Films involving Dwarfism

Dwarfism: Minor Films no photo.

Title	Island of Dr. Moreau, The (1996)
Alternative/Original Title
Disability	General Allergy Genetic engineering Dwarf
Country	USA
Length	96
Genre	Sci-Fi horror
Rating	2
Director	John Frankenheimer
Cast	Marlon Brando Val Kilmer David Thewlis Fairuza Balk
Notes	Re-make of Island of Lost Souls (1933) and The Island of Dr. Moreau (1977 see above). Though now more scientifically plausible with all the present day talk of DNA and genes this film fails perhaps because it can't 'exist' in the present climate. Despite the cast, especially Brando and Thewlis, the grotesquery of this film simply doesn't work. Ship wreck is updated to plane crash, the special effects are superior but the characters are unengaging. I've just watched this again. It's a high gloss production but is firmly stuck in its genre. Thewlis looks out of place, Brando is killed fairly early on and the 'science' is made up. Brando is as grotesque as anything in the film. The excuse for the white make-up is that he has an allergy to the sun. I don't think he can be classed as an albino. Strange creatures part human, part animal roam the island, some dress in clothes. The community of mutated creatures live in a settlement in fear of the 5 finger men and are kept under control by an electrical device under skin. Full of disparate elements plus inconsistencies (?) like a working lift but flares used for lighting. And of course as is typical of such films there is a dwarf.

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