Holmes And Hypnotism

 

THE WOMAN IN GREEN-1945-The head of the CID in London lectures his agents on their failure to find any clues in the seemingly random mur-ders of 3 women all missing a finger. After a fourth is killed, Inspector Gregson (Matthew Boulton) calls on Sherlock Holmes (Basil Rathbone). After another murder, rich Sir George Fenick (Paul Cavanagh) wakes up in a strange house with no memory of how he got there after having a nightcap with his younger girlfriend Lydia Marlowe (Hillary Brooke). Then Prof. Moriarty (Henry Daniel) shows up and in a roundabout way accuses Fenick of being the murderer. Later, Holmes is visited by George's daug-hter Maud (Eve Amber). She says she saw her dad bury a box that contains a finger. 

They visit Sir George and find him dead. Holmes suspects Moriarty, who was supposed to have been hanged in Montevideo. The professor visits Holmes and tells the detective to drop out. Later, there's an attempt on Holmes' life. The assassin appears to be hypnotized. After he's killed, Holmes & Dr. Watson (Nigel Bruce) visit The Mesmer Club and a dis-believing Watson is hypnotized. Then Holmes formally meets Lydia who says “hypnotism is like a religion with me”. She tries to hypnotize Holmes and make him commit suicide. Of course, Lydia is in league with Moriarty, along with her maid and a crazy doll lover. 

This is the 11^th of the 14 Sherlock Holmes adaptations starring Rathbone and Bruce, again produced and directed by Roy William Neil. It's based on the Conan Doyle story “The Adventure of The Empty House”. Both Brooke and Daniel were in their second outing in the series.

Thanks for reading!

Sherlock Is Back!

 

 (imdb)

SHERLOCK HOLMES AND THE SECRET WEAPON1942-Sherlock Holmes (Basil Rathbone) smuggles bomb inventor Dr. Toben (William Post Jr.) out of Nazi occupied France. Once safe at 221 Baker Street, the ingrate sneaks out to see a girlfriend and give her a letter. On the way back, he's attacked. He survives and the next day there is a demonstration of his new aerial bomb. For some reason he doesn't want to divulge the secret and gives 4 parts to 4 different scientists (one is played by Henry Victor). Later Holmes deduces that Prof. Moriarty (Lionel Atwill) has kidnapped Toben. Holmes adopts several disguises in this modern WW 2 propaganda mystery and has a weird haircut. It marks the first appearance of Inspector Lestrade (Dennis Hoey) who isn't as pompous as in later films. 

Of course, Nigel Bruce is back as Dr. Watson as is Mary Gordon as Mrs. Hudson. There are unbilled appearances by Rudolph Anders, Whit Bissell, Veda Ann Borg, Paul Bryar, Harry Cording, James Craven, Paul Fix and Michael Mark. 

This is the first Holmes adventure directed by Roy William Neil, who'd go on to produce and direct the rest of the series.

Thanks for reading!

Ghost on The Beach

 

 (imdb)

THE GHOST IN THE INVISIBLE BIKINI-1966-Recently dead old guy Hiram Stokley (Boris Karloff; he did HOW THE GRINCH STOLE CHRISTMAS the same year) is told by his dead sister Cicely (Susan Hart) that if he wants to go to heaven and be young again, he has to do one good deed. He decides to make sure his estate goes to his rightful heirs. Chuck Phillips (Tommy Kirk), "not very bright but a nice boy", Lili Norton (Deborah Walley), Myrtle Forbush (Patsy Kelly), plus his attorney Reggie Ripper (Basil Rathbone; in QUEEN OF BLOOD the same year) and his "vile sidekick" J. Sinister Hulk (Jesse White). 

