The Most Dangerous Game (1932) [Adventure] [Horror]
"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 chooses to hunt 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).
Famous big game hunter and author Bob Rainsford (Joel McCrea) is the sole survivor of a shipwreck. He swims to a small, lush island. He becomes the guest of the expatriate Russian Count Zaroff (Leslie Banks), a fellow hunting enthusiast. Zaroff remarks that Bob'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.
That night, Zaroff introduces Bob to the Trowbridges and reveals his obsession with hunting. During one of his hunts, a Cape buffalo inflicted a head wound on him. He eventually became bored of the sport, to his great consternation, until he discovered "the most dangerous game" on his island. Bob asks if he means tigers, but Zaroff denies it. Later, Eve shares her suspicions of Zaroff's intentions with the newcomer. The count took each sailor to see his trophy room, on different days, and both have mysteriously disappeared. She believes their host is responsible, but Bob is unconvinced.
Then Martin vanishes as well. In their search for him, Bob and Eve end up in Zaroff's trophy room, where they find a man's head mounted on the wall. Then, Zaroff and his men appear, carrying Martin's body. Zaroff expects Bob to view the matter like him and is gravely disappointed when Bob calls him a madman.
He decides that, as Bob refuses to be a fellow hunter, he must be the next prey. If Bob can stay alive until sunrise, Zaroff promises him and Eve their freedom. However, he has never lost the game of what he calls "outdoor chess". Eve decides to go with Bob. Eventually, they are trapped by a waterfall. When Bob is attacked by a hunting dog, Zaroff shoots and the young man falls into the water. Zaroff takes Eve back to his fortress to enjoy his prize. However, the dog was shot, not Bob. Bob fights first Zaroff, then his henchmen, killing the henchmen. As Bob and Eve speed away in a motor boat, the dying Zaroff tries to shoot them. Unsuccessful, he succumbs to his wounds. He falls out of a window into the pack of his frenzied hunting dogs.
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Directed by Irving Pichel and Ernest B. Schoedsack, written by James Ashmore Creelman (screenplay) and Richard Connell (story), starring Joel McCrea, Fay Wray and Leslie Banks.
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Source: "The Most Dangerous Game (film)" Wikipedia, The Free Encyclopedia. Wikimedia Foundation, Inc.. 26 June 2012. Web. 22 July 2012. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Most_Dangerous_Game_(film).