The Mystic | |
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Directed by | Tod Browning |
Written by | Tod Browning Waldemar Young |
Produced by | Louis B. Mayer Irving Thalberg |
Starring | Aileen Pringle Conway Tearle |
Cinematography | Ira H. Morgan |
Edited by | Frank Sullivan |
Distributed by | Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer |
Release date |
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Running time | 70 minutes |
Country | United States |
Language | Silent with English intertitles |
The Mystic is a 1925 American MGM silent drama film directed by Tod Browning, who later directed MGM's Freaks (1932). It was co-written by Browning and Waldemar Young, writing a similar storyline to their earlier 1925 hit film The Unholy Three. Browning was unable however to hire his favorite star Lon Chaney this time around, and The Mystic wound up a little-known film with a cast of now-forgotten names. [1] Aileen Pringle's gowns in the film were by already famous Romain de Tirtoff (known as Erté). [2] A print of the film exists. [3]
As described in a film magazine reviews, [4] Zara is a gypsy rogue who joins with confederate Zazarack to aid Michael Nash, the crooked guardian of heiress Doris Merrick, to gain control of her estate by way of fake seances. Jimmie Barton with the aid of Zara and her gypsies succeeds in swindling the Wall Street financier out of his fortune. Jimmie tries to tell Zara that he loves her. In a fight with her confederates, he proves his love for her. Zara and her band are captured by the police, and Jimmie escapes with the loot. Zara’s suitor tries to get her to marry him, but seeing the hopelessness of his cause, he notifies Jimmie. They are reconciled after Jimmie returns the stolen money.
After years of being a VHS exclusive, The Criterion Collection announced a Blu-Ray set that also includes Freaks and The Unknown released on October 17, 2023. [5] [6]
Tod Browning was an American film director, film actor, screenwriter, vaudeville performer, and carnival sideshow and circus entertainer. He directed a number of films of various genres between 1915 and 1939, but was primarily known for horror films, Browning was often cited in the trade press as "the Edgar Allan Poe of cinema."
Freaks is a 1932 American pre-Code drama horror film produced and directed by Tod Browning, starring Wallace Ford, Leila Hyams, Olga Baclanova, Roscoe Ates and Harry Earles.
Heaven Can Wait is a 1943 Technicolor American supernatural comedy film produced and directed by Ernst Lubitsch. The screenplay was by Samson Raphaelson based on the play Birthday by Ladislaus Bus-Fekete. The music score was by Alfred Newman and the cinematography by Edward Cronjager.
The Elephant Man is a 1980 biographical drama film based on the life of Joseph Merrick, a severely deformed man who lived in London in the late 19th century. The film was directed by David Lynch, produced by Mel Brooks and Jonathan Sanger, and starred John Hurt, Anthony Hopkins, Anne Bancroft, John Gielgud, Wendy Hiller, Michael Elphick, Hannah Gordon, and Freddie Jones. The Elephant Man is generally regarded as one of Lynch's more accessible and mainstream works, alongside The Straight Story (1999).
This is an overview of 1925 in film, including significant events, a list of films released and notable births and deaths.
Dracula is a 1931 American pre-Code supernatural horror film directed and co-produced by Tod Browning from a screenplay written by Garrett Fort and starring Bela Lugosi in the title role. It is based on the 1924 stage play Dracula by Hamilton Deane and John L. Balderston, which in turn is adapted from the 1897 novel Dracula by Bram Stoker. Lugosi portrays Count Dracula, a vampire who emigrates from Transylvania to England and preys upon the blood of living victims, including a young man's fiancée.
Olga Vladimirovna Baklanova, known professionally as Olga Baclanova, was a Russian-born actress who found success in Hollywood films, as well as stage roles in the US and the United Kingdom, she was mainly billed as an exotic blonde temptress, who was given the title of the "Russian Tigress".
Clarence Aaron Robbins, billed as C. A. Robbins and better known as Tod Robbins, was an American author of horror and mystery fiction, particularly novels and short story collections.
The Unknown is a 1927 American silent horror film directed by Tod Browning, and starring Lon Chaney as carnival knife thrower "Alonzo the Armless" and Joan Crawford as his beloved carnival girl Nanon. Originally titled Alonzo the Armless, filming took place from February 7 to March 18, 1927 on a $217,000 budget.
A Thief in Paradise is a 1925 American silent drama film produced by Samuel Goldwyn, directed by George Fitzmaurice, and adapted by Frances Marion from Leonard Merrick's 1900 novel The Worldlings.
Dream of Love is a 1928 American synchronized sound biographical drama film directed by Fred Niblo, and starring Joan Crawford and Nils Asther. While the film has no audible dialog, it was released with a synchronized musical score with sound effects using both the sound-on-disc and sound-on-film process. The sound was recorded via the Western Electric sound system. The film is based on the 1849 French tragedy Adrienne Lecouvreur by Eugène Scribe and Ernest Legouvé.
Merritt B. Gerstad was an American cinematographer of silent and early sound films.
The Wife of the Centaur is a 1924 American silent drama film directed by King Vidor, and released by Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer shortly after it formed from a merger of Metro Pictures, Goldwyn Pictures, and Mayer Pictures in April 1924. Metro had acquired the movie rights to Cyril Hume's debut novel Wife of a Centaur in November. A novelist imagines that he has been reincarnated as a creature from Greek mythology and becomes entangled in a love triangle.
The Unholy Three is a 1925 American silent crime melodrama film involving a trio of circus conmen, directed by Tod Browning and starring Lon Chaney. The supporting cast features Mae Busch, Matt Moore, Victor McLaglen, and Harry Earles. The Unholy Three marks the establishment of the notable artistic alliance between director Browning and actor Chaney that would deliver eight films to M-G-M studios during the late silent film era.
Outside the Law is a 1920 American pre-Code crime film produced, directed and co-written by Tod Browning and starring Priscilla Dean, Lon Chaney and Wheeler Oakman.
White Tiger is a 1923 American silent crime film directed by Tod Browning starring Priscilla Dean and featuring Wallace Beery in a supporting role.
Soul Mates is a surviving 1925 American silent drama film directed by Jack Conway, based on the 1911 novel The Reason Why by Elinor Glyn. The movie was the second successful collaboration between Glyn and Conway.
André-ani was an American costume designer.
A Thief in the Dark is a 1928 American silent mystery film directed by Albert Ray, written by C. Graham Baker and William Kernell, and starring George Meeker, Doris Hill, Gwen Lee, Marjorie Beebe, Michael Vavitch and Noah Young. The film was released on May 20, 1928, by Fox Film Corporation.
One Year to Live is a 1925 American drama film directed by Irving Cummings and written by J.G. Hawks and Robert E. Hopkins. The film stars Aileen Pringle, Dorothy Mackaill, Sam De Grasse, Rosemary Theby, Leo White and Joseph Kilgour. The film was released on March 15, 1925, by First National Pictures.