Movie Review: The Most Dangerous Game (1932)

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Synopsis: Author and big game hunter Bob Rainsford is the lone survivor of a shipwreck and takes refuge in a secluded island home owned by Russian Cossack Count Zaroff and meets two survivors from a previous shipwreck, Eve and her brother, Martin. After Martin is murdered, Bob learns Zaroff is a hunting enthusiast who, because of boredom, began using his island to hunt people. When Bob refuses to join him as a hunter, he is forced to be the prey. If he survives the night, he and Eve are free. If he dies, Eve will be forced to stay with Zaroff forever.

Who's in it? The movie stars Joel McCrea, Fay Wray, Leslie Banks, Robert Armstrong and Noble Johnson.


Review: Interesting enough, even though I've known about the movie The Most Dangerous Game and had multiple opportunities to watch it, the closest I ever did to doing so is the episode of Gilligan's Island that spoofs it. I finally decided to change that today and it turned out to be an excellent choice.

One of the things I liked most about this movie is it made full use of its hour-long runtime. The character introductions are done in a way that gives just enough background about the main players while still allowing time for plenty of action once the hunt begins. After seeing way too many movies that tried to cram the action scenes into just a few minutes, it was a refreshing change.

Films like this are only as good as their antagonist and Count Zaroff (Banks) was a solid and entertaining one. The film gives him a decent amount of depth, explaining his motives while also showing a hint of culture with his piano playing abilities. His insistence on making Eve (Wray) his prize was equally intriguing because his motive for wanting to kill Bob (McCrea) was basically lust.

Speaking of Eve, I found I liked her character more than expected as well. At first, I thought she'd just be a damsel in distress/hindrance for Bob, but she held her own throughout, even assisting him when he attempted to set a trap.

My only complaint about the movie is I felt it could have given Zaroff's henchman, Ivan (Johnson), more to do. Sure, he is involved a bit toward the end, during Bob/Zaroff's final confrontation but not nearly as much as I would expect someone as menacing as he was to be. He proved to be as impactful to this movie as Martin (Armstrong) was and Martin was killed a few minutes into it.

Final Opinion: It might have been a bit better with a longer runtime but, once again, film did make full use of the time it was given and proved to be entertaining and suspenseful. I enjoyed watching it and would recommend it.

My Grade: A

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Here are some reviews of other movies from 1932:

Movie Review: The Death Kiss (1932)

Movie Review: A Strange Adventure (1932)

Movie Review: Uptown New York (1932)

Movie Review: The Hurricane Express (1932)

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