The Most Dangerous Game (1932 film)
| The Most Dangerous Game | |
|---|---|
Theatrical film poster
|
|
| Directed by |
Irving Pichel Ernest B. Schoedsack |
| Produced by | Ernest B. Schoedsack Merian C. Cooper |
| Screenplay by | James Ashmore Creelman |
| Based on | "The Most Dangerous Game" 1924 Collier's by Richard Connell |
| Starring |
Joel McCrea Fay Wray Leslie Banks Robert Armstrong |
| Music by | Max Steiner |
| Cinematography | Henry W. Gerrard |
| Edited by | Archie Marshek |
|
Production
company |
|
| Distributed by | RKO Radio Pictures |
|
Release date
|
September 16, 1932 |
|
Running time
|
62 minutes |
| Country | United States |
| Language | English |
| Budget | $219,869 |
| Box office | $443,000 |
The Most Dangerous Game is a 1932 pre-Code adaptation of the 1924 short story of the same name by Richard Connell, the first film version of that story. The plot concerns a big game hunter on an island who hunts humans for sport. The film stars Joel McCrea, Leslie Banks, and King Kong leads Fay Wray and Robert Armstrong, and was made by a team including Ernest B. Schoedsack and Merian C. Cooper, the co-directors of King Kong (1933). The film was shot at night on the King Kong jungle sets.
In 1932, a luxury yacht is sailing through a channel off the western coast of South America. The captain is worried about the channel lights not matching the charts, but is quickly dissuaded from changing course by the wealthy passengers for the sake of time, including famous big game hunter and author Bob Rainsford (Joel McCrea). It is a calm evening, with the cheerful passengers relaxing over drinks and a game of cards. Bob and his companions are debating about whether hunting is at all sporting for the animal being hunted after a friend asks if he would exchange places with a tiger he had recently hunted in Africa. Bob replies that there are two kinds of people in the world: those who hunt and those who are hunted.
The ship suddenly runs aground, causing the ship to take on water and heave violently. Water floods the boiler room, causing the ship to explode and sink into the channel. Rainsford and two others manage to get away and cling to wreckage, but the other survivors are eaten by a shark. He swims to a small, lush island. Wandering through the jungle, he sees the channel lights off the shoreline change, and suspects the ship was deliberately led off course to its doom.
He stumbles across a luxury chateau where he becomes the guest of the expatriate Russian Count Zaroff (Leslie Banks), a fellow hunting enthusiast. Zaroff remarks that Rainsford's misfortune is not uncommon; in fact, four people from the previous sinking are still staying with him: Eve Trowbridge (Fay Wray), her brother Martin (Robert Armstrong), and two sailors.
...
Wikipedia