The Most Dangerous Game
More people probably know “The Most Dangerous Game” by how it plays a part of David Fincher’s “Zodiac” more than they’ve actually watched the film. Consider me one of those people, until a rewatch of “Zodiac” led me to find it available on Amazon Prime. Now, I have seen the film, and am glad I can say so- this is the sort of easily digestible entertainment I was looking to watch earlier in the day before I settled on “Zodiac.”
The original story, by Richard Connell, is a familiar structure for genre fans- it’s been riffed on plenty of times, including John Woo’s first film in America, “Hard Target.” I get the appeal- it’s got action and adventure and the moral quandary of hunting at its center. Mainly, however, the story exists as a pulpy adventure story, and that is how it works best. In adapting the story, on the same sets where they made their iconic “King Kong,” producer Merian C. Cooper and director Ernest B. Schoedsack have made a lean and fun little thriller; the 62-minute running time flies by.
Connell’s story is a simple one- a shipwreck occurs, with only one survivor in the hunter, Bob Rainsford (Joel McCrea). He manages to make his way to the mainland, and finds a chateau owned by the Russian Count Zaroff (Leslie Banks), who has two guests (a brother and sister, played by Robert Armstrong and Fay Wray) along with his native servants. Zaroff is a hunter himself, but his game is of a different variety than Rainsford’s, which his guests only learn when he leads them into his trophy room. You can guess what happens from there.
The movie takes place mostly in the chateau, with only about 10-15 minutes of adventure where Zaroff is chasing Bob and Eve (Wray’s character) in the forest, but it maintains such a strong hold on us as it sets up what we will see, and the characters have such strong personalities, that we do not mind; again, this movie moves pretty well. This is a film wherein Cooper and Shoedsack, the latter of whom directs with Irving Pichel, show themselves to be able to balance spectacle, escapism and character well while telling a story we have a hard time believing. That being said, however, man’s capacity to harm, and get pleasure from inflicting harm on their fellow man, is the ultimate lesson to be taken from the film. It’s one filled with shades of grey. This movie isn’t about that, though; it’s about the thrill of the hunt, and the will it takes to survive. That comes through crystal clear, and in a way that is fun to watch.
