October 2020 Round-Up
TOTAL FILMS SEEN IN OCTOBER: 40
(see the film posters at the bottom of the post, arranged in watching order)
NEW-TO-ME: 40
REWATCHES: 0
SEEN ON THE BIG SCREEN: 0
HORROR FILMS: 25
Another month has passed and I'm glad to report that I watched 40 films, which means more than one film a day on average. Working from home also means having time to watch films when work is slow. This month I didn't take any trips to the Filmoteca. I missed Buster Keaton's Sherlock Jr. (I've already seen this but not on the big screen) and it was also very unfortunate I had to work on the viewing date of The Fountainhead (still haven't seen this one). There weren't any other films programmed that I wanted to see. In regard to the local Covid measures, an evening/night curfew and new restrictions were being enforced in Catalunya at the end of the month. The Filmoteca had to close its doors again.
This month my main focus was on horror films — with Halloween coming up at the end of October — and then especially those classics from the 1930s and 1940s. I've never been much of a horror film fan, but I have to say that I like these 1930s and 1940s horror films with their great black-and-white cinematography and moody atmosphere. Mad scientists and doctors, monsters and mummies, helpless heroines and heroic men ... they all played a role in the horror films of Classic Hollywood that I watched this month.
My most watched actor of October is Boris Karloff with 10 films seen. I didn't really actively sought out the horror films for him but he just happens to be in a lot of them. Karen Morley is my most watched actress with 8 films seen. I also didn't plan beforehand to watch Morley films but one film (Arsène Lupin) led to another and I was all of a sudden determined to see more of her because I really like her.
Several actors appeared in more than one film this month: Bela Lugosi (5 films), Lionel Atwill (4), Fay Wray (4), Frances Drake (4), Ricardo Cortez (4), Colin Clive (3), Robert Armstrong (3), Gertrude Michael (2), David Manners (2), Franchot Tone (2), Mae Clarke (2) and Tom Conway (2).
Breaking the 40 watched films down in decades:
1910s - 0
1920s - 1
1930s - 28
1940s - 10
1950s - 0
1960s - 1
I watched 25 horror films in total, i.e. they are classified as horror but it doesn't mean they are all scary. I actually found few downright scary but it's more the subject matter and mood that makes them horror films. Among the ones viewed is also one horror comedy (Abbott and Costello Meet Frankenstein).
The horror films are, here listed in watching order:
I Walked With a Zombie (with James Ellison, Frances Dee and Tom Conway)
The Vampire Bat (with Lionel Atwill, Fay Wray and Melvyn Douglas)
Abbott and Costello Meet Frankenstein (with Bud Abbott, Lou Costello, Lon Chaney Jr. and Bela Lugosi)
Frankenstein (with Colin Clive, Mae Clarke, John Boles and Boris Karloff)
Secret of the Blue Room (with Lionel Atwill, Gloria Stuart and Paul Lukas)
Bride of Frankenstein (with Boris Karloff, Colin Clive, Valerie Hobson and Elsa Lanchester)
The Phantom Carriage (with Victor Sjöström, Hilda Borgström and Tore Svennberg)
Doctor X (with Lionel Atwill, Fay Wray, Lee Tracy and Preston Foster)
The Return of Doctor X (with Humphrey Bogart, Rosemary Lane, Wayne Morris and Dennis Morgan)
The Raven (with Boris Karloff and Bela Lugosi)
King Kong (with Fay Wray, Robert Armstrong and Bruce Cabot)
The Black Cat (with Boris Karloff, Bela Lugosi, David Manners and Julie Bishop)
The Body Snatcher (with Boris Karloff, Bela Lugosi and Henry Daniell)
Before I Hang (with Boris Karloff, Evelyn Keyes and Bruce Bennett)
The Leopard Man (with Dennis O'Keefe, Margo, Jean Brooks and Isabel Jewell)
The Seventh Victim (with Tom Conway, Kim Hunter, Jean Brooks and Isabel Jewell)
The Walking Dead (with Boris Karloff, Ricardo Cortez and Edmund Gwenn)
The Mummy (with Boris Karloff, Zita Johann and David Manners)
Mystery of the Wax Museum (with Lionel Atwill, Fay Wray, Glenda Farrell and Frank McHugh)
The Mummy’s Hand (with Dick Foran, Peggy Moran and Wallace Ford)
Mad Love (with Peter Lorre, Frances Drake and Colin Clive)
Isle of the Dead (with Boris Karloff and Ellen Drew)
The Night Walker (with Robert Taylor and Barbara Stanwyck)
The Curse of the Cat People (with Simone Simon, Kent Smith, Jane Randolph and Ann Carter)
The Invisible Ray (with Boris Karloff, Bela Lugosi, Frances Drake, Frank Lawton and Beulah Bondi)
I will begin with the 10 horror films starring Boris Karloff. Of these films I enjoyed Frankenstein, Bride of Frankenstein and The Body Snatcher the most.
