@MrLiquidjcb13 Watch the earlier part of the movie; 10 year-old Gwynplaine found Dea as a baby in her dead mother's arms and rescued her, then they were both taken in by Ursus.
Conrad Veidt was a great actor and it shows in this movie its a shame he died in 1943 when he was only 50 he still had a long career ahead of him at least he will be always remembered on film
I don't understand these people at village who nearly ran into a van to see a man who's smiling/laughing. I think this is first time they see man's smile.
Not only does this film prove what a fine actor Conrad Veidt was, and why Brandon Hurst was one of the great heavies of the silent era, but,at 7:27, you can see that Olga Baclanova had one BEAUTIFUL arse!
I thought this film was meant to be silent...Yet you can clearly hear at the freak show scene a man saying 'look at that funny man' or something or you can at least hear excited voices
Sometimes silent films had background sound added in for a gimmick that wasn't part of the original soundtrack per se. Remember that recorded voices were a gimmick at this time so the films were not made with voice overs in mind. This movie's got a good example of sounds like that being used as a gimmick.
why are these people so exited about the freak show? I mean really? Do they have nothing better to do than make other people suffer for being different?
People do get excited by difference, even today as we speak. But is institutionalized and thanks to that public shows is now something trivial - see the Guiness Book of Records, for instance.
One can say that ignorance and stupidity will never end on our species... :(
This cannot really be considered a "silent film," since there is obviously a soundtrack for it. It just did not include a synchronized voice track, like "The Jazz Singer" had. Even Charlie Chaplin's "City Lights" is a sound film, because it had a soundtrack with music (composed by Chaplin) included. It just did not include any verbal track.
Well, many silent films arrived in cinemas with a specially composed score and would be accompanied by live music. Sound effects were also provided live. I have no idea if this is the original soundtrack for this film, or something the distributor provided for this print to re-create the old-timey viewing experience for modern viewers. Most silent films now are released with some kind of added soundtrack and sound effects.
According to Wikipedia's page on this film, it says the following with regard to the soundtrack: "The film was one of the early Universal Pictures productions that made the transition from silent films to sound films, using the Movietone sound system introduced by William Fox. The film was completed in April 1927 but was held for release in April 1928 with sound effects and a music score that included the song "When Love Comes Stealing" by Walter Hirsch, Lew Pollack, and Erno Rapee."
I stand corrected, then. Damn. I found the soundtrack a little off-putting at times and was hoping it might be the result of bad taste on the part of some modern lackey. Did they have to put that silly song in there? Really?
I agree, it probably would have been far better had they simply added a music track (as Chaplin did with all of his silent films), and left it at that. It is; however, rather interesting to note how Universal Studios responded to presumed taste of the American audiences back in the late 1920's. They were probably thrilled with sound films like this in 1928, but I'm sure that it got dated VERY quickly when the technology advanced further in just a few more years.
If I would of seen this first I wouldve wanted Joker to be more of a tragic chracter instead of a wise cracking mad man.this story gives a better interpretation of a man whos smile is more of a curse than that which we take for granted.but still I loved all thosewho played the joker each fit the time they were in.
in some of the comic books, he was a more tragic charactor. E.g., in 'The Killing Joke', he remembers being an ordinary unemployed guy with a pregnant wife. He has flashbacks of a series of events that end in his being driven insane an turning into the monster that he is, trying to make the point that anyone could be like him, all it takes is 'one bad day'. that was one of the few origin stories that present the joker in an almost sympathetic way.
agreed and well thats why I liked heath ledgers version better.you can tell he did his homework on the joke,I heard that he actually read the killing joke.But still I like this movie I already ordered it in barns and nobles plus the Bat another inspiration my Beloved Darknight.
the bat is prob one of the best silent movies i've watched. seeing the work that movies like these inspired gives me a whole new respect and appreciation for them!
Really? He was in "..Dr. Caligari"? Wow, I never knew!
Conrad Veidt is so awesome, with or without sound. I loved him in the "The Thief of Baghdad" (1940). And here, well I can't imagine any other actor of the time surpassing this. His performance is just mesmerizing!
