The Man Who Laughs - Conrad Veidt as Gwynplaine 8x10

8x10" posed shot of Conrad Veidt for this 1927 classic

We have reveled in classic horror films & paid homage to the legendary actors who pioneered the genera
Boris Karloff, Peter Cushing, Christopher Lee, Vincent Price, & for the sake of space, the list goes on

What of the early pioneers of the silent era that remain faceless & nameless, forgotten?
One of the great legends that has always risen from the mask of obscurity is "Conrad Veidt"
the stage actor that was featured in the world's first horror film
Veidt played the somnambulist 'Cesare' in 1919s silent Horror Classic "
The Cabinate of Dr. Caligari", as a man who slept for 23 years

Hans Walter Conrad Veidt was born in Berlin on January 22, 1893
He is probably best known for his roles in "The Thief of Bagdad" where he played Jaffar,
Grand Vizier of Bagdad, in "Casablanca" as Major Strasser, who was intent on seeing Victor Laslo dead
It was not long before the name Conrad Veidt became familiar to movie audiences all over the world
Veidt eventually made over 100 movies in four major film capitals: Berlin, Paris, London, & Hollywood
Movie fan magazines in Germany, England, & America documented his great popularity during the
silent era & later, particularly in England & the U.S. ~ From about 1920 & continuing into the '40s, Conrad Veidt
was a household name on both sides of the Atlantic ~ At the time of his death in 1943, Veidt was better
known than many other Hollywood stars of the time ~ He was also known as a virtuoso actor & a man of
exceptional personal courage, integrity & humanity ~ He became an international symbol of resistance to
Nazism & other forms of oppression & intolerance ~

This still of Veidt is from 1927s "The Man Who Laughs",
based on Victor Hugo's tale

In 17th Century England, Lord Clancharlie (a dreaded Enemy of the State)
has been captured by King James II & his cruel jester Barkilphedro ~ Lord Clancharlie, facing
the deadly spikes of the Iron Maiden, asks what has been done with his son "Gwynplaine"
The jester pulls his mouth apart in a grimace, & the King understands-the little boy has been given
to the Comprachicos ~ the Comprachicos were a group of nomads who bought children for the purpose
of disfiguring them, making them into monsters ~ Later the nomads are banished from England
& the disfigured child is left wondering in a winter storm ~ In short he comes across a frozen woman
surrounded by ravens, with an infant in her arms ~ Gwynplaine luckily stumbles upon the wagon home
of the philosopher Ursus, & his wolf Homo ~ Ursus discovers that the baby girl is blind, & when Gwynplaine
removes his scarf, Ursus' face tightens with horrified realization "Comprachicos!" ~ The film jumps
ahead in time. Gwynplaine & Dea (the rescued baby) are grown up, and still with Ursus and his theater troupe.
They have thrived, traveling from town to town, performing their play, the main star of which is Gwynplaine,
billed as "The Man Who Laughs" ~ Veidt does an incredible job of acting, given his unusual challenge,
to 'silently' portray his thoughts & emotions with a partially immobilized face ~ His fixed grin deceptively
suggests that he is always happy, but this is not so ~ Through his acting skill, and the superb camera work,
we catch glimpses of the man inside through the posture of his body, or the intensity of his eyes
At one point, kneeling over a sleeping Dea, soldiers arrive to arrest him ~ His mouth remains smiling,
but his eyes tighten in what is a mixture of outrage over the intrusion, & fear over what's going to happen
A true film for the genres Aficionado ~ Fun stuff

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Thanks for looking & hopefully, thanks 4 your purchase! Mel