I had never seen Frankenstein before, but have always liked Frankenstein's story ever since I read the novel in my younger days. I was pleased with the fact that this film wasn't as disappointing as Dracula (with Bela Lugosi). The atmosphere is very good with moody photography by Arthur Edeson and Paul Ivano. I liked the setting of the mill where Frankenstein has his laboratory. Colin Clive is convincing as Frankenstein, his obsession and madness is apparent. I had hoped Mae Clarke's role would be bigger and stronger but it's just the boring female support. John Boles' role is also unexciting. The same can't be said for Karloff as the Monster. Of course I'm familiar with the image of the Monster walking like a zombie with outstretched arms but it was nice to see Karloff in context of the story and to notice how his character is actually a tragic one. Also with Dwight Frye who has the perfect face for these type of horror movies, playing the hunchbacked assistant of Frankenstein.
I also really enjoyed the sequel: Bride of Frankenstein. I had expected as much, considering the good reviews and high ratings online, and I liked certain plot points. First of all, the beginning where Mary Shelley (Elsa Lanchester) reveals the continuation of Frankenstein's story to Percy Shelley and Lord Byron. It was a nice way to start the film. I also liked seeing the crazy doctor (Ernest Thesiger) with his miniature human creations kept in jars. And probably the best sequence for me was the part with the blind man. It was endearing and sort of heartbreaking to see the Monster showing emotions and crying because someone treated him as a human being and not as a monster. Boris Karloff gets to do some real acting here. How cool to see him smoking a cigar while enjoying violin music. Like in Frankenstein I really liked the part set in the laboratory where they lift the body up in the air in order to bring it to life through electric currents from the thunderstorm. Even by today's standards the lab and all its workings look pretty cool. Lanchester has a dual role and also plays the bride (I had seen the photos, of course, of her iconic cone-shaped hairdo) but I didn't know that her part as the bride was so small. Again with Colin Clive as Frankenstein but no Mae Clarke as his wife, we get Valerie Hobson instead, whom I like far less than Clarke.
I thoroughly enjoyed The Body Snatcher. The story is compelling and the performances are all solid with Boris Karloff's performance standing out (Henry Daniell is also very good). His character is truly evil. Bela Lugosi has a rather small part but I liked seeing him in a different type of role. He seemed human at last. Good direction by Robert Wise and great cinematography by Robert De Grasse. Love the scene with the street singer singing and walking away in the distance, with the beautiful shot of the street and a carriage passing by, and then all of a sudden the singing stops. Also great ending!
The Black Cat's story failed to meet my expectations, though I like the overall atmosphere. It was nice to see Karloff and Lugosi up against one another but the whole plot point with Lugosi's wife and child could have been developed better. Greatest disappointment was how small the role of the black cat was. Merely an unexplained fear of Lugosi, who basically overacts upon seeing a black cat. I like David Manners but there's nothing special about his role or performance, and he forms a boring romantic couple with Julie Bishop.