At this point, sound already existed, but some films were still being produced silent, but released with synchronized music and some sound effects, but no recorded dialogue (the quality of mics were low, and required cumbersome cameras, and almost no camera movements - in other words, the picture quality did suffer, and many directors fought the transition to sound).
Actually, the technology for sound films was there and was usuable. It was mostly for the money that those were delayed. Silent films played well overseas and dubbing a film dialouge into the local language takes time. Here, you simply replace the title card and you play the movie anywhere.
In the case of this film, however, budget was not a problem. "The Laughing Man" had a budget of $1´000´000, an incredibly high sum of money for a film back in those days. I think the decision to make it a silent movie relied on the style of the film, as Roger Ebert said "one of the last silent movies with german expresionism in it"
Thats only partially true. Universal had its greatest market penetration in rural America & in Europe. Had no US theatre chain. In fact they were the last to maintain a German subsidiary in the 30s. Sound conversion was costly & their niche market served a lot of small US theaters hadnt converted to sound & the foreign market required costly individual language versions (no dubbing in 1928). So they held out, supplying silents & part-talkies through 29, after everyone else had switched over.
Mary Philbin was just heartbreakingly beautiful, wasn't she?
MaskedMan66 1 month ago
How did they ever get a camera mounted on the Ferris Wheel? Them things were huge back then!
MaskedMan66 1 month ago
Dea is Chrisitne from the Lon Chaney phantom of the opera
celestialangel61 2 months ago
@celestialangel61 Yup! And funnily enough, in this movie she's got Christine's right hair color!
MaskedMan66 1 month ago
Is The Duchess , The Lady Who Is In The Water Seen By The Old Mann The Actress Who Comes Out In Charles Chaplin Movies ?
lanumerodiez10 2 months ago
Heh, it's hard to tell who'se the laughing man since they all grin just as widely. XD
Bastiest 2 months ago
@ 4:14 Speechless.....
orchideyes1975 3 months ago
Wait WTF? Dea and Gwynplaine are brother and sister how the hell are they in love?
MrLiquidjcb13 4 months ago
@MrLiquidjcb13 I don't think they are
xShadowxPhoenix 4 months ago
@MrLiquidjcb13 They are not brother and sister... I mean they did grow up together and were taken care of by the same man but they arent related.
Beccalotte1021 4 months ago
@MrLiquidjcb13 Watch the earlier part of the movie; 10 year-old Gwynplaine found Dea as a baby in her dead mother's arms and rescued her, then they were both taken in by Ursus.
MaskedMan66 1 month ago
Am I the only one who thinks Josiana looks like Madonna?
xXxBlueNancyxXx 4 months ago
Conrad Veidt was a great actor and it shows in this movie its a shame he died in 1943 when he was only 50 he still had a long career ahead of him at least he will be always remembered on film
walmartgoof 6 months ago
i see the joker but not batman
dankill16 6 months ago
I don't understand these people at village who nearly ran into a van to see a man who's smiling/laughing. I think this is first time they see man's smile.
magdasia14 6 months ago
@magdasia14 a simple people, a simpler time ;)
LetsTakeArideOut 6 months ago
@magdasia14 they didn't have tv, internet, radio... there was little entertaiment those days.
xtinared 3 months ago
how is that funny
iweargoggles2 9 months ago
Not only does this film prove what a fine actor Conrad Veidt was, and why Brandon Hurst was one of the great heavies of the silent era, but,at 7:27, you can see that Olga Baclanova had one BEAUTIFUL arse!
librarybob1958 11 months ago
@librarybob1958
so men get praise for their talents and women only for their bodies?
sapph920 8 months ago in playlist man who laughs
That is one crude ferris wheel!
jupiter784 1 year ago
Gwynplaine (Conrad Veidt) looks so damn happy in every situation...
Like, 02:58 - That's the shy face of a guy who hides behind a book.
And 03:34 - The moment he feels his soul torn apart by guilt.
It would be horrible to smile all the time.
minnaihq 1 year ago
4:34 - 4:49 is so sad :( the only way he could show sadness is by covering his mouth...
:(
TheCamoTurtle 1 year ago 4
I really got into this...i feel kinda bad for being so drawn in!..i actually GASPED when i saw the jester from the beginning appear!
