He Who Gets Slapped

Plot synopsis:
Paul Beaumont (Lon Chaney) is a scientist who labored for years alone to prove his radical theories on the origin of mankind. Baron Regnard (Marc McDermott) becomes his patron, enabling him to do research while living in his mansion. One day, Beaumont announces to his beloved wife Marie and the Baron that he has proved all his theories and is ready to present them before the Academy of the Sciences. He leaves the arrangements to the Baron. However, after Beaumont goes to sleep, Marie steals his key, opens the safe containing his papers, and gives them to the baron.
On the appointed day, Paul travels to the Academy with the Baron. He is aghast when the Baron, instead of introducing him, takes credit for Paul's work himself. After he recovers from the shock, Paul confronts him in front of everyone, but the Baron tells them that Paul is merely his assistant and slaps him. All of the academicians laugh at his humiliation. Paul later seeks comfort from his wife, but she brazenly admits she and the baron are having an affair and calls him a clown. Paul leaves them.
Five years pass by. Paul is now a clown calling himself "HE who gets slapped", the star attraction of a small circus near Paris. His act consists of his getting slapped every evening by other clowns, and includes Paul pretending to present in front of the Academy of Science.
Another of the performers is Bezano (John Gilbert), a daredevil horseback rider. Consuelo (Norma Shearer), the daughter of the impoverished Count Mancini, applies to join his act. Bezano falls in love with Consuelo, as does Paul. Consuelo and her father, however, are planning to restore the family's fortunes with a marriage to her father's wealthy friend.
One night, during HE's performance, he spots the baron in the audience. The baron goes backstage and begins flirting with Consuelo, which she does not like. The next day, the baron sends Consuelo jewelry, but she rejects it.
When her father leaves for a meeting with the baron, Bezano takes Consuelo out to the countryside for a romantic meeting, where they declare their love for each other. Meanwhile, Count Mancini convinces the reluctant baron that the only way he can have Consuelo is by marrying her. The baron discards the heartbroken Marie, leaving her with a check.
Later, HE admits to Consuelo he, too, is in love with her. She thinks he is kidding and laughingly slaps him. They are interrupted by the baron and the count, who inform Consuelo she will marry the baron after the night's performance. When HE tries to interfere, he is locked in an adjoining room, where an angry lion is kept in a cage. He moves the cage so that, when he carefully opens it, only the door to the next room prevents the lion from escaping. HE re-enters the other room through the only other entrance (making sure to lock it behind him) and reveals his identity to the baron. HE threatens the baron, but the count stabs him with a sword.
The baron and the count try to leave but, finding the main entrance locked, open the side door, releasing the lion. The animal kills the count, then the baron. However, the lion tamer shows up and saves HE from the same fate. HE goes on stage and collapses. He assures Consuelo he is happy and that she will be happy, before dying in her arms.

Tags: tragedy, revenge, romantic

Review:
I think one could argue that "He Who Gets Slapped" is Lon Chaney's best film.
Lon Chaney's performance is heartbreaking, particularly when he carries the cloth heart that has been torn from his breast, but at other moments he is sadistic and vengeful, as when he lets the lions out to kill a scheming circus manager and a sotted aristocrat.
A celebrated circus clown, HE Who Gets Slapped, plots the punishment of two evil aristocrats.Lon Chaney, the Silent Screen's master chameleon, adds another portrait to his gallery of pathetic grotesques.
Uninhibited in his circus costume & makeup, he provides no doubt but that he, under different circumstances, could have become a marvelous big top clown.This was the first release of the new film company merger Metro-Goldwyn, thus making Chaney their first star, and was an important rung up the ladder for the two performers playing the young lovers.
Norma Shearer & John Gilbert would soon be major movie celebrities--here they give good account of themselves as the circus' daredevil & bareback riders, and as Chaney's truest friends (both unaware of his love for Miss Shearer).
In a film full of circus excitement, the director has given the young couple a moment of unexpected beauty: whilst on a picnic their innocent affections are noticed by a passing peasant, who gives the call of the cuckoo as the perfect grace note to their bucolic joy.Marc McDermott as a brutal Baron and Tully Marshall as a dissolute Count make villains well worthy of the harshest retribution.
Comic Ford Sterling plays one of Chaney's fellow clowns.The Studio gave this silent film fine production values, while director Victor Sjöström added little embellishments of cinematic flair, dealing with scenes of mysterious clown figures representing fate, which enhance the film..
As Andreyev's disappointed scientist turned circus clown, Paul Beaumont, Chaney makes the most of every scene he's in, and never disappoints.
You're genuinely glad, at an almost visceral level, when they wind up getting what they deserve in the end.I don't know who composed the music score used in the print seen on TCM, but it's excellent and really compliments the action.Victor Seastrom's moody direction is perfect, especially his use of a globe-spinning clown to serve as sort of a Greek chorus at various points in the film.