In Before I Hang Karloff gives a good performance in a Dr. Jekyll/Mr. Hyde kind of role. I actually felt a bit sorry for him for not having control over the murders. I love Evelyn Keyes but she's totally wasted here as Karloff's daughter. Still, in this dark film her performance is the only bright spot.
The Mummy started promising with Karloff as the mummy in the sarcophagus coming to life and looking truly creepy. It all goes a bit downhill after that, with Karloff walking around wearing a dress and fez and hardly instilling fear, and the pacing is slow with not much happening. The performances by Zita Johann and David Manners are stilted and their obligatory romance is squeezed in. Manners looks really handsome but is such a bore here. The dialogue is also very weak but fortunately there's some nice cinematography by Charles J. Stumar.
The Invisible Ray suffered from my sleepiness. I kept dozing off while watching this and it might have affected my enjoyment. The plot is a bit silly but this features both Karloff and Lugosi and it's always great to see these horror legends together. Again one of those story premises with a scientist gone mad and turning into a killer. The scientist part is reserved for Karloff and it's Lugosi who has the likeable role of the good guy. Also with Beulah Bondi (in an unmemorable part) and Frances Drake whom I've grown to like. Some good production values and moody cinematography by George Robinson.
At the bottom of the list of these Karloff films comes Isle of the Dead. While looking for another horror film to watch, this one grabbed my attention because it involves a contagious plague and quarantine (very relatable to this current pandemic). And it stars Karloff (with a bad perm!). But what a strange film and what a convoluted plot involving local superstition and all. I was waiting for Karloff's dead wife to play a significant role later on but this plot point was never developed and in fact the wife is never mentioned again. Fortunately the last 10 minutes or so get pretty suspenseful, it was actually quite spooky with the creepy noises. I think they might be the scariest moments I have experienced during this month of watching horror movies. The film benefits from a nice moody atmosphere and some good chiaroscuro photography by Jack MacKenzie. Yet my overall viewing experience was disappointing, even more so than the other disappointing Karloff films.
Among the other 14 horror films watched there were a couple of well-known classics that I watched for the very first time. Though I'd never seen King Kong before, I'm of course familiar with the iconic images. I have to say, I really missed out because seriously ... this is so much fun. It was way more exciting than I thought it would be. I had not expected the jungle to be inhabited by huge prehistoric monsters. It's like King Kong meets Jurassic Park and more. The fight between Kong and the prehistoric beast is awesome, especially the way he cracked the dinosaur's jaw. Even though we have come a long way in terms of special effects and sets, what is presented here is good, and I can imagine for its time it must have been amazing. Yes, the monsters look a bit cardboard and their movements aren't as smooth as they would have been nowadays, but all the action is really thrilling, the pace is good and Max Steiner's exciting score is an excellent accompaniment. This is Fay Wray's most famous film and she sure knows how to scream. I also really like Robert Armstrong. So this adventure/horror classic definitely lives up to its famous reputation and I will be seeing this again for sure. (By the way, I wonder how they transported Kong from the jungle to NYC, would have loved to see that ...)
Two other well-known horror classics are I Walked With a Zombie and The Curse of the Cat People.
I Walked With a Zombie was a bit disappointing, though I was still entertained. I guess I had expected more. The cinematography by J. Roy Hunt is good and the vodoo bit is quite scary. I also liked the ritual dancing. But the romance subplot is very weak, Frances Dee's love for Tom Conway comes way too fast and it's just not convincing.
The Curse of the Cat People turned out to be one of my favourite watches of this month. I had not expected this. Not a horror film at all and nothing to do with its prequel Cat People, just featuring some of its characters, and the title also makes little sense. I actually prefer this to Cat People. It's a gentle story of childhood and loneliness with an amazing performance by the young actress Ann Carter. I love the atmosphere, at times haunting, the dreamlike quality, the magic garden, the child's imaginary world, and the beautiful images provided by master DP Nicholas Musuraca. It's also very touching. Especially the scene where Kent Smith discovers that his daughter hasn't sent her birthday party invitations to her friends but has put them in the hole of the tree trunk, her imaginary mail box. This almost moved me to tears. Simone Simon has a small role as the girl's imaginary friend/the ghost of the girl's father's first wife, and she's like a fairy in a fairytale.
