Line #23 Film/TheClimax


1	[[quoteright:350:https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/the_climax.jpg]]
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3	''The Climax'' is a horror film produced by Creator/UniversalPictures, first released in the United States in 1944. the film stars Creator/BorisKarloff, Susanna Foster, and Turhan Bey.
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5	Dr. Hohner (Karloff), theatre physician at the Vienna Royal Theatre, murders his mistress, the star soprano when his jealousy drives him to the point of mad obsession. Ten years later, another young singer (Foster) reminds Hohner of the late diva, and his old mania kicks in. Hohner wants to prevent her from singing for anyone but him, even if it means silencing her forever.
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7	!!''The Climax'' contains examples:
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9	* AlternateHistory: The film is set in what seems to be an alternate-historical version of Vienna at the turn of the 20th century, where the Emperor, instead of being an elderly man (the historical Franz Joseph) is a boy of about 10 years old.
10	* AtTheOperaTonight: The film centres around the opera, and the climax takes place during the opening night of an operetta that has not been staged for 10 years.
11	* {{Brainwashed}}: Dr. Hohner hypnotizes Angela to render her incapable of singing.
12	* BrawnHilda: Mama Hinzl, the landlady of Angela's boarding house. Extremely large, motherly and overprotective, she used be a soprano herself, and she keeps trying to fatten Angela up, because, as she puts it, "Who ever heard of a skinny opera singer?".
13	* AChildShallLeadThem: The King appears to be about 10. (He was played by Scotty Beckett who was 14 at the time, but looks much younger).
14	* ConcealingCanvas: Hidden behind a painting in his office, Dr. Hohner has a safe that contains his souvenirs of all of Marcellina's performances.
15	* CrazyJealousGuy: Dr. Hohner was so obsessed with Marcellina that he could not stand the idea of anyone being able to see her body or hear her voice for just the price of a ticket. He strangles her in an attempt to destroy her voice. Ten years later, her hears Angela--whose voice is identical to Marceillina's--and becomes obsessed with her.
16	* CreepyHousekeeper: A rare heroic example. Luise used to be Marcellina's maid and is now Dr. Hohner's housekeeper. She slinks around the house looking like [[Film/{{Rebecca\|1940}} Mrs. Danvers]] and spying on Dr. Hohner. However, she turns out to be on the side of the angels, and is looking for proof that Hohner murdered her mistress. She helps Franz free Angela from Hohner's clutches, and later saves Angela when Hohner attempts to [[TongueTrauma cut her tongue out]].
17	* CripplingTheCompetition: Dr. Hohner initially hypnotises Angela so she will never sing again, so that her voice can never outshine that of his beloved Marcellina. When the hypnosis fails, [[TongueTrauma he tries to cut her tongue out.]]
18	* DamselInDistress: Angela spends the entire movie being menaced--either covertly or overtly--by Dr. Hohner, and being rescued by her fiancé Franz. (Or Luise, or Carl or the Vienna police...)
19	* DropDeadGorgeous: As described in the ILoveTheDead entry below, Dr. Hohner has kept the perfectly-embalmed body of his former, very beautiful paramour Marcellina in a glass-lidded coffin for the past decade since he murdered her.
20	* FaintInShock: The soprano who is told that she is to replace ThePrimaDonna Jarmila Vadek faints out of sheer excitement. Leads to a funny moment when everyone else storms out of the office for various reasons, leaving her still passed out on the floor.
21	* {{Foreshadowing}}: The first time Angela visits Dr. Hohner's surgery, she remarks that the surgical instruments frighten her. Later, Dr. Hohner will those same instruments in an attempt to [[TongueTrauma remove her tongue]].
22	* ILoveTheDead: Dr. Friedrich Hohner, obsessed with a beautiful opera singer, Marcellina (Jane Farrar), with whom he's been having an affair but who wants to break up with him, strangles her to death. Ten years later, ''another'' gorgeous singer Angela Klatt (Foster), whom Hohner has developed an identical obsession with, discovers Marcellina's perfectly-preserved body, which Hohner has kept in a Snow White-like glass-lidded coffin for the past decade. Bonus points for, however delicately, implying even the possibility of necrophilia in a movie - stipulating that it was a BMovie, which tended to not get quite as much attention from the censors - shot during the heyday of UsefulNotes/TheHaysCode!
23	* TheLostLenore: The soprano Marcellina is this for Dr. Hohner, despite him being the one who murdered her. He still worships her and seeks to destroy Angela's voice because he believes it is Marcellina's and that no one should possess it.
24	* MadDoctor: Dr. Hohner is theatre physician at the Theatre Royal, and a CrazyJealousGuy. To prevent Angela from singing, her firstly [[{{brainwashed}} hypnotizes her to be unable to sing]], and later attempts to [[TongueTrauma surgically remove her tongue]].
25	* NonProtagonistResolver: The ultimate resolution occurs because of the Vienna police and not the hero Franz. While escaping from the police, Dr. Hohner locks himself in Marcellina's tomb, and sets fire to it. (The film is ambiguous as to whether this act is deliberate or accidental.) Hohner perishes alongside [[TheLostlenore his dead love]] as the police struggle to open the door.
26	* NotGoodWithRejection: Dr. Friedrich Hohner, obsessed with a beautiful opera singer, Marcellina, with whom he's been having an affair but who wants to break up with him, strangles her to death. Ten years later, another gorgeous singer whom Hohner has developed an identical obsession with, discovers Marcellina's perfectly-preserved body, which Hohner has kept in a Snow White-like glass-lidded coffin for the past decade.
27	* ThePrimaDonna: Jamila Vadek is the prima donna of the Theatre Royale, and bitterly jealous of the up-and-coming new soprano Angela Klatt. (She essentially fills the role of Biancarolli from ''Film/PhantomOfTheOpera1943'', of which this film was originally [[DivorcedInstallment intended to be sequel]].)
28	* TapOnTheHead: Dr. Hohner escapes from Carl by whacking him over the head with a statue and knocking him out.
29	* TerribleTicking: Dr. Hohner is haunted by the singing of Marcellina: the mistress he murdered because he was jealous of her voice which was taking her away from him.
30	* TongueTrauma: After kidnapping Angela from the theatre, Dr. Hohner takes a scalpel and is preparing to cut out her tongue when Luise intervenes.
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Context Film / TheClimax