Getting Lon Chaney from Universal was a very wise choice (it'd be hard to see someone else in the part he played), the supporting cast which included Norma Shearer (future Best Actress Oscar winner), John Gilbert (future star of "The Big Parade" (1925) and "Queen Christina" (1933)), as well as notable character actors Tully Marshall and Ford Sterling, it is nothing short of splendid.
Lon Chaney's deep, gripping facial expressions, especially in his scenes with rival Baron Regnard (played by Marc McDermott) are the most expressive I've ever seen on film.
However, the style adopted by the two films' directors, Victor Sjostrom and Tod Browning respectively, is completely different  and this goes for the characters Chaney plays, too.I had been instantly impressed by HE WHO GETS SLAPPED, and a second viewing only consolidates my high opinion of it.
The film - MGM's very first production, incidentally  was considered highbrow material at the time, not only because it was helmed by a foreigner but also due to the unusually intricate nature of the plot (complete with a healthy dose of symbolism) and a clear emphasis on composition and lighting throughout (one amazing shot has Chaney alone in the circus arena when the lights are being turned off for the night, with the screen entirely black except for Chaney's painted face!).Chaney is superb as the humiliated scientist-turned-clown (drawing an interesting parallel to Emil Jannings in two Expressionist masterworks, Murnau's THE LAST LAUGH [1924] and Von Sternberg's THE BLUE ANGEL [1930]).
I cannot say for sure, but most of what Chaney was to accomplish in his famed collaboration with Tod Browning, on films like THE UNHOLY THREE (1925) and THE UNKNOWN, is already evident in this film - except that the actor here is less given to uncanny make-up design (which might have overshadowed his acting abilities at times), while the handling is altogether more sophisticated and artful!Only the middle section drags a bit, as it stresses the budding relationship between Norma Shearer and John Gilbert (though this is contrasted with her father's scheming with a lecherous Baron who, incidentally, turns out to be Chaney's deadly enemy!), but the rest is riveting stuff  this film deserves to be better known, and I long for the day Warners gets to release a Box Set of Lon Chaney classics on DVD!!.
Though the film itself is an intermittently entertaining and inventive silent melodrama showcasing the very physical acting skills of Lon Chaney, a screen legend whose premature death in 1930 robbed cinema of a unique talent.
Here he plays obsessed scientist Paul Beaumont, whose work 'on the origins of mankind' is stolen by his devious patron, the Baron de Regnard (Marc McDermott)  who also makes off with Beaumont's wife for good measure.Utterly devastated by life's savage cruelties, Beaumont literally runs away to the circus where he starts a new life as a clown.
Known as 'HE who gets slapped'  or simply 'HE' for short  his act consists of enduring nightly physical abuse at the hands of his impassive fellow clowns, to the explosive delight of the circus's boorish audiences: a more economic definition of schadenfreude (taking joy at the misfortunes of others) would be harder to imagine.But though HE (the character's "name" is capitalized in all inter titles) becomes a roaring success, it turns out that fate hasn't yet done with him  he secretly dotes on Consuelo (Norma Shearer), a bare-back rider in love with her fellow performer Bezano (John Gilbert).
HE can just about stand this state of affairs  but when the dastardly Baron returns to the scene and starts moving in on Consuelo, HE is spurred into a drastic act of revenge.Chaney gives a heartbreaking naturalistic performance, it's one his most toned down and believable work, possibly showing the most painful expressions to ever grace the screen.
Lon Chaney stars as a scientist who early on suffers in two ways: his discoveries are stolen by his benefactor (Marc McDermott), and then his wife (Ruth King) tells him she's leaving him for the same scoundrel.
The film also includes Norma Shearer early in her career (just 22 years old); she plays a new performer to the circus.
Struggling scientist Lon Chaney (as Paul Beaumont) is dedicated to proving his theories on the "origin of mankind." He is lucky to have found a wealthy sponsor in Marc McDermott (as Baron Regnard).
He becomes a clown called "HE (who gets slapped)"...Audiences love laughing at Chaney, especially when he is slapped.
The popular clown is attracted to beautiful bareback rider Norma Shearer (as Consuelo), but she is more interested in her athletic partner, John Gilbert (as Bezano).
Fortunately for all, Chaney gets the last laugh...The first film produced by the merged MGM (Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer) studios, "He Who Gets Slapped" turned out to be a spectacular start.
Chaney is marvelous throughout, as are Mr. Sjostrom and the MGM crew.********* He Who Gets Slapped (11/9/24) Victor Sjostrom ~ Lon Chaney, Norma Shearer, John Gilbert, Marc McDermott.
