Directed by: Edgar G. Ulmer
Ok, now we're talking! Both Lugosi and Karloff in the same movie and what a movie it is! This was the first of seven movies starring both Lugosi and Karloff (the others were "The Raven" (1935), "The Invisible Ray" (1936), "Son of Frankenstein" (1939), "Black Friday" (1940), "You'll Find Out" (1940) & "The Body Snatcher" (1945)), and even though there are some really great movies among those other six no one comes even close to this one. This is, to me, one of the best movies from the 30's and it's of course an Universal Picture... but, unlike most of the Universal horror movies from this era this one features no supernatural monsters, here we're talking about human "monsters".
Even though the title of the movie is taken from Poe nothing else is... During the opening credits it says "suggested by the immortal Edgar Allan Poe classic" and apparently no one really bothered reading that short story... Lugosi's character (Dr. Vitus Werdegast) is deathly afraid of black cats and that's it, really. So, if you came looking for a great Poe adaption you might wanna look elsewhere, but if you want a great psychological horror flick filled with satanism, necrophilia, sadistic torture, incest, brutal revenge and the two masters of early horror cinema you're right where you should be.
The film opens on the Orient Express and an american couple on their honeymoon, Joan and Peter Alison (Jacqueline Wells & David Manners), who ends up having to share their compartment with Doctor Vitus Werdegast (Bela Lugosi), who's on his way to meet an "old friend". As luck have it they all get off the train at the same station and end up sharing a (very raggedy looking) tourist bus. The weather is shit and the bus driver manages to slide off the road and crash the bus. Good thing Doctor Werdegast's "friend" lives close to the scene of the accident...
The gang (minus the bus driver, who was killed in the accident) ends up at the front door of the noted architect Hjalmar Poelzig's (Karloff) very futuristic looking house (looks more like something a Bond villain would build for himself, but works very well here), and they're quickly set up in guest rooms. Here we get to learn that Werdegast and Poelzig fought together in WWI at a fort that Poelzig's house is built on the ruins of, Poelzig being the commander of the fort sold the rest of the soldiers out when giving it up to the Russians and then fled like a rat into the night. Werdegast went to prisoner of war camp while Poelzig told Werdegast's wife Vitus had died in the camps and married her... Yeah, a real bastard thing to do, but that's by far not the worst he did to poor Dr Werdegast, Vitus had a daughter as well... and yeah, after the new Mrs Poelzig died the daughter became the even newer Mrs Poelzig. How's that for evil? First marrying the poor bastard's wife and then his daughter!
Poelzig isn't just a great architect, he's also an Aleister Crowley wannabe with his very own satanic cult in the basement. And now he's eyeing Joan as he plans to sacrifice her at their next black mass. That should teach you not to go galavanting around the Hungarian country side at night! Poelzig and Werdegast decides to play a game of chess to decide if she will get sacrificed or not... and Werdegast isn't really the great chess player he thought he was. There's a lot more happening, but what the hell? I shouldn't sit here and let you know the entire movie when you could watch it for yourself!
If I were to have a ratings system on this blog that went to 10 I would give this movie a whopping 20, it really IS that good. At least if you, like me, love these old horror movies from the 30's & 40's... it has everything and more that you expect from these flicks and of course the immortal double team of Lugosi and Karloff. Karloff really is the embodiment of pure evil here (and he's clearly inspired by Aleister Crowley) and Lugosi gets to play the good guy (something I wish he could have done more as he really shines here) who at the end gets his revenge.
Crap, it's hard to say something else than just WATCH THIS MOVIE!!!!! Shouldn't that be enough, really?
No comments:
Post a Comment