Balaoo
synopsis from The Moving Picture World
Balaoo Ou Des Pas Au Plafond (excerpts)
Balaoo was filmed in France in 1913 and released in the United States as Balaoo - The Demon Baboon. Here's the full synopsis from The Moving Picture World:
----------------------------------------------------------------------------
Dr. Coriolia, an eminent scientist, transformed an enormous baboon into a being, half human and half ape. Balaoo, the name given the hideous creature by the doctor, was caught one day in the wolf trap laid by Hubert, a notorious poacher. When he was rescued by Hubert, the poor creature demonstrated by gestures that he would be his devoted slave. At last Dr. Coriolia discovered that Balaoo was the cause of all the outrages that had been perpetrated in the village, and reprimanded him so severely that he ran away. This was the last the doctor had seen of his protégé until one day he read of an elusive creature terrorizing Lagana, Switzerland and he knew it must be Balaoo. After a consultation with the mayor of that city, a searching party was formed. At last the creature was discovered swinging from tree top to tree top and instinctively noting that he was being cornered, he threw himself into a lake. The pursuing party went after him in a launch, but no one knew of his whereabouts with the exception of Hubert., who instructed the beast to enter the village inn and strangle a traveler with whom he had an altercation. The faithful Balaoo did as he was told and the next morning the crime was discovered, but no one could ascribe it perpetration to anyone. Hubert was suspected, but he easily proved an alibi. The next malevolent act the Hubert instructed Balaoo to perform was the abduction of Madeline, the daughter of Dr. Coriolia, with whom he was in love. By clinging to the leafy foliage of a tree under which Madeline passed, Balaoo seized the girl and brought her to Hubert's cabin, where he perceived the poacher's wicked intentions. Picking up an empty cask, Balaoo hurled it at the poacher who dodged it and fired a shot into the body of Balaoo. The animal then laid a trap in the nature of a pit for the poacher who unsuspectingly walked right into it and broke both legs. The poacher told Balaoo by gestures where he had hidden Madeline. Balaoo then brought Dr. Coriolia to the place where his daughter was hidden. The police were notified, the poacher was taken from the pit and placed under arrest, and, after telling by gestures who was the instigator of the murder, Balaoo passed away.
-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------Gaston Leroux wrote Balaoo as an episodic tale much like his more famous Phantom of the Opera. I've been unable to get the full work translated from French to English. Peter Haining's book Movie Monsters does have one installment (which he claims is the inspiration of the film). However, there are major differences between this and the above synopsis. Paris is terrorized by a "pithecanthrope", which although is believed to be Balaoo, is not. At the end of the tale, Balaoo escapes, presumably to have later adventures.
The film was sometimes shown in America as a 3-part "serial". At least some footage apparently exists in Ottawa archives and at the Library of Congress. The story of Balaoo was retold in both a silent feature called The Wizard (1927) and the talkie Dr. Renault's Secret (1942).
written: 2/28/2004