He Who Gets Slapped (1924) is an arty film, beautifully directed with interesting visuals and symbolism, but the aspect which always sticks with me is Lon Chaney's heartbreaking performance as the lovelorn scientist turned clown who sacrifices himself to save the happiness and virtue of aristocrat turned bareback rider Norma Shearer.The first time I saw this film, I sobbed all through the last fourth.
Shearer and John Gilbert as the innocent young lovers contrast greatly with the worldliness and cynicism of the older characters who hold the couple's fate in their greedy hands.While director Victor Sjostrom's best Hollywood work was undoubtedly The Wind (1928), I still prefer this film overall.
MGM's first feature film is this beautifully made, unforgettable silent starring Lon Chaney.
Stepping into the role created on Broadway by Richard Bennett, Lon Chaney stars in this film as a once famous scientist who chose the life of a circus clown out of shame.
But whereas Stewart was guilty of a mercy killing, Chaney leaves because he's found that his wife's been two timing him with a titled nobleman.Years later Chaney is a famous attraction at the circus in Paris and he's falling big time for young Norma Shearer who is a bareback rider and also a member of the nobility who has fallen on hard times.
It is not only far-fetched, but the act is not funny and would not provoke laughter in the real world.Having said all that, Lon Chaney remains one of Hollywood's best actors and towers over the cast in this film.
He Who Gets Slapped (1924) **** (out of 4) After being slapped and laughed at by his friend, a scientist (Lon Chaney) decides to join the circus as a performing clown where getting slapped can get him laughs but soon the past starts to catch up with him.
Norma Shearer and John Gilbert are very strong in their roles but there's no denying that this is Chaney's film all the way through.
The titles say that HE has won by learning to laugh at his misfortune, and by making others laugh at his feigned misfortune, that somehow by knowing that people are so stupid and vile as to laugh at a man getting slapped he has risen above all his past defeats, but at the same time, it's so totally clear that he has never put it behind him, and I don't know if it's pathetic or not when he tries to give his final monologue on the importance of love, and lets himself be slapped to death in the middle of a circus ring before he can finish, because I can never quite let myself feel that HE is pathetic enough himself, I can't quite decide how much of a heart HE has left, and I don't know how to weep for it once it's been buried.
***User reviewers nycritic ("Tears of a Clown", nycritic, 26 October 2005) and Ron Oliver ("Another Master Class From Mr. Lon Chaney", Ron Oliver from Forest Ranch, CA, 6 July 2004) both have great summaries.*** "He Who Gets Slapped (1924, Victor Sjöström)" is an early silent movie and a nearly forgotten treasure.
Historically, "He Who Gets Slapped" is significant because it is the first film released by Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer, making Lon Chaney, Sr. MGM's first star.
Here is the essential plot: Paul Beaumont (Lon Chaney), a brilliant (but struggling) French scientist, supported by Baron Regnard (Marc McDermott), an aristocratic benefactor, is working on a grand scientific theory vaguely similar to the work of Charles Darwin.
Lon Chaney's performance is top-shelf, he is masterful in depicting a sad clown driven mad by the many powerful forces oppressing him.Two rapidly ascending and future MGM mega-stars, Norma Shearer (as Consuelo) and John Gilbert (as Bezano) join HE's circus as horse riding performers.
Premise: A failed scientist punishes himself by becoming a circus clown whose act's mainstay is uttering platitudes, and then getting slapped for it.
Every time he is slapped or laughed at, the viewer can't help but feel the pain as well.The first half of the film doesn't focus on Chaney's character, instead building up the relationships of those around him.
His unrequited love for bareback rider Consuelo (Shearer) leads to his death at the hands of her dastardly father who, along with HE's long-time nemesis, are savaged by a circus lion loosed by HE.
HE WHO GETS SLAPPED (Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer, 1924), directed by Victor Seastrom, not only marked Lon Chaney's debut at MGM, but the honor for him to star in the very first MGM production.
With the exception of clown makeup, which covers more than half the film, his only other face of thousands in the opening part of the story is his.The plot: Paul Beaumont (Lon Chaney), is a brilliant but struggling scientist in Paris who loves his wife, Marie (Ruth King), deeply.
Later, Consuelo's father (Tully Marshall), penniless, hopes to live in comfort during his declining years, by plotting to marry off his daughter to Baron Regnard, who has since walked out on Beaumont's wife.
In spite of the interesting supporting cast of Norma Shearer and John Gilbert (minus his famous mustache), this is Lon Chaney's show all the way.HE WHO GETS SLAPPED, which occasionally plays on cable's Turner Classic Movies, is accompanied with a musical track with sound effects of clapping and laughter that originally was used for the 1973 PBS presentation of "Movies, Great Movies" (original air date: WNET, Channel 13, August 20, 1973, in New York City), the third movie listed in the 13-week tribute to MGM's 50th anniversary of MGM movies from the 1920s silent era.
The plot is slightly melodramatic by today's standards but Lon Chaney, Norma Shearer and John Gilbert give strong performances..
