The Drums of Jeopardy (1931 film)

{{Infobox film

| name = The Drums of Jeopardy

| caption = Theatrical release poster

| image = The Drums of Jeopardy FilmPoster.jpeg

| director = George B. Seitz

| producer = Phil Goldstone

| based_on = The Drums of Jeopardy by Harold McGrath

| writer = Florence Ryerson

| starring = Warner Oland
June Collyer
Lloyd Hughes

| music = Val Burton

| cinematography = Arthur Reed

| editing = Otto Ludwig

| studio = Tiffany Pictures

| distributor = Tiffany Pictures

| released = {{Film date|1931|03|02}}

| runtime = 75 minutes

| country = United States

| language = English

| budget =

| gross =

}}

The Drums of Jeopardy is a 1931 American pre-Code horror film directed by George B. Seitz and starring Warner Oland, June Collyer and Lloyd Hughes. It is the second film adaptation of Harold McGrath's novel of the same name, and stars Oland as Dr. Boris Karlov.

The name of the villain in the novel was originally called Boris Karlov, but when the actor Boris Karloff rose to prominence circa 1923, the character's name was changed to Gregor Karlov in the 1923 silent film adaptation to avoid confusion. It was changed back to Boris again in this 1931 remake of the film.Workman, Christopher; Howarth, Troy (2016). "Tome of Terror: Horror Films of the Silent Era", Midnight Marquee Press. p. 259; {{ISBN|978-1936168-68-2}} The film's was produced by Tiffany Pictures, one of the leading independent studios in Hollywood. The sets were designed by the art director Fay Babcock.

Plot

In the Russian Empire, the nobleman Prince Gregor Petroff seduces chemist Boris Karlov's daughter Anya, who then commits suicide after becoming pregnant. After discovering Anya's body with the Drums of Jeopardy, a necklace owned by the Petroff family, Karlov vows revenge against them.

Dr. Karlov develops a poison gas to kill the Petroffs. After the Russian Revolution, Karlov joins the Bolsheviks and kills a general from the family. The rest of the family is evacuated to New York City by the U.S. Secret Service.

Karlov follows the Petroffs to America and corners them at a safe house in New Jersey. Although Gregor blames Nicholas, Karlov kills him and tries to take revenge by forcing Nicholas to murder his love interest Kitty Conover. They are rescued by the police, and Dr. Karlov is killed by his own gas.

Cast

Warner Oland as Dr. Boris Karlov
June Collyer as Kitty Conover
Lloyd Hughes as Prince Nicholas Petroff
Clara Blandick as Abbie Krantz
Hale Hamilton as Martin Kent
Wallace MacDonald as Prince Gregor Petroff
George Fawcett as General Petroff
Florence Lake as Anya Karlov
Mischa Auer as Peter
Ernest Hilliard as Prince Ivan Petroff
Broderick O'Farrell as Dr. Brett
Ann Brody as Taisya
Murdock MacQuarrie as Stephen, the Butler
Julia Swayne Gordon as Banquet Guest
Ruth Hall as Banquet Guest
Robert Homans as Detective

Release

The film was first released on DVD on August 31, 2004.{{cite web|title=The Drums of Jeopardy (1931) - George B. Seitz|url=https://www.allmovie.com/movie/the-drums-of-jeopardy-v14875/releases|website=Allmovie.com|publisher=AllMovie|accessdate=November 22, 2016}}

Reception

On his website Fantastic Movie Musings and Ramblings, Dave Sindelar called it, "a very interesting variation on the typical horror revenge plot".{{cite web|last1=Sindelar|first1=Dave|title=Drums of Jeopardy (1931)|url=https://fantasticmoviemusings.com/2015/08/16/drums-of-jeopardy-1931/|website=Fantastic Movie Musings.com|date=August 17, 2015 |publisher=Dave Sindelar|accessdate=November 22, 2016}}

Dennis Schwartz from Ozus' World Movie Reviews awarded the film an "A−". In his review he wrote, "Despite the poor quality of its print, this PRC film reaches greatness in its portrayal of villainy and is worth watching despite the film's bad shape."{{cite web|last1=Schwartz|first1=Dennis|title=drumsofjeopardy|url=http://homepages.sover.net/~ozus/drumsofjeopardy.html|website=Sover.net|publisher=Dennis Schwartz|accessdate=November 22, 2016}}