The Brute Man
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DVD Cover Information Actor: Donald MacBride, Jan Wiley, Jane Adams, Peter Whitney, Tom Neal DVD: Region Code 0 Audio: English (Unknown), Dolby Digital 2.0 Mono; English (Original Language), Dolby Digital 2.0 Mono Format: Black & White, DVD, NTSC Picture Format: 1.33:1 Running Time: 58 minutes DVD Release Date: 1999-07-20 Audience Rating: Unrated Studio: Image Entertainment |
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Movie Reviews of The Brute Man
Movie Review: Rondo Hatton makes this film a memorable one
Summary: 4 Stars
There is just something strangely compelling about 1946's The Brute Man. Rondo Hatton played "The Creeper," a serial killer terrorizing a whole city, specifically targeting the people he blames for an accident that essentially ruined his life. Back in his senior year of college, Hal Moffet suffered a terrible accident (brought on by a fateful mixture of love, jealousy, temper, and chemicals) that left his face disfigured. Now, he keeps to the shadows and only goes out at night because his appearance frightens everyone who gets a good look at him. Frankly, he has a right to be resentful and mentally unbalanced, given the set of circumstances that ruined his life. Over the years, though, his anger has grown to uncontrollable proportions, giving birth to "the Creeper." As murders seem to keep happening one after another, the police force finds itself stymied in its investigation of the heinous crimes - although they do almost catch Hal early on in the film. He evades them by climbing a fire escape and entering the apartment of a lovely young woman named Helen Paige (Jane Adams). Not only is she not afraid of her unexpected visitor, she is even nice to him - and no one has been nice to Hal in a long time. It isn't until his second visit to Helen's apartment that he learns she is blind. Still, a definite connection is made between the two - and something of the man Hal used to be is gradually revealed to the viewer. You do come to feel sorry for the man, but it's certainly not enough to redeem him - he is, after all, a vicious murderer with a lot of blood on his hands.
Rondo Hatton died before this movie was released, which only adds another dimension of tragedy to the whole film. Hatton was a brave (and some would say exploited) actor, a man who basically created the ubiquitous "Creeper" persona because it was the only type of character he could play. Hatton was exposed to mustard gas during World War I, and that may or may not have contributed to the onset of acromegaly in the young actor a few years later. This disease attacks the pituitary gland and causes abnormal growth in the patient, producing the kinds of facial deformities that define Hatton's character in this film. The man wasn't a great actor, but I think the link between his own reality and that of his character lends an unquantifiable yet definitely detectable power to his performance. It certainly makes The Brute Man a memorable film - and in some ways a disquieting one that will leave you with mixed emotions over the character of the tragic killer.