JesterNlove 1 year ago
Conrad Veidt is always soooo wonderfully HANDSOME!!
susannebass 1 year ago 2
4:13!!! omgg im gonna hav freakin nightmaresss!!!
narutovegetaDboy 2 years ago
@narutovegetaDboy That's one of my favorite parts!
xxxxxxkarlaxxxxxx 2 years ago 6
you can see the poor man's despair even though he has that unfortunate grin on his face. poor poor man. ;(
happyunhappy13 2 years ago 4
I thought this film was meant to be silent...Yet you can clearly hear at the freak show scene a man saying 'look at that funny man' or something or you can at least hear excited voices
Peadarisback 2 years ago 3
Sometimes silent films had background sound added in for a gimmick that wasn't part of the original soundtrack per se. Remember that recorded voices were a gimmick at this time so the films were not made with voice overs in mind. This movie's got a good example of sounds like that being used as a gimmick.
Ultrasecond 2 years ago
why are these people so exited about the freak show? I mean really? Do they have nothing better to do than make other people suffer for being different?
happyunhappy13 2 years ago 4
Are you that naif ?
People do get excited by difference, even today as we speak. But is institutionalized and thanks to that public shows is now something trivial - see the Guiness Book of Records, for instance.
One can say that ignorance and stupidity will never end on our species... :(
Tormentorio 2 years ago 8
unfortunately
happyunhappy13 2 years ago
I don't think so,lol!
This must be how we all carried on before tv.
beautifuldreamer80 2 years ago
and youtube
happyunhappy13 2 years ago
lmao yes!
beautifuldreamer80 2 years ago
The feeling is mutual.
JammyDotDank 2 years ago
Conrad Veidt was the front runner to play Count Dracula in the Universal movie.
ysbaddaden2003 2 years ago 2
For a silent film, it certainly is noisy.
I love how Tony Daniel has resyled the Joker to look more like Gwynplaine.
LikaLaruku 2 years ago 8
This cannot really be considered a "silent film," since there is obviously a soundtrack for it. It just did not include a synchronized voice track, like "The Jazz Singer" had. Even Charlie Chaplin's "City Lights" is a sound film, because it had a soundtrack with music (composed by Chaplin) included. It just did not include any verbal track.
yohannbiimu 2 years ago
Well, many silent films arrived in cinemas with a specially composed score and would be accompanied by live music. Sound effects were also provided live. I have no idea if this is the original soundtrack for this film, or something the distributor provided for this print to re-create the old-timey viewing experience for modern viewers. Most silent films now are released with some kind of added soundtrack and sound effects.
SloeEyedDoe 2 years ago
According to Wikipedia's page on this film, it says the following with regard to the soundtrack: "The film was one of the early Universal Pictures productions that made the transition from silent films to sound films, using the Movietone sound system introduced by William Fox. The film was completed in April 1927 but was held for release in April 1928 with sound effects and a music score that included the song "When Love Comes Stealing" by Walter Hirsch, Lew Pollack, and Erno Rapee."
yohannbiimu 2 years ago
I stand corrected, then. Damn. I found the soundtrack a little off-putting at times and was hoping it might be the result of bad taste on the part of some modern lackey. Did they have to put that silly song in there? Really?
SloeEyedDoe 2 years ago
I agree, it probably would have been far better had they simply added a music track (as Chaplin did with all of his silent films), and left it at that. It is; however, rather interesting to note how Universal Studios responded to presumed taste of the American audiences back in the late 1920's. They were probably thrilled with sound films like this in 1928, but I'm sure that it got dated VERY quickly when the technology advanced further in just a few more years.
yohannbiimu 2 years ago
Aww! They're so cute together! This movie is romantic!
Wow, that messenger is a real pervert... ick! I saw that woman's butt for a second... amazing that they got away with that.
FrauofGermany 3 years ago
If I would of seen this first I wouldve wanted Joker to be more of a tragic chracter instead of a wise cracking mad man.this story gives a better interpretation of a man whos smile is more of a curse than that which we take for granted.but still I loved all thosewho played the joker each fit the time they were in.
Sotocron 3 years ago
in some of the comic books, he was a more tragic charactor. E.g., in 'The Killing Joke', he remembers being an ordinary unemployed guy with a pregnant wife. He has flashbacks of a series of events that end in his being driven insane an turning into the monster that he is, trying to make the point that anyone could be like him, all it takes is 'one bad day'. that was one of the few origin stories that present the joker in an almost sympathetic way.