What else?
The Vampire Bat was much more enjoyable than I thought it would be. Great moody atmosphere (and bats are scary!) and beautiful cinematography by Ira H. Morgan. I liked the cast (Melvyn Douglas and Fay Wray make a nice couple and Dwight Frye is deliciously creepy), also how the plot developed, with humour provided by Maude Eburne as Aunt Gussie. Especially the dog scene (where she thinks Frye has turned into a dog) is very funny. Also love the orange-coloured flames of the torches in the scene where the mob chases after Frye. According to IMDB at least one original release print had the torches hand-coloured by Gustav Brock. The film remained entirely black-and-white until 2017 when the colour was digitally restored by UCLA.
Mad Love was disappointing due to high expectations, yet still enjoyable. Peter Lorre is good and creepy but I'm always a bit underwhelmed with his performances. It's like he doesn't have to act the creepiness because of his distinctive appearance. I was actually more into Colin Clive and Frances Drake. Crazy story premise of a mad surgeon obsessed with the wife of a pianist and replacing the pianist's hands after an accident with the murderous knife-throwing hands of a criminal sentenced to death. Good cinematography by Gregg Toland and Chester A. Lyons.
I had expected more of The Seventh Victim. No doubt the cinematography — with beautiful lighting and shadows — by Nicholas Musuraca is the greatest asset of this film. I liked the story premise but thought the part concerning the sect of Satan worshippers was so underwhelming. Kim Hunter reminded me a bit of Susan Peters in Random Harvest, the way she looked and sounded. I love the shower curtain scene, visually it was great, yet unsettling at the same time. Imagine taking a shower and all of a sudden someone stands in your bathroom. Sounds familiar? Well, fortunately all ends well for Hunter. The ending is chilling, though.
The Leopard Man showed great promise but was ultimately disappointing. I really liked the scenes with the Mexican girls meeting their death, the first victim sent out to get flour by her horrible mother and the other girl being locked inside the walls of the cemetery. These scenes are very suspenseful and beautifully lit and photographed by Robert De Grasse. If there is something horrific in this film, then it's the girl's blood seeping underneath the door. But the main characters Dennis O'Keefe and Jean Brooks are not appealing at all and I couldn't care less about them discovering their soft sides. Also the identity of the killer you could see a mile away. And Margo with the constant clicking of the castanets was plain annoying.
I had hoped to like Doctor X more than I did. The story is pretty silly and there's little suspense. Lee Tracy's comic relief (making use of a handshake buzzer) feels a bit off here, in fact Tracy in a horror film is horror enough. This film is most notable for the two-strip Technicolor, just sepia tones with green intermersed. I liked the overall pastel colours and it looks especially good on Fay Wray.
The Return of Doctor X — supposedly being a sequel to Doctor X but the films are really unrelated — has Humphrey Bogart in the role of the mad scientist. Totally weird to see him like that. Also John Litel isn't very believable in his role as the doctor. But Wayne Morris and Dennis Morgan have good chemistry together, they almost look like brothers. Though the story develops in a very predictable way, it's still enjoyable. Rosemary Lane as Morgan's love interest has little to do. There's a reason why her sister Priscilla became a bigger star. Rosemary doesn't have the same appeal and she has one of those forgettable faces.
Mystery of the Wax Museum stars Lionel Atwill and Fay Wray again (they played together in The Vampire Bat and Doctor X). What is surprising is to see Glenda Farrell and Frank McHugh here. Especially Farrell's presence makes this a different kind of horror film. She really livens up the place with her sassiness. Like Doctor X this is also filmed in Technicolor, the two-strip variant with soft pastel colours dipped in sepia and green tones with a pinkish glow. I liked the film and the story premise and development but what really stood out for me were the girls' outfits. I love 1930s fashion with the hairdos, dresses, hats and scarves. And Wray and Farrell sure know how to wear them. I looked up the costume designer. None other than Orry-Kelly. No wonder!
