The Dark Tower

An Early British "Horror" Film that was virtually Unseen in America until recently. The Circus really does have a Sleazy, Sinister side and has been Exploited in a number of Films and it usually is quite an Effective Backdrop for Suspense and Quirky Characters. This Movie Displays that Creepy Environs.

Herbert Lom's Uncanny Performance as Torg, a Name that in itself Evokes Shutters, is the Mesmerizing Force behind this Offbeat Penetration into the Mind of a Desperate, Powerful Individual that literally Seduces his way to the (Big) Top. An Allegory of another Master Mind Manipulator.

A Spellbinding Film that is an Unusually Dark and Disturbing War-Time Entry. Made at a Time when Germany was under the Sinister Spell of a Real "Svengali" named Hitler.

Enjoyed this British film which is about a Circus called the Danton Empire Circus which is having some financial problems and has to create some new acts in order to keep in business. A drifter, Stephen Torg, (Herbert Lom) appears one day and is able to calm a lion which has broken loose and out of control around the circus grounds. Stephen is looking for work and is hired by the circus manager and meets up with Mary, (Ann Crawford) who is a high wire artist and her partner Phil Danton. Stephen Torg uses hypnosis on Mary and permits her to take some very daring tricks on the high wire act and it becomes an instant success. Stephen becomes very popular with the audiences and is very resented by the circus company, however, Mary is in his complete control and he steals her from her boyfriend Phil Danton. Great entertaining film, don't miss this one. Enjoy.

Phil Danton runs a struggling British traveling circus. They're broke. When the lion escapes, hypnotist Stephen Torg (Herbert Lom) comes to the rescue. Then they have an idea to hire him. He could hypnotize trapeze artist Mary (Anne Crawford) to do a dangerous stunt.

Herbert Lom delivers good creeps. I can see much better use to hypnotize the audience in his own act. Dress him up like a wizard. Anyways, he needs to stay dark for the horror aspect. He needs to be the phantom of the circus. This could be a good horror movie, but it keeps pushing towards melodrama. The horror aspect of the story gets lost.

In the 1930s, several major studios opened studios in the UK in order to comply with a British law mandating that a specific percentage of the movies shown in the country be made there as well. So, studios like MGM and Warner Brothers opened up British branches...and "The Dark Tower" is from Warner's British studio.

The story begins at a nearly bankrupt circus. Receipts are poor and so it's not surprising that the manager tells Torg (Herbert Lom) to go away when he comes looking for a job. However, shortly after this a lion breaks loose and Torg miraculously is able to get the animal under control using his hypnotic ways. The circus agrees that Torg is pretty amazing and they hire him. His job is an odd one, however. He coaches a lady trapeze artist to give her the ability to do amazing stunts without a trace of fear. However, he soon has so much control over her that their relationship seems much like Svengali and Trilby. Torg also begins behaving like a nasty jerk--treating everyone in the circus like they are beneath him. Where will all this end?

The best thing about this film is Herbert Lom's wonderful performance. He is well mannered but menacing...almost like a malevolent version of Charles Boyer. The story is good, though VERY similar to the Svengali movies which preceded it...but has enough different about it that both stories are well worth seeing.

By the way, this is an odd film because the war is never mentioned...yet it came out in 1943...during the height of WWII.

Murder under the big top has often been a favorite topic for the screen, especially when you add jealousy and rivalry to the mix. This is a British film made during the war years at a studio that was later bombed and put out of use.

HERBERT LOM has a key role as a hypnotist hired by the circus to give one of their high wire performers (ANNE CRAWFORD) the nerve to perform a dangerous act while under his positive spell. She's married to David FARRAR but soon attracts the hypnotist with her blonde beauty. BEN LYON is manager of the circus troupe. Lom wants respect and tells the circus manager he has the power to command success.

The plot ambles along rather pleasantly with just enough tension to keep the interest up as Lom soon becomes important to the circus because he has complete control over Crawford, much to her husband's dismay. There are a few surprises later on, when the high wire act under the hypnotist's guidance goes awry with tragic circumstances. An additional surprise is the twist given the ending.

Lom really steals the film as the hypnotist with magnetic eyes. David Farrar and Anne Crawford are both perfect as the husband and wife team torn apart by his interference.

Better than average circus drama from the U.K.