9. Murders In The Zoo
1933
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Murders in the Zoo (1933) was considered notorious in its own time. Directed by A. Edward Sutherland and co-written by the acerbic Wylie, Murders in the Zoo is a shorter full-length film (it lasts just a few minutes over an hour) about an insanely jealous big-game hunter named Eric Gorman (played by horror stalwart Lionel Atwill) and the lengths he goes to in order to exact revenge. Gorman’s jealousy stems from his younger, more attractive wife Evelyn (played by Kathleen Burke) and the various men who pursue her. Viewers get a taste of Gorman’s rage in the very first scene when, while hunting exotic animals for an American zoo in French Indochina, Gorman pounces upon one of Evelyn’s lovers and literally sews his mouth shut. As if this weren’t bad enough, the now mute man dies after being mauled by a tiger.
Once back on American soil, Gorman’s attacks continue unabated, but instead of relying on natural predators, he uses an ingenious murder mechanism that dispenses green mamba venom once it makes contact with skin. Ultimately, Gorman is revealed to be a serial killer, and while trying to evade authorities within the municipal zoo, he suffocates to death when he accidentally locks himself in with a boa constrictor.
Atwill’s performance in Murders in the Zoo earned him the title of “The MENTAL Lon Chaney” from the editors of Motion Picture Magazine, but the film itself was not a hit with censors, who shivered at all of the on-screen brutality. Even today, the film remains disarmingly grisly, even if viewed for its animal cruelty alone.
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