Shanks

1974 mime movie

Rating: 16/20

Plot: Malcolm Shanks is a mute puppeteer living with his sister and brother-in-law. His life is not the happiest of lives, but he can always escape and take comfort in his puppet creations. One day, he's hired by a weird looking scientist who is experimenting with the reanimation of the dead. When the scientist dies one night, Malcolm decides to continue the experiments.

Oh, how I enjoyed this delightfully creepy, mime-tacular William Castle flick. The poster above took the words right from my fingers--deliciously grotesque. OK, I wasn't really going to type that, but it is accurate. Marcel Marceau plays two roles, one speaking. He's good in both despite being slathered in some really bad make-up for the scientist part. One mime is usually all you need for a movie, but this one's got a trio of mimes. That's right. Three mimes! When they're reanimated, the fun really begins as they become undead contortionists. It's funny stuff. Before the human reanimation, the scientist and Shanks bring a frog and a chicken back to life. This doesn't come close to resembling a normal movie, but it's got great macabre humor. The bulk of this movie is silent. There are even old-timey title cards used like chapter titles. There's also some very good, though frequently incongruous, music used throughout. The gypsy circus hoedown music contributes to the bizarre atmosphere. Are there problems with Shanks? Sure. It does start to fall apart a little bit once the motorcycle gang shows up. This is the type of movie that you can't watch without announcing out loud, "This is the best movie I have ever seen." You'll realize you're wrong, but you'll still be really happy you watched it. If you're kind of weird. This was William Castle's last movie. He ended his career with a silent bang!