After Myrtle's nephew Bobby (Aron Kincaid) and his friends arrive, Nancy Sinatra sings "Geronimo". The young people frug arrogantly and act dumb at the pool. Ripper introduces his daughter Sinestra (Quinn O'Hara) and she tries to kill Bobby. Then Princess Yolanda (Bobbi Shaw) and her Indian companion Chicken Feather (Benny Rubin) with a gorilla (George Barrows) show up to help get rid of the relatives. The Rats, a motorcycle gang led by Eric Von Zipper (Harvey Lembeck) arrive because their stupid leader falls in love with The Princess. Then Stokley's butler Malcolm (Francis X. Bushman in his last movie role) shows up to warn Chuck to leave. Meanwhile, Stokley watches on a crystal ball and comments and Cicely intervenes to help. Chuck's not very bright friend gets terrorized by some fake monsters and the slapstick finale takes place in a torture chamber. The Bobby Fuller 4 also perform. 

Director Don Weis made this hokey dated beach movie but the old guys seem to having a good time.

Thanks for reading!

Good Things Come In Threes

 

TALES OF TERROR-1962-This trilogy from AIP is based on stories by who else but Edgar Allen Poe. All three star Vincent Price (He also made THE RAVEN with Corman (and Lorre) the same year).

Morella-Daughter Lenora (Maggie Pierce) gets a disturbing unwelcome from her estranged dad Locke (Vincent Price), a recluse in a gloomy cobwebbed mansion where he mourns the death of his wife Morella (Leona Gage). He seems to blame Lenora for her death since she died in child birth. When Lenora finds the mummified body of her mom in bed Dad confesses that excessive partying actually killed her. After it seems Lenora dies, Morella possesses her body and kills Locke but Lenora really did the deed. Morella smiles...

The Black Cat-Drunken Montresor (Peter Lorre) mistreats his wife Annabel (Joyce Jameson) and her black cat. At a wine tasting he meets pompous wine expert Luchresi (Vincent Price). When Montresor gets very drunk, Luchresi takes him home and meets Annabel. They fall in love. Montresor finds out about their affair and walls them up in the basement. After a drunken dream where the clandestine lovers play catch with Montresor's head, the police arrive looking for his wife. Of course the hated cat was walled up with the couple. Uses parts from “The Tell Tale Heart” and “The Cask of Amontillado”.

The Facts in The Case of M. Valdemar-Carmichael (Basil Rathbone), a hypnotist helps relieve the pain of the dying Ernest Valdemar (Vincent again). His young assistant James (David Frankham) smells treachery. Valdemar agrees to be hypnotized on his death bed as part of Carmichael's weird experiment. James was right of course. The hypnotist will not let Valdemar die unless his wife Helene (Debra Paget), agrees to marry him. When Carmichael tries to molest her, Valdemar rises from his un-dead death bed and kills his tormentor.

Roger Corman (director) and Richard Matheson (screenplay) score again with this great anthology. The acting, direction and SFX are top notch and the middle story inspired Corman and Matheson to make A COMEDY OF TERRORS.

Thanks for reading!

Space Vampire

QUEEN OF BLOOD-1966-In 1990 the world prepares for the human exploration of Mars and Venus. The whole project is overseen by Dr. Farraday (Basil Rathbone). Space transmissions say that an ambassador from Mars is going to pay a visit but later it's found out the transmission is actually an SOS. The Space Institute decides to help and they send Laura James (Judi Meridith), Paul Grant (Dennis Hopper)) and Anders Brockman (Robert Boon). They run into trouble with a sunburst on the way. Laura figures they need better equipment to local the aliens, so two Earth bound astronauts Tony Baratta (Don Eithner) and Allan Brenner (John Saxon who passed away on July 25 of this year)) convince Farrady to send another ship that can land a Phobos, a moon of the red planet. It works and the duo hook up with others. They also find a creepy green faced female alien (Florence Marly). The next day Paul is found dead after an encounter with “their guest” who it turns out lives on blood. She kills Brockman next then goes after Allan. Laura stops her and in the process scratches the alien who bleeds to death. On their way back the surviving duo learn that the alien was a “queen bee” who laid eggs on the ship! Laura convinces Allan not to destroy them and instead bring them back to Earth where they can be studied. Forrest J. Ackerman (as a minor lab technician) has the honor of holding them for the final scene. 

