Shanks (film)
6 /10 1 Votes6
Duration Country United States | 5.8/10 IMDb Genre Fantasy, Horror Language English | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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Release date October 9, 1974 (1974-10-09) Cast (Malcolm Shanks / Old Walker), (Mrs. Barton), (Mr. Barton), Cindy Eilbacher (Celia), Biff Manard (Goliath), (Mata Hari)Similar movies Curse of the Puppet Master , Silent Movie , Children of Paradise , Dummy , Mr. Plastimime , The Last Butterfly Tagline A new concept in the macabre in which the Good come out of the grave and the Evil are sent to fill the vacancy. |
Shanks 1974 fair use clip
Shanks is a 1974 American horror film about a puppeteer able to manipulate dead bodies like puppets. Mime Marcel Marceau, in his first major film role, plays the titular Malcolm Shanks. It was the last film directed by producer-director William Castle.
Contents
- Shanks 1974 fair use clip
- 31 days of horror shanks 1974 day 14
- Plot
- Cast
- Production
- Reception
- Awards and nominations
- References

31 days of horror shanks 1974 day 14
Plot

Malcolm Shanks (Marceau) is a deaf, mute puppeteer who lives with his cruel sister (Chelton) and her husband (Clay). His skill with puppets is noticed by a doctor who takes him on as a lab assistant. The doctor's experiments involve reanimating the dead and controlling them like puppets. When the doctor dies unexpectedly, Shanks continues the experiments to exact revenge.
Cast

Production
Marceau, who had for decades before performed in his signature white face makeup and without speaking, both spoke and appeared without makeup for this film. He played two roles: Malcolm Shanks, who could not speak, and Old Walker, who could. He had appeared in 20 shorts and films in small and cameo roles, often as his mime character Bip. Director William Castle took an interest in him after watching him perform the pantomime "Youth, Maturity, Old Age and Death" and approached him with the script for Shanks, saying it dealt with similar themes. Said Marceau of the script, "it was exactly what I had been looking for."
Reception
Film critic Roger Ebert described the film as a disappointment, though he credited Marceau and his performance, describing it as "always interesting and sometimes gruesomely funny"
Awards and nominations
Conductor Alex North was nominated for Best Music, Original Dramatic Score for the 47th Academy Awards in 1975.
References
Shanks (film) WikipediaShanks (film) IMDb Shanks (film) themoviedb.org