Secret of the Blue Room is an old-dark-house horror film. It was quite dull. I also didn't like Gloria Stuart here. The old-house atmosphere was good though, and I liked the ending taking place behind the secret door in the underground. Finally some action.
The Mummy’s Hand is also a rather dull affair and lacks in atmosphere. The mummy isn't scary enough and there's not enough of him. The performances and characters of the lead actors are pretty colourless and even for such a short runtime the film dragged in places. It all looks really low budget with the fake location shots, not transporting the viewer to Egypt but to the Universal studio lot. If the best thing here is Cecil Kellaway and his magic tricks — which became a bit tiresome — it should say enough.
The only 1960s horror film I watched was The Night Walker, a campy thriller with Barbara Stanwyck and Robert Taylor in their third film together (after their divorce), His Brothers Wife (1936) and This is My Affair (1937) being the other two films. Stanwyck is my favourite actress and I'm close to finishing her pre-1970 filmography. I watched this with my sister, and though there are some creepy moments, overall it disappoints. Also some scenes are unintentionally funny and elicited some laughs. The music score by Vic Mizzy, which I liked during the opening credits, really got on my nerves after a while. I did like the film's introduction (with the dream sequence and the surrealistic imagery) and the mannequin wedding. And Barbara sure knows how to scream. It was probably her way of expressing her dissatisfaction with the fact that Taylor got first-billing here whereas his role was a supporting one.
Coming to the last horror film and the only silent film I watched this October: The Phantom Carriage. I went in with high expectations because of the positive reviews and I'm familiar with Victor Sjöström's work. I absolutely love The Wind, He Who Gets Slapped and The Scarlet Letter. I also love silent cinema and it's really hard to grasp this was made almost a century ago. Well, it's amazing. Haunting, bleak, depressing ... With a great performance from the director himself, especially his eyes are mesmerising. I love the story premise, the fantasy part, the great cinematography and special effects, but I wouldn't have minded seeing more of the phantom carriage itself and its driver (actually had expected it). Accompanied by a great score, this silent film goes on my favourite list and it turned out to be my highest rated film of the month.
As I have already mentioned, Karen Morley is my most watched actress of the month. I had seen a handful of her films prior to this month but she pretty much left me indifferent. Yet after I'd seen her in Arsène Lupin I really liked her and wanted to explore more of her filmography. In the end I saw 8 of her films.
They are in watching order:
Arsène Lupin (with John Barrymore and Lionel Barrymore)
Outcast (with Warren William and Lewis Stone)
Gabriel Over the White House (with Walter Huston and Franchot Tone)
Black Fury (with Paul Muni and William Gargan)
Flesh (with Wallace Beery and Ricardo Cortez)
The Phantom of Crestwood (with Ricardo Cortez and Anita Louise)
Thunder in the Night (with Edmund Lowe and Paul Cavanagh)
Straight Is the Way (with Franchot Tone and May Robson)
I absolutely loved Arsène Lupin! Love the chemistry between John Barrymore and Karen Morley and the dialogue. Their interplay is delightful, sexy and playful and they make a very believable couple. Their meet-cute is the greatest one I've seen in a long time and is incredibly sexy. When Barrymore turns off the light to put Morley's dress back on (she sits naked in his bed), sparks really start to fly. That shot in the dark with the suggestion of them kissing is amazing. The whole scene has pre-code written all over it. But let's not forget about the chemistry between the Barrymore brothers. It's very natural, and their cat-and-mouse interaction is so entertaining. In fact, the entire film was completely enjoyable up till the very end. I'm very glad that the happy ending didn't disappoint either. I've never liked Morley as much as I did here and it was my favourite Morley film of the month.