This color science fiction outer space adventure from AIP isn't bad but a little shoddy at times due to the extreme low budget. Director Curtis Harrington (who made NIGHT TIDE with Hopper earlier) does a decent job with most of the special effects incorporated from two Soviet Union features. The year before QUEEN Rathbone had done new scenes for AIP's VOYAGE TO THE PREHISTORIC PLANET and was in the beach party ghost movie THE GHOST IN THE INVISIBLE BIKINI.

Thanks for reading!

Bela, Basil and Broderick

THE BLACK CAT-1941-Rich cat loving Mrs. Henrietta Winslow (Cecilia Loftus) seems on the verge of death but still lives. Her relatives wait around. She has a spooky caretaker Eduardo (Bela Lugosi) and a spooky housekeeper Abigail (Gale Sondergaard). Mrs. Winslow is so nuts about cats she has her own feline crematorium. Relatives include niece Myrna (Gladys Cooper), her hard up for cash husband Monty (Basil Rathbone), her uncaring step-grandson Richard (Alan Ladd), granddaughter Margaret (Claire Dodd), grandson Stanley (John Eldredge) and granddaughter Elaine (Anne Gwynne). After Henrietta tells them what she's leaving them in her will, real estate agent Gil Smith (Broderick Crawford) stops by with antique dealer Mr. Penny (Hugh Herbert) to buy the house. He's allergic to cats. When Henrietta is stabbed to death everyone is a suspect. Even though Henrietta told everyone what they were getting Abigail and the cats get everything until her death.. Gil says to Rathbone's character "He thinks he's Sherlock Holmes". Later Abigail is killed and Eduardo becomes the chief suspect. But Elaine figures out who the real killer is. Gil arrives in time to save Elaine from being cremated. 

Director Albert S. Rogell had been making movies since the silent days and made a version of LIL ABNER around this time. Of course Lugosi and Karloff had starred in a movie of the same name back in 1934. Bela is good in his role but still kind of a wasted red herring. 

Basically this BLACK CAT is enjoyable but typical Universal “old dark house” murder mystery played mostly as a comedy. Some sources say Marlene Dietrich is standing in for Claire Dodd in one scene shot from the back with no dialogue.

Thanks for reading!

Holmes Is Back!

PURSUIT TO ALGIERS-1945-Sherlock Holmes (Basil Rathbone) and Dr. Watson (Nigel Bruce) are planning a vacation in Scotland. After some mumbo-jumbo about fish & chips, a committee wants Holmes to escort Prince Nicolas (Leslie Vincent), young heir to the throne of his native country Rovenia. The intrepid duo split up with the doctor taking a boat to the Mediterranean while Holmes takes a mysterious airline ride. For a short time Watson believes Holmes is dead but he shows up on board alive with Nicolas who then pretends to be Watson's nephew. A sinister trio, Gregor (Rex Evans), Mirko (Martin Kosleck) and Gubec (Wee Willie Davis) are after the prince. A woman named Shelia (Marjorie Riordan) carries the stolen jewels of a duchess. A twist ending reveals who the real future king is. Final scene seems edited.

 Once again this “modern day” Holmes mystery was produced and directed by Roy William Neill. PURSUIT makes mention of several “unrecorded” Holmes cases including “The Giant Rat of Sumatra”. It's also the only entry that has no scenes at the Baker Street flat so Mrs. Hudson doesn't appear. John Abbot has a small role though.

This was the 12th of 14 Holmes/Watson stories produced by Universal. TERROR BY NIGHT was next.

Thanks for reading!

