Graf Zaroff – Genie des Bösen (1932)

Graf Zaroff – Genie des Bösen: Directed by Irving Pichel, Ernest B. Schoedsack. With Joel McCrea, Fay Wray, Robert Armstrong, Leslie Banks. A psychotic big game hunter deliberately strands a luxury yacht on a remote island, where he begins to hunt its passengers for sport.

“A solid little thriller with several things going for it, u0026quot;The Most Dangerous Gameu0026quot; easily holds your attention all the way through, even at the more predictable points. It takes good advantage of an often-used plot idea, without trying to squeeze too much out of it. Joel McCrea makes a likable and confident hero, and he fits in well with Leslie Banks and with u0026quot;King Kongu0026quot; stars Fay Wray and Robert Armstrong. Banksu0026#39;s performance is a little on the eccentric side, but he has enough energy to make the character and the plot work most of the time.u003cbr/u003eu003cbr/u003eThe opening sequence is a little slow, but it does set up some of the themes of the rest of the movie. The first half of the movie is generally predictable, yet even so it builds up a good amount of tension. In the last half, the suspense is sustained quite well for an extended time, and though the last few scenes may lack plausibility, they work well dramatically because they were set up carefully. Overall, it is an effective and rather efficiently-made thriller.”