I watched Outcast for Morley and liked the story premise of a doctor (Warren William) relocating to another town after being persecuted because a patient committed suicide. Morley plays the sister-in-law of the victim and is out to seek justice. She and William have good chemistry and I liked both of their characters. I was really surprised with the grim plot twist at the ending involving a crazy mob wanting to take matters into their own hands. I also literally gasped in disbelief when Esther Dale yanked out the tube from her sick son's windpipe after William performed a tracheotomy. Also good support by Lewis Stone.
Gabriel Over the White House is a strange but interesting political pre-code film with fantasy elements and Walter Huston in the role of the President of the United States. He's a lazy politician with no ambition to make a change, then he suffers a concussion after a car accident and through divine intervention he's thoroughly changed. Of course you hope the change is for the better and initially you go along with him because his ideas seem sound. But then something is not quite right and he starts talking about martial law and dismisses his cabinet and becomes a dictator. With the set-up of a special army, led by Franchot Tone, and the execution of the racketeer boss by a firing-squad, the depiction of fascism is complete. (By the way, the army tanks look ridiculous as well as the court martial room with Tone presiding.) It's curious that the whole thing was presented as if it was a good development. Anyway, in regard to the performances, Huston gives a solid one and is well suited for the role. Tone and Morley give good support and make a nice couple. A big plus is the cinematography by Bert Glennon (who shot Stagecoach, The Last Command, The Scarlett Empress, among others) which is often striking, also there's great play with shadow and light.
Black Fury I also watched for Morley but I couldn't really get into this social drama because of Paul Muni. He plays a Polish immigrant and speaks poor English with a thick accent. Lots of times I couldn't understand what he was saying and his performance is a bit over the top. But that isn't to say that he wasn't believable in his role. He is best in his quiet emotional moments. With some good fighting scenes and also with William Gargan in a small role.
I had some expectations for Flesh, a John Ford pre-code film, but it was a bit of a disappointment. It has some tonal issues, mostly because of the performance by Wallace Beery. He plays a child-like, not-too-bright character, providing some comic relief. Glad Karen Morley plays such a prominent role and she's absolutely great here. I love her tough-acting character, love the way she looks and sounds. Also, she brings enough nuance to her character to elicit some sympathy from the viewer. The best scenes are the ones with her and Ricardo Cortez where they argue and play tough. I'd wished it was a different film and the focus would have been on them. Though Beery has some endearing moments, I found him mostly annoying.
The Phantom of Crestwood I watched for both Ricardo Cortez and Morley. Had hoped to see some of that great interplay they showed in Flesh but they have little interaction here. I was also disappointed to find out at the beginning of the film that Morley was the one to be killed so no hope of a romance between the leads. This old-dark-house type of movie lacks in atmosphere and suspense and I also found Morley's character a bit strange. Though I like her when she plays tough. It's also weird how Cortez, being a crook, all of a sudden turns to detective mode and helps solve the case. I have to admit the mask ís a bit scary. Also with Anita Louise.
What else did I watch, except for Boris Karloff and horror films and films starring Karen Morley?
There were 7 films more, here listed in watching order:
The Man with Two Faces (with Edward G. Robinson, Mary Astor, Ricardo Cortez, Mae Clarke and Louis Calhern)
The Return of Sophie Lang (with Gertrude Michael and Ray Milland)
The Notorious Sophie Lang (with Gertrude Michael and Paul Cavanagh)
It Happened in Flatbush (with Lloyd Nolan and Carole Landis)
Midnight Taxi (with Brian Donlevy, Frances Drake and Alan Dinehart)
The Preview Murder Mystery (with Frances Drake, Reginald Denny and Gail Patrick)
Blind Adventure (with Robert Armstrong, Helen Mack and Roland Young)
I had hoped to like The Man with Two Faces but the plot element where Mary Astor is under the hypnotic spell of her assumed-dead husband Louis Calhern was really stupid. Edward G. Robinson gives a solid performance but he couldn't save this film for me. The romance between Astor and Ricardo Cortez is weak but I liked seeing Mae Clarke despite the fact that she's totally wasted here.
