers a baby (Dea) in the arms of a dead woman.Years pass and now Gwynplaine is a famous adult--famous for his stage act along with his adopted gypsy dad and the grown baby--now a gorgeous but blind lady (Mary Philbin). It's pretty obvious Gwynplaine and Dea are in love but fate steps in when a current monarch, Anne, finds out that Gwynplaine is the heir to a title. He is kidnapped and instated as a peer in the House of Lords--though it doesn't go well for Gwynplaine. He'd much rather have his old life and Dea. Tune in for yourself to find out what happens.In many ways, this film is the pinnacle of silent films in America. It debuted very late in 1928 and had it been made just a few months later, it would likely have been a sound film (though how they could have done this with the facial appliance Conrad Veidt had to wear for the title role would have been a problem). But, as it was made in this transition period, Universal added a soundtrack along with sound effects and a song--making it a semi-talkie. Additionally, the cinematography is just lovely and the story very engaging. One of the better silent films and one that has somehow been almost forgotten over the years.By the way, the DVD from Kino is exceptional. Not only is the print nearly pristine but there are lots of extras on the DVD that would make this a nice addition to any home library.

rdjeffers Saturday July 12, 7:45pm, The Castro Theater, San FranciscoAt the moment of his execution, a rebellious nobleman learns that his child has been mutilated by gypsies. Taken in by a travelling, self-appointed philosopher, the boy becomes a popular carnival attraction. The grotesque Man Who Laughs, Gwynplaine (Conrad Veidt) worships Dea (Mary Philbin), a beautiful blind girl he rescued as an infant, until he is used by the Queen to usurp a Duchess who is undeserving of her title.Producer Carl Laemmle sought to exploit the Gothic horror craze Universal Pictures established with The Hunchback of Notre Dame (1923) and The Phantom of The Opera (1925), once again adapting a romantic and darkly sinister Victor Hugo novel. Sensational production values and art direction, the result of an immense budget, are quite apparent. The use of principals drawn from Weimar Cinema, on both sides of the camera, gave The Man Who Laughs an unmistakable quality that significantly influenced the genre.