
A woman goes to a sideshow fortune-teller to have her fortune told, and is astonished when the man looks into his crystal ball and goes into great detail about events in her past that few people ever knew about. Shaken, she leaves and later tells her girlfriend about the incident. The girlfriend insists that she invite the fortune-teller to a party they're having at her house. What the woman doesn't realize is that the "fortune-teller" is actually the ex-husband she abandoned years ago, when she took their daughter and ran off with her lover. When the "charlatan" is invited to the party, he sees an opportunity to take his revenge on his faithless ex-wife.
Directed by George Melford, The Charlatan leans on a strong ensemble — Holmes Herbert, Margaret Livingston, Rockliffe Fellowes — to carry a story that balances spectacle with character.
The film landed with audiences for its craft and performances, and remains one of the most talked-about thriller titles of 1929.
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