LuvRemyanJack 3 years ago
agreed and well thats why I liked heath ledgers version better.you can tell he did his homework on the joke,I heard that he actually read the killing joke.But still I like this movie I already ordered it in barns and nobles plus the Bat another inspiration my Beloved Darknight.
Sotocron 3 years ago
the bat is prob one of the best silent movies i've watched. seeing the work that movies like these inspired gives me a whole new respect and appreciation for them!
LuvRemyanJack 3 years ago
thats a great comic. the joker is by far my favorite character EVER! there needs to be more comics dedicated to him.
CloudMeetsSky 3 years ago 2
Yes, because The Joker was a phycopath and Harley Quinn was just attracted to his type. Gwynplaine isn't crazy here.
RFAD1 3 years ago 2
Wow he's really freaky! Poor guy!
GeonTrinity 3 years ago
The man without chin should be the real freak of this movie!XD
ImAMereGoodSamaritan 3 years ago 9
XD That is so true
slinko27 3 years ago 2
not enough words to describe the acting.
This is first class, prime A, top acting, on the part of Conrad Veidt...
i was moved
TitusIsaacMaximus 3 years ago 7
Conrad Veidt also plays the part of Cesare the Somnambulist in The Cabinet of Dr. Caligari
charlesalber 3 years ago 3
Really? He was in "..Dr. Caligari"? Wow, I never knew!
Conrad Veidt is so awesome, with or without sound. I loved him in the "The Thief of Baghdad" (1940). And here, well I can't imagine any other actor of the time surpassing this. His performance is just mesmerizing!
datalal624 2 years ago
The Joker & Harley Quinn...
The Early Years
FreakZilla34 3 years ago
Hmm, not quite. Gwynplaine's relationship with Dea is extremely different compared to the relationship Joker has with Harley.
Though I do see what you're getting at :)
blehblehbleh777 3 years ago 9
I especially admire how very kind and sweet Veidt was in life. It makes me respect his performance all the more.
MadCapAithne 4 years ago 37
his face was the inspiration for the Joker, Batman's arch-nemesis
nobodysperfect06 4 years ago
who the hell cares, everyone says that on these vids, remember this was first
imbo8w 3 years ago 8
how is there the noise of the crowd in the first few minutes?
dearsunexplode 4 years ago
At this point, sound already existed, but some films were still being produced silent, but released with synchronized music and some sound effects, but no recorded dialogue (the quality of mics were low, and required cumbersome cameras, and almost no camera movements - in other words, the picture quality did suffer, and many directors fought the transition to sound).
hclchicago 4 years ago 3
Actually, the technology for sound films was there and was usuable. It was mostly for the money that those were delayed. Silent films played well overseas and dubbing a film dialouge into the local language takes time. Here, you simply replace the title card and you play the movie anywhere.
NezTheXenophile 4 years ago 4
Plus, vight's makeup made it impossible for him to speak coherently. With silence he could just mouth the diologue.
elbethere 4 years ago 2
In the case of this film, however, budget was not a problem. "The Laughing Man" had a budget of $1´000´000, an incredibly high sum of money for a film back in those days. I think the decision to make it a silent movie relied on the style of the film, as Roger Ebert said "one of the last silent movies with german expresionism in it"
J3ANbuffon 3 years ago 2
Thats only partially true. Universal had its greatest market penetration in rural America & in Europe. Had no US theatre chain. In fact they were the last to maintain a German subsidiary in the 30s. Sound conversion was costly & their niche market served a lot of small US theaters hadnt converted to sound & the foreign market required costly individual language versions (no dubbing in 1928). So they held out, supplying silents & part-talkies through 29, after everyone else had switched over.
OldMovieDude 3 years ago
Brilliant movie though this is, that face will haunt my nightmares for eternity.
manwithoutabody 4 years ago
The Ferris Wheel shot is brilliant.
FireworksFactory 4 years ago 3
There are not actors like Conrad anymore. His kind is sorely missed.
Long live the laughing man!
Fiyerokai 4 years ago 22