He plays Paul Beaumont, a failed scientist who has been slapped -- literally -- by the science community, his wife Maria (Ruth King), and her sponsor/lover, the Baron Regnard (Mark McDermott).
Here is when HE concocts a terrible revenge to protect Consuelo.A classic romantic setup with eerie undertones, HE WHO GETS SLAPPED is an excellent film which makes us feel pity for this mistreated man, portrayed by Lon Chaney like no one could.
In the first film produced by MGM, Paul Beaumont (Lon Chaney) plays a brilliant French scientist who has recently proved his theories on the origins of mankind.
With this phase of his life over, the crushed Beaumont abandons his past and escapes to the circus as the clown HE (who gets slapped).
There is a new circus performer – a bareback horse rider – the lovely Miss Mancini (Norma Shearer), known as Consuelo.
Edward Arnold and Bela Lugosi (as a clown) are reported to appear, uncredited, as extras in this film.Paul Beaumont (Lon Chaney) is a brilliant scientist who makes some (unnamed) earth-shattering discoveries while, unbeknownst to him, his wife Maria (Ruth King) keeps company with Beaumont's wealthy benefactor Baron Regnard (Marc McDermott).
Afterwards, he learns of his wife's infidelity and gets slapped by her as well.So, Beaumont punishes himself for his own stupidity by becoming a clown in the circus.
Unbeknownst to her, Beaumont, now known as HE (who gets slapped), has also fallen in love with her, something he didn't believe was possible given his unfortunate past.Baron Regnard happens to take in a performance and is overcome himself by Consuelo's beauty.
In his act HE is slapped around by the other clowns including his friend Tricaud (Ford Sterling).HE as he is now known, meets the comely young Consuelo (Norma Shearer) a bare back rider brought to the circus by her scheming father the broke Count Mancini (Tully Marshall).
You feel the emotions as he has his discovery taken from him, his desire for revenge and his self inflicted punishment as he allows himself to be humiliated during each performance at the circus.There's an interesting contrasting sequence where the Count is convincing the Baron (and his money) to marry Consuelo and the young couple frolicking in the countryside during a picnic.Norma Shearer and John Gilbert were on the verge of becoming super stars at the newly formed MGM studios at this time.
"He Who Gets Slapped" was the first film to carry the MGM logo and in addition to Chaney, as the young lovers, were two up and coming stars who more than fulfilled their promise - beautiful Norma Shearer and dashing John Gilbert.As scientist Paul Beaumont (Chaney) finally reaches the conclusion of his study on the evolution of mankind he is dealt a savage blow.
Humiliated, Paul Beaumont (Lon Chaney) disappears into self-exile and the anonymity of life as a circus clown.
Paul Beaumont is a scientist living in the villa of Baron Regnard.He wants to prove his theories on the origin of mankind.One day he is ready to go before the Academy of the Sciences.We find out his wife Marie has an affair with the baron.It is the baron presenting Paul's theories and is praised by all the men.Paul tries to shout those are his theories but the baron calls him insane and slaps him.They all laugh at him.Then he finds out about their affair and is called a clown by his wife.After years have passed, Paul has become a clown by the name of He who gets slapped.His comedy routine is to get slapped by all the other clowns in the act.And people love him.But he hates himself.Then in the circus joins a bareback rider called Consuelo, the daughter of Baron Mancini.The clown falls in love with the beauty.But she loves the daredevil rider Bezano.Then one day the clown sees the baron in the crowd.The girl's father wants her to marry the baron.The clown has to safe the girl she loves, safe her from a fate worse than death.Swedish director Victor Sjöström is the behind He Who Gets Slapped (1924).It's a wonderful movie showing the tears of a clown.Lon Chaney, the star of the silent era shines in the lead.He really pulls off the part of the sad clown.Norma Shearer is amazing as Consuelo.John Gilbert is great as Bezano.Tully Marshall does great job as Count Mancini.Marc McDermott is terrific as Baron Regnard.Ford Sterling is magnificent as Tricaud.Ruth King does very good job as Marie Beaumont.Also a certain Bela Lugosi is there as Clown extra.Although this isn't very sure, it's based on the resemblance of a particular actor to Lugosi.This is a very good film of the silent era.You feel for the clown.You feel for him when he tells about his feelings for Consuelo and she doesn't take him seriously because he is a clown.She even slaps him laughingly.The ending sequence is quite amazing.HE tries to prevent the baron from marrying Consuelo.HE gets stabbed by the count, but there is an angry lion HE has released.The count and the baron go into the room where HE has released the lion.They both get killed by the lion.HE collapses on the stage and dies in her arms.That's the end of this clown's story..
He joins the circus and becomes HE, a clown persona whose entire act is being ridiculed and slapped during every performance in front of a laughing crowd.