The Black Sleep

THE BLACK SLEEP-1956-Dr. Cadman (Basil Rathbone) has discovered the title drug and uses it on his former student Ramsey (Herb Rudley) who was suppose to be hanged for murder. Cadman needs Ramsey to assist him in his brain operations. No sooner do they get to his castle home when they meet the brutish Mongo (Lon Chaney Jr.) who's attacking Laurie (Patricia Blair), one of Cadman's nurses. It turns out Mongo is Laurie's father and once a respected doctor. Now only another nurse Daphne (Phyllis Stanley) can control him. At first Ramsey thinks Cadman is brilliant but during an operation he realizes while the black sleep can induce a coma like effect the patient can still feel pain. This doesn't seem to bother Cadman in the least and Ramsey sees that his former teacher is insane and his real goal is to cure his comatose wife. The doctor has a mute servant Casimir (Bela Lugosi) and a gypsy grave robber Udu (Akim Tamiroff) who helps him out. Cadman is a full grown nut who cares nothing about human life and has a basement full of failed experiments in his dungeon to prove it. The “patients” include Curry (Tor Johnson), a big now blind guy, a bible spouting long hair crazy guy Borg (John Carradine), the (now disfigured) sailor (George Sawaya) they operated on earlier and bald girl (Sally Yarnell) with patches of hair all over her body. Of course they rise up and attack, causing Mr. and Mrs. Cadman to fall to their deaths.

THE BLACK SLEEP is always described as an “all star horror” movie and on paper it is. But most of the cast is wasted. Chaney is a dumb grunting henchman, Tor sits around looking “Lobo-ish” (although they do show a “before” picture of his character looking kind of dapper!) and worst of all the great Lugosi in his final full length movie role as the mute butler! Whoever thought this was a good idea should have been injected with “the black sleep” themselves! At least they put Carradine's voice to good use! Rathbone is great as the mad scientist and Tamiroff and Rudley are ok in supporting roles. 

Director Reginald Le Borg had already worked with Lon Chaney in '40's on THE MUMMY'S GHOST and “The Inner Sanctum” series. The next year he directed the disappointing VOODOO ISLAND with Boris Karloff (at least he got to speak...).

  Thanks for reading!

Country Western Horror Comedy

HILLBILLYS IN A HAUNTED HOUSE-1967-On their way to Nashville, country and western singers Woody (Ferlin Husky), Boots (Joi Lansing) and Jeepers (Don Bowman) spend the night in a haunted house, actually the hideout of some spies lead by Madame Wong (Linda Ho) with her bodyguard Max (Lon Chaney also in the much more enjoyable SPIDER BABY the same year), Gregor (Basil Rathbone) and Dr. Himmil (John Carradine). After Sonny James and his band visit and sing two songs, the group meets Wong and Max. She lets them spend the night and Merle Haggard shows up on their TV set to do a song (Max also makes a appearance). The spies think the yokels are from an organization called MOTHER and use their pet gorilla Anatole (George Barrows; the veteran man in an ape suit who'd “starred” in ROBOT MONSTER) to frighten them. Mother Agent #30 (Richard Webb) shows up and kills Anatole and Carradine. He and Max scuffle. They are all saved by the ghost of a Confederate war general. 

This crazy nonsense is a sequel to the previous year's LAS VEGAS HILLBILLIES which also featured Husky as Woody but has Mamie Van Doren in the Boots role and Jayne Mansefield. Veteran director Jean Yarbrough who had worked with Abbott and Costello and The Bowery Boys was directing episodes of TV's “Petticoat Junction” at the time.

Thanks for reading!

Universal Horror Classic

SON OF FRANKENSTEIN-1939-At Castle Frankenstein, several years after the events in BRIDE, broken necked Ygor (Bela Lugosi) hangs around scaring children. Frankenstein's son Wolf (Basil Rathbone) comes to town to collect his inheritance. He brings along his wife Elsa (Josephine Hutchinson) and young son Peter (Donnie Dunagan). They have no idea what they are getting into! 

It's great to see Karloff back as the monster (in Jack Pierce's legendary make-up) for the last time even if he really doesn't do much until the finale. Another highlight is the clipped banter between Wolf and the memorable Inspector Krogh (Lionel Atwill) whose wooden arm replaces the one the monster “tore out by the roots” when he was a child. And of course there's Lugosi's Ygor, the broken necked body snatcher who was once pronounced dead (“They die dead. Ygor died live!”) who now uses the revived monster to carry out his revenge on those who condemned him (including Lionel Belmore). Ward Bond has a small unbilled role and some viewers claim Dwight Frye is also in it! 