The Return of Sophie Lang was a surprisingly enjoyable mystery that I watched for Gertrude Michael because I really like her. There's nothing special about the plot development but it's just fun and the cast is capable and likeable. Ray Milland plays Michael's love interest and they have good chemistry. Didn't know this was a sequel to The Notorious Sophie Lang, also starring Gertrude Michael. So I checked that one out too. Michael suits the role of the sophisticated jewel thief well. She has great chemistry with Paul Cavanagh and I like how they were trying to outsmart one another. I also liked the comic relief provided by Leon Errol as the detective obsessed with his body and fitness. Good fun!
Midnight Taxi I watched for Frances Drake, and fortunately I like Brian Donlevy as well. This is a surprisingly enjoyable B-programmer with good pacing and solid performances (also from Alan Dinehart and Gilbert Roland). I was entertained throughout and liked how the story developed. There's some nice and moody photography by Barney McGill with noirish touches. I liked Drake as the crooked heroine with redeeming qualities. I like the way she sounds and looks, and she has nice chemistry with Donlevy. But according to a fun piece of trivia from IMDB she wasn't really charmed by him: "Star Frances Drake was not happy with her first picture at Fox under her new contract or her co-star Brian Donlevy ("... a very strange man. He never talked to anybody.")"
The Preview Murder Mystery is a totally entertaining murder mystery which I watched for Frances Drake. She's a good match with Reginald Denny and I love their playful banter. I liked her character who's into astrology. The film has some suspenseful moments and moves along at a fast pace, and though it's all pretty predictable it's good fun and the hour was over before I knew it. Best moment of the film: Drake nearly jumping out of her skin when Denny comes back into the room and scares her with a loud boo exclamation. Also loved the story's setting with the sound stages and studio lot.
Blind Adventure I watched for Robert Armstrong (didn't like his moustache here, though). Nothing special but a fun and decent mystery B-film (from the director of King Kong), set in foggy London. (They really got that fog machine working hard on the studio lot, I could hardly see their faces and it wasn't the print.) The mystery is not very exciting and the crooks are hardly dangerous, but the leads are appealing (I also like Helen Mack), with Roland Young being the absolute star of the show. He's delightful in the role of a London burglar, complete with the cockney accent. Also with Ralph Bellamy as the crook.
I want to end this looooong post with some extra photos of Mystery of the Wax Museum (above and below). Like I already said, I love the costumes in this film. I like 1930s fashion in general but the pastel colours in Mystery of the Wax Museum make the dresses, hats and scarves that more appealing. So here you have some screenshots taken by me of the film's fashion, courtesy of the great designer Orry-Kelly and worn by the lovely Fay Wray and Glenda Farrell.
See you next time! For NOIRVEMBER! Very excited to watch noirs, one of my favourite (sub)genres.
Oh ... and don't forget to WEAR YOUR FACE MASK! And stay healthy!
