A struggling circus finds salvation in the form of an exciting new twist on their high-wire act.A struggling circus finds salvation in the form of an exciting new twist on their high-wire act.A struggling circus finds salvation in the form of an exciting new twist on their high-wire act.
William Hartnell
- Jim Powers
- (as Bill Hartnell)
Elsie Wagstaff
- Eve Wainwright
- (as Elsie Wagstaffe)
Patricia Laffan
- Nurse
- (uncredited)
Peter Noble
- Circus Worker
- (uncredited)
Jack Sharp
- Circus Worker
- (uncredited)
Cecil Ayres Trio
- Skaters
- (uncredited)
Victor Wood
- Journalist
- (uncredited)
Storyline
Did you know
- Trivia"The Dark Tower" was a play by George S. Kaufman and Alexander Woollcott which ran for 57 performances on Broadway between November 1933 and January 1934. Warner Brothers bought the rights and made it as a vehicle for Edward G. Robinson later that year under the title "The Man with Two Faces". Nine years later Warner Brothers U.K. remade the film under the original title "The Dark Tower". The two films have very little resemblance to each other in their plots and backgrounds except for the heroine falling under the spell of a demonic fiend who controls her mind. The Hollywood version is faithful to the original with a Broadway actor trying to rescue his sister from her Svengali husband; the British version has an aerial artist in the power of a hypnotist against a circus background.
- GoofsWhile Tom and the other members of the troupe are packing; at one point the hidden overhead lighting used on the set begin to blink.
- Quotes
Willie Wainwright: Ladies and gentlemen, once more we bring to your town the thrill of a lifetime. The unparalled, the inimical, unrivalled Empire Circus. Come in your thousands and enjoy this feast of equine dexterity and acrobatic marvels we shall place before your astounded gaze. Never before in the history of this town has such a gay galaxy of talent and of beauty been set before you.
- ConnectionsRemake of The Man with Two Faces (1934)
Featured review
Hypnotic high-wire
Mysterious Herbert Lom (Torg) wanders into circus life and starts to take over from circus owner Ben Lyon (Phil). Lyon has a brother David Farrar (Tom) who is top-billed with his girlfriend Anne Crawford (Mary) as the trapeze and high-wire act. However, once Lom arrives he takes over the top bill and also takes Crawford to be his partner in his hypnosis stage act. Just how far is Lom going to take the hypnosis act? He's pretty handy at revenge.
Herbert Lom is what this film is all about. From his first entrance, dressed all in black, you just know he's evil. He can control a lion and he can control people. What I didn't get about this film was why everyone was so nasty to him. I ended up taking his side but I feel that was not the point of things. Anyway, he alienates himself, nicks Farrar's girlfriend and starts to have a power over her in everything that she does. The rest of the cast aren't very interesting and the two top-billed male actors aren't very likable. This is Lom's film.
I don't like circuses so the film's setting just doesn't do it for me. I find clowns scary and not at all funny. And how about that laughing sailor dummy? That is pure nightmare material. Not funny. I'm not too bothered about this film either way – it sits firmly mid-scale.
"Look into my eyes" "Look into my eyes" – "Go and mow the lawn" "Go and mow the lawn"
Herbert Lom is what this film is all about. From his first entrance, dressed all in black, you just know he's evil. He can control a lion and he can control people. What I didn't get about this film was why everyone was so nasty to him. I ended up taking his side but I feel that was not the point of things. Anyway, he alienates himself, nicks Farrar's girlfriend and starts to have a power over her in everything that she does. The rest of the cast aren't very interesting and the two top-billed male actors aren't very likable. This is Lom's film.
I don't like circuses so the film's setting just doesn't do it for me. I find clowns scary and not at all funny. And how about that laughing sailor dummy? That is pure nightmare material. Not funny. I'm not too bothered about this film either way – it sits firmly mid-scale.
"Look into my eyes" "Look into my eyes" – "Go and mow the lawn" "Go and mow the lawn"
helpful•10
- AAdaSC
- May 28, 2016
Details
- Release date
- Country of origin
- Language
- Also known as
- Dantonmysteriet
- Filming locations
- Production company
- See more company credits at IMDbPro
- Runtime1 hour 30 minutes
- Color
- Aspect ratio
- 1.37 : 1
Contribute to this page
Suggest an edit or add missing content