| Credited cast: | |||
| Mary Philbin | ... | ||
| Conrad Veidt | ... | ||
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Julius Molnar Jr. | ... | |
| Olga Baclanova | ... |
Duchess Josiana
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Brandon Hurst | ... | |
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Cesare Gravina | ... |
Ursus
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Stuart Holmes | ... |
Lord Dirry-Moir
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Sam De Grasse | ... | |
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George Siegmann | ... | |
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Josephine Crowell | ... | |
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Charles Puffy | ... |
Innkeeper
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Zimbo the Dog | ... |
Homo the Wolf
(as Zimbo)
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| Rest of cast listed alphabetically: | |||
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Deno Fritz | ... |
Sword Swallower
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Gwynplaine, son of Lord Clancharlie, has a permanent smile carved on his face by the King, in revenge for Gwynplaine's father's treachery. Gwynplaine is adopted by a travelling showman and becomes a popular idol. He falls in love with the blind Dea. The king dies, and his evil jester tries to destroy or corrupt Gwynplaine. Written by Helen Elsom <helenel@sco.com>
This silent horror gem doesn't get many viewings. Conrad Viedt, in his best film role plays an unfortunate memeber of royality whose mouth is carved in a horrific grin. He winds up in a circus sideshow, where gawkers marvel at his eternal grin. However, Viedt does such a wonderful performance here, especially with the fact he has the limitation of expressing inner anquish with eye movements. After the sideshow episode, he falls in love with a blind girl, (Mary Philbin, recently menaced by "The Phantom Of The Opera") who can't see his grostesque mouth. Paul Leni, who died of blood poisioning in 1931, keeps the pace of the film active. The late Bob Kane, creator of "Batman" claims Viedt's character was the inspiration for The Joker.