The Man Who Laughs (1927)

Featured Audience Ratings

• AJ V

  
  A great classic movie, I really liked it, it's beautiful. I can tell that many films have been inspired by this story, and it's great to finally see the inspiration. I highly recommend seeing this movie.

• Morgan S

  
  spectacular movie!! Its not so much a horror movie as it is a romance. I ador Conrad Veidt and Mary Philbin. They are both great!!

• Cassandra M

  
  In 1690, in England, the nobleman Lord Clancharlie returns from his exile to see his young son. The peer is captured by the cruel King James II and before being killed, he is informed that his beloved son had been sold to the gypsies Comanchicos that carved a permanent grin on his… More
  In 1690, in England, the nobleman Lord Clancharlie returns from his exile to see his young son. The peer is captured by the cruel King James II and before being killed, he is informed that his beloved son had been sold to the gypsies Comanchicos that carved a permanent grin on his face. The Cormanchicos abandon the boy in the cold snowing winter, and while looking for shelter, he finds a baby hold in the arms of her dead mother. He brings the baby with him and they are welcomed by the philosopher Ursus (Cesare Gravina), who finds that the baby is blind and raises them. Years later, Gwynplaine (Conrad Veidt) becomes a successful clown, and together with the blind Dea (Mary Philbin), they present plays for common people. Gwynplaine and Dea are in love for each other, but he refuses to marry her because of his ridiculous appearance. When the evil jester Barkilphedro (Brandon Hurst) discloses the origin of Gwynplaine, he plots a means to be rewarded by the Queen, jeopardizing the love of Gwynplaine and Dea. The Man Who Laughs" is a magnificent classic based on the famous Victor Hugo's novel. The performances of Conrad Veidt and Brandon Hurst are amazing and there are many touching and heartbreaking scenes. My eyes became wet when the artists act like the audience cheering for Gwynplaine to spare Dea from the truth. The appearance of the character Gwynplaine inspired Bob Kane in the creation of "The Joker", one of Batman's greatest enemies. Another point that I would like to highlight is the resemblance of Madonna, in the beginning of her career, with the Russian actress Olga Baclanova, who performs daring scenes including of nude with her amoral character of Duchess Josiana. I have never read Victor Hugo's novel, but it seems that the conclusion in the original story is less optimistic than in this movie, but anyway I loved this film. My vote is ten.

• Stella D

  
  the original silent film based on victor hugo's novel that inspired sardonicus and of course the joker from batman. conrad veidt in the lead role is much more sympathetic than those characters and it's as much a love story as gothic horror, like hunchback of notre dame and… More
  the original silent film based on victor hugo's novel that inspired sardonicus and of course the joker from batman. conrad veidt in the lead role is much more sympathetic than those characters and it's as much a love story as gothic horror, like hunchback of notre dame and phantom of the opera. german expressionist director paul leni gives it alot of style and veidt is fantastic, wearing a prostethic mouthpiece that didn't even allow him to speak

• Luke B

  
  Despite that garish poster that makes this look like a horror, this is actually a romance. It's a sweet piece of silent cinema that uses it's visuals to full affect. Veidt is fantastic. Having to grin all the time must have made it difficult to convey emotions other than… More
  Despite that garish poster that makes this look like a horror, this is actually a romance. It's a sweet piece of silent cinema that uses it's visuals to full affect. Veidt is fantastic. Having to grin all the time must have made it difficult to convey emotions other than happiness. Somehow Veidt manages it. It's all in the eyes and forehead. The Man Who Laughs is a classic weirdo in love movie. Gwynplaine is a victim and is exploited by those around him. Refreshingly, he doesn't go mental and start murdering everybody like so many other films of it's type. The make up was astonishing as was the recreation of the period. The dog called Homo was pretty funny...teehee. Only real negative distraction was that everybody found Gwynplaine funny looking, but I thought he was scary looking. Go figure.

• Michael G

  
  While The Man Who Laughs certainly had some great imagery and set a decent atmosphere, the drawn out story and overextended shots bored the ass off of me. You've seen the story dozens of times before even though this is one of the earliest of incantations. If the obvious Joker… More
  While The Man Who Laughs certainly had some great imagery and set a decent atmosphere, the drawn out story and overextended shots bored the ass off of me. You've seen the story dozens of times before even though this is one of the earliest of incantations. If the obvious Joker influence wasn't there I wouldn't have bothered. Although by 20s standards I'm sure it's great, it's just that so many better versions have come along since.

