The House of a Thousand Candles: Difference between revisions
add reference |
→Plot: add |
||
| Line 30: | Line 30: | ||
==Plot== |
==Plot== |
||
Unscrupulous casino owner Anton Sebastian secretly runs a network of spies |
Unscrupulous casino owner Anton Sebastian secretly runs a network of spies out of his hotel and casino, "The House of a Thousand Candles". After killing one of his spies, Victor Demetrius, via poison, he sends a secret message over the radio to a dancer, Raquel. Sebastian orders him to intercept a British intelligence agent Tony Carleton and steal some top-secret documents. |
||
British intelligence officer Sir Andrew McIntyre instructs agent Carleton to pick up some opera tickets in an envelope which contains secret information, and then to go to Geneva. Tony gets the envelope and boards a train, but is followed by his American admirer, Carol Vincent. |
|||
Tony catches the eye of an admirer, Carol Vincent, who follows him onto a train, then again after he gets off. Tony has been drugged and robbed by Rosita and sets out to get the documents back. |
|||
On the train, Raquel slips Tony a drugged drink, steals all of his papers and then escapes to meet Sebastian at the hotel. Tony jumps off the train and Carol follows. They arrive at the hotel and register as brother and sister. |
|||
At the hotel, Raquel decides to trust Tony and tell him who's behind this sinister plot when she is murdered. Sebastian attempts to make Tony's death look like a suicide due to gambling losses, but when that plan goes awry, Sebastian flees for his life, then plunges in a car off a cliff to his death. |
|||
Carol hides in Raquel's room when Sebastian plants a microphone. She goes to his study and sees his storage place for stolen papers. Then she listens in to Tony and Raquel. Raquel is about to tell Tony who she works for when she is killed by her maid Marta, who is loyal to Sebastian. |
|||
Tony and the envelope are captured by Sebastian, who plans to kill him and make it look like an accident. Tony agrees to decode the information on the envelope to protect Caroo but she tries to stop him by burnig it. The flames reveal the real information. |
|||
Sebastian leaves with the message, and Alf and Barrie, other secret agents, rescue Tony and Carol. They find Sebastian's secret codes, after which Tony sets out in pursuit of Sebastian. Barrie uses the codes to broadcast to Sebastian's men, saying Sebastian is a murderer who stole Sebastian's car - and they drive him off the road. |
|||
Tony and Carol get married. |
|||
==Cast== |
==Cast== |
||
Revision as of 06:51, 13 August 2019
| The House of a Thousand Candles | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Directed by | Arthur Lubin |
| Written by | H.W. Hanemann Endre Bohem adaptation Ralph Gilbert Bettison Charles G. Booth |
| Produced by | Dorothy Reid Nat Levine (uncredited) |
| Starring | Phillips Holmes Mae Clarke Irving Pichel |
| Cinematography | Jack A. Marta Ernest Miller |
| Edited by | Ralph Dixon |
| Music by | Arthur Kay |
Production company | Republic Pictures |
| Distributed by | Republic Pictures |
Release date | April 3, 1936 |
Running time | 71 minutes |
| Country | United States |
| Language | English |
The House of a Thousand Candles is a 1936 American thriller film directed by Arthur Lubin and starring Phillips Holmes, Mae Clarke and Irving Pichel.[1] It was based on the 1906 novel by Meredith Nicholson. The novel had been filmed twice before, once in 1915 (as The House of a Thousand Candles) and again in 1920 by Henry King (under the title Haunting Shadows)[2]
A British secret service agent is sent to try and prevent a plot to derail a peace conference in Geneva and threaten international peace.[3]
Plot
Unscrupulous casino owner Anton Sebastian secretly runs a network of spies out of his hotel and casino, "The House of a Thousand Candles". After killing one of his spies, Victor Demetrius, via poison, he sends a secret message over the radio to a dancer, Raquel. Sebastian orders him to intercept a British intelligence agent Tony Carleton and steal some top-secret documents.
British intelligence officer Sir Andrew McIntyre instructs agent Carleton to pick up some opera tickets in an envelope which contains secret information, and then to go to Geneva. Tony gets the envelope and boards a train, but is followed by his American admirer, Carol Vincent.
On the train, Raquel slips Tony a drugged drink, steals all of his papers and then escapes to meet Sebastian at the hotel. Tony jumps off the train and Carol follows. They arrive at the hotel and register as brother and sister.
Carol hides in Raquel's room when Sebastian plants a microphone. She goes to his study and sees his storage place for stolen papers. Then she listens in to Tony and Raquel. Raquel is about to tell Tony who she works for when she is killed by her maid Marta, who is loyal to Sebastian.
Tony and the envelope are captured by Sebastian, who plans to kill him and make it look like an accident. Tony agrees to decode the information on the envelope to protect Caroo but she tries to stop him by burnig it. The flames reveal the real information.
Sebastian leaves with the message, and Alf and Barrie, other secret agents, rescue Tony and Carol. They find Sebastian's secret codes, after which Tony sets out in pursuit of Sebastian. Barrie uses the codes to broadcast to Sebastian's men, saying Sebastian is a murderer who stole Sebastian's car - and they drive him off the road.
Tony and Carol get married.
Cast
- Mae Clarke as Carol Vincent
- Irving Pichel as Anton Sebastian
- Phillips Holmes as Tony Carleton
- Rosita Moreno as Raquel
- Fred Walton as Alf
- Hedwiga Reicher as Maria
- Lawrence Grant as Sir Andrew McIntyre
- Frederick Vogeding as Travers
- Michael Fitzmaurice as Keith Barrie
- Rafael Storm as Jules Gregoire
- Mischa Auer as Demetrius
- Paul Ellis as Agent
- Keith Daniels as Steward
- Charles De Ravenne as Radio Attendant
- Olaf Hytten as Sergeant
- John Sutton as Young Man
- Max Wagner as Henchman
Production
House of a Thousand Candles had been previously filmed before in 1920 as an American silent film, as Haunting Shadows. It was directed by Henry King and starred H. B. Warner, Edward Piel Jr., Charles Hill Mailes and Florence Oberle.[4]
Reception
The New York Times called it "lively... briskly directed... effectively played."[5]
References
- ^ "The THEATRE: Espionage Abroad". Wall Street Journal. 4 Apr 1936. p. 11.
- ^ Workman, Christopher; Howarth, Troy (2016). "Tome of Terror: Horror Films of the Silent Era". Midnight Marquee Press. p. 222.ISBN 978-1936168-68-2.
- ^ House of a Thousand Candles, The Monthly Film Bulletin; London Vol. 3, Iss. 25, (Jan 1, 1936): 104.
- ^ Workman, Christopher; Howarth, Troy (2016). "Tome of Terror: Horror Films of the Silent Era". Midnight Marquee Press. p. 222.ISBN 978-1936168-68-2.
- ^ THE SCREEN By FRANK S. NUGENT. New York Times 2 Apr 1936: 29.
External links
- The House of a Thousand Candles at IMDb
- The House of a Thousand Candles at TCMDB
- House of a Thousand Candles at Letterbox DVD
- House of a Thousand Candles at BFI
- Review of film at Variety
- Text of original novel at Project Gutenberg
 | This article about an action film is a stub. You can help Wikipedia by expanding it. |