*Frankenstein (1931) with Mae Clarke and Boris Karloff;
*The Curse of the Cat People (1944);
*Boris Karloff, most watched actor of the month, in a private moment;
*The Vampire Bat (1933); (screenshot by me)
*Frankenstein (1931) with Boris Karloff;
*Bride of Frankenstein (1935) with Boris Karloff and Elsa Lanchester;
*The Body Snatcher (1945) with Boris Karloff, Bela Lugosi and Henry Daniell;
*The Body Snatcher (1945);
*The Walking Dead (1936) with Boris Karloff, Marguerite Churchill and Warren Hull;
*The Raven (1935) with Boris Karloff and Bela Lugosi, on a break during the shooting;
*The Raven (1935) with Boris Karloff and Bela Lugosi;
*The Black Cat (1934) with David Manners and Julie Bishop;
*The Black Cat (1934) with Boris Karloff and Bela Lugosi;
*Before I Hang (1940) with Boris Karloff and Evelyn Keyes;
*The Mummy (1932) with Boris Karloff and Zita Johann;
*The Invisible Ray (1936) with Boris Karloff, Bela Lugosi, Frances Drake and Frank Lawton;
*Isle of the Dead (1945) with Boris Karloff, Marc Cramer, Ernst Deutsch, and Ellen Drew;
*Abbott and Costello Meet Frankenstein (1948) with Lou Costello and Bela Lugosi;
*King Kong (1933), publicity still with Fay Wray, Robert Armstrong and Bruce Cabot;
*King Kong (1933);
*I Walked With a Zombie (1943) with Frances Dee and Tom Conway;
*I Walked With a Zombie (1943) with Frances Dee, Christine Gordon and Darby Jones;
*The Curse of the Cat People (1944) with Simone Simon, Kent Smith and Ann Carter; (gif by me)
*The Curse of the Cat People (1944) with Ann Carter;
*The Vampire Bat (1933) with Fay Wray and Melvyn Douglas; (screenshot by me)
*Mad Love (1935) with Peter Lorre and Frances Drake;
*The Seventh Victim (1943) with Tom Conway, Jean Brooks and Kim Hunter;
*The Leopard Man (1943) with Dennis O'Keefe and Jean Brooks;
*Doctor X (1932) with Fay Wray and Lee Tracy;
*The Return of Doctor X (1939) with Humphrey Bogart, Wayne Morris, Dennis Morgan and Lya Lys;
*Mystery of the Wax Museum (1933) with Fay Wray; (screenshot by me)
*Secret of the Blue Room (1933) with Gloria Stuart and Paul Lukas;
*The Mummy’s Hand (1940) with Dick Foran, Peggy Moran and Wallace Ford;
*The Night Walker (1964) with Robert Taylor and Barbara Stanwyck;
*The Phantom Carriage (1921);
*The Phantom Carriage (1921) with Victor Sjöström and Tore Svennberg;
*Karen Morley, most watched actress of the month;
*Arsène Lupin (1932) with Karen Morley;
*Arsène Lupin (1932) with Karen Morley and John Barrymore;
*Arsène Lupin (1932) with Karen Morley and John Barrymore;
*Outcast (1937) with Karen Morley and Warren William;
*Gabriel Over the White House (1933) with Walter Huston and Karen Morley;
*Black Fury (1935) with Paul Muni and Karen Morley;
*Flesh (1932) with Wallace Beery and Karen Morley;
*The Phantom of Crestwood (1932) with Karen Morley and Anita Louise;
*Thunder in the Night (1935) with Edmund Lowe and Karen Morley; (screenshot by me)
*Thunder in the Night (1935) with Karen Morley; (screenshot by me)
*Straight Is the Way (1934) with Franchot Tone, Karen Morley and May Robson;
*The Man with Two Faces (1934) with Edward G. Robinson and Mae Clarke;
*The Return of Sophie Lang (1936) with Gertrude Michael and Ray Milland;
*The Notorious Sophie Lang (1934) with Gertrude Michael and Paul Cavanagh;
*It Happened in Flatbush (1942) with Lloyd Nolan, Carole Landis and Scotty Beckett;
*Midnight Taxi (1937), film poster with Brian Donlevy and Frances Drake;
*The Preview Murder Mystery (1936) with Frances Drake and Reginald Denny;
*Blind Adventure (1933) with Robert Armstrong, Helen Mack and Ralph Bellamy;
*Mystery of the Wax Museum (1933) with Fay Wray; (screenshot by me)
*Mystery of the Wax Museum (1933) with Glenda Farrell; (screenshot by me)
*Mystery of the Wax Museum (1933) with Fay Wray and Glenda Farrell; (screenshot by me)
*Mystery of the Wax Museum (1933) with Fay Wray; (screenshot by me)
*Mystery of the Wax Museum (1933) with Fay Wray; (screenshot by me)
*Mystery of the Wax Museum (1933) with Glenda Farrell; (screenshot by me)
*The Raven (1935) with Bela Lugosi. (screenshot by me)