• Darik H

  
  From looking at the poster, one begins to form an idea of the shape of Paul Leni's adaptation of the Victor Hugo novel, The Man Who Laughs. The portrayal of the giant, leering face of the title character, for one thing, creates a creepy image for the film, thanks to the choice of… More
  From looking at the poster, one begins to form an idea of the shape of Paul Leni's adaptation of the Victor Hugo novel, The Man Who Laughs. The portrayal of the giant, leering face of the title character, for one thing, creates a creepy image for the film, thanks to the choice of under-lighting actor Conrad Veidt's face for the painting. This effect is magnified by the judicious placement of hanging corpses in the background and the depiction of the main character standing ominously over a sleeping damsel, his cloak giving him more than a passing resemblance to Dracula. To see this poster possessing no knowledge of the film's plot, one could only assume that this is, by far, one of the creepiest, most horrific films of the silent era, featuring one of its most effective monsters. What a shock it is, then, when you watch the film and discover a rich, emotional melodrama on par with the Hunchback of Notre Dame or the Phantom of the Opera, and featuring a character far more sympathetic than either of them. The Man Who Laughs is the story of Gwynplaine, the heir of a Duke who spoke out against King James during the 17th Century. In retaliation for the Duke's defiance, James had Gwynplaine sold off to a nomadic band of child traffickers, who surgically mutilated the boy's mouth into a permanent grin and later abandoned him to eliminate evidence of their misdeeds. The boy wandered into the care of a gypsy philosopher and playwright, who raised him to adulthood and made him the featured act of a traveling repertory theater. His life as a famous clown is made bearable only by his relationship with Dea, the blind girl he grew up with who loves him for who he is, but soon his identity is discovered and he is forced back into the aristocracy against his will. Conrad Veidt as Gwynplaine is, without a doubt, the most visually striking character to come out of the silent era (whose likeness was reportedly the primary inspiration for the creation of the Joker)- the prosthesis that kept his mouth fixed into a grin must have hurt like a bitch! But despite his outwardly menacing appearance, Veidt conveys a world of longing and suffering with the use of his eyes, making us feel the lifetime's worth of ridicule and self-loathing that he must have felt, and when he finally reaches his boiling point, we cheer as he rebels against the corrupt aristocracy that tries to use him for their own ends. It's an effective criticism of the system of rule of the time period, run by a shallow and thoughtless class that see people only as a means for the manipulation of power, and one that is furthered by the two-dimensional portrayals of all of the members of the hierarchy (of course, the acting is far from subtle due to the fact that it's a silent film, but it's even farther from subtle with characters such as the queen, King James, the duchess, and especially Barkilphedro). Mary Philbin as Dea, on the other hand, is a surprisingly touching performance, bringing quite a bit of genuine emotion to a part that essentially only required her to stand around and pretend to be blind (which she does okay). Cesare Gravina is kind of hokey as Ursus, the gypsy playwright with wild hair and disturbing pop-eyes, but even he musters some considerable pathos during the film, especially when he believes that Gwynplaine has died and can't bring himself to tell Dea. The production values are pretty good for a silent film, and the camera is a lot more active that in certain other silent films (Nosferatu comes to mind...). What makes the Man Who Laughs a great movie, though, is the genuine, heartfelt love story that drives it, a beauty and the beast tale that, unlike the stories of the Hunchback or the Phantom, actually ends well for our heroes... maybe because this time, we have a hero that truly earns the right to call himself a man, and not a monster.

• Marcus W

  
  Yes, I confess I only watched this out of curiousity as a Batman fan to see where the inspiration for the Joker came from. I accept that it has nothing to do with Batman, but it still left me cold and uninterested. There's a good story in there somewhere, and for once it's… More
  Yes, I confess I only watched this out of curiousity as a Batman fan to see where the inspiration for the Joker came from. I accept that it has nothing to do with Batman, but it still left me cold and uninterested. There's a good story in there somewhere, and for once it's a film that could do with a remake.

• Marion R

  
  This was a really neat movie. I really got caught up in the movie, it was pretty exciting.

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