Producer-director Roland V. Lee keeps things interesting with cavernous sets and shadowy lighting plus a gigantic sulfur pit. The screenplay was written by Willis Cooper, creator the the radio show “Lights Out”. SON, two Mr. Moto entries and providing the story for the serial THE PHANTOM CREEPS with Lugosi) were about all his film credits. SON kind of “ushered out” the first wave of horror films in the sound era and they would never be the same there after...

Thanks for reading!

What Place Is This?

A COMEDY OF TERRORS-1963-AIP presents an all star comedy horror story that takes place in the late 1800's . An undertaker named Turnbull (Vincent Price) is an alcoholic who's horrible to his wife Margolis (Joyce Jameson)) and partner Mr. Gille (Peter Lorre) and is always trying to poison his deaf senile father in law (Boris Karloff). His business isn't doing so well so he goes out at night and kills an old man then conveniently shows up to take care of the funeral but then the old man's widow beats it out with paying. When his stern landlord Mr. Black (Basil Rathbone) demands payment of the rent Turnbull decides to do away with him and have him as a customer. They invade his house to find him reciting Macbeth out loud and swinging a sword. He seems to die from an attack and Turnbull steps in to get the body but Black isn't dead. He keeps popping up with a cry of “What place is this?”. Later when Turnbull rejects his wife for good she and Gille profess their love for one another. Black escapes his coffin with the help of a caretaker (Joe E. Brown in his last role) and gets an ax. While quoting Shakespeare he searches for Turnbull who winds up shooting Black who takes a long time to die! After it seems like everyone is dead they all wake up. Someone calls the police and Gilles and Margolis run away. Dad winds up giving Turnbull the poison. 

Though it has all the earmarks of a Roger Corman film, including an original screenplay by Richard Matheson, THE COMEDY OF TERRORS was the second to last film directed by Jacques Tourneur (CAT PEOPLE, I WALK WITH A ZOMBIE, CURSE OF THE DEMON). His last WAR-GODS OF THE DEEP (1965) was also for AIP and starred Vincent Price. 

Originally it was planned for Karloff to play the Mr. Black role but age and back problems forced him to switch roles with Rathbone, who's very funny.  It's great to see Price teamed with Lorre once again in another enjoyable  comedy/horror outing. 

Matheson had planned a sequel but COMEDY did not perform up to executive producers Samuel Arkoff and James Nicolson's expectations, so no sequel was produced.   

Thanks for reading!

The Magic of Mr. BIG

THE MAGIC SWORD-1962-A sorceress named Sibyl (Estelle Parsons) lives with a chimp and her two headed servant in an underground cave. Also there is her adopted son George (Gary Lockwood) who falls in love with princess Helene (Anne Helms) who's image he sees in a magic pond. When he sees her menaced by a spirit with green eyes he wants to help her. She's then kidnapped by evil sorcerer Lodac (Basil Rathbone) who plans to feed her to his dragon as revenge on her father, the king (Merrit Stone). George insists on helping her but Sibyl says he's too young to take on such a powerful foe. Foolishly, she shows him some gifts he will receive when he's 21: a magic horse, a suit of armor and a sword and 6 knights from different nations. Wickedly, he traps her in the cellar and takes the items. He and the six knights travel to the king and announce they will save the princess despite having to face Lodac's “seven curses” on the way. The king's man Brandon (Liam Sullivan) goes with them and it's clear from the start he is up to no good (of course he's in league with Lodac). 

The curses include a giant ogre (not a good effect), a deadly lake, a French pleasant woman who becomes a vampire like hag (Maila Nurmi aka Vampira), extreme heat and creepy green ghost heads. All the knights are killed and George has to enter Lodac's castle by himself encountering mean dwarfs and weird bald servants who eat little people. Thanks to Sybil's meddling, George loses all his magic power and is imprisoned. While the princess is readied for dragon food, the little people escape their cages and free George who gets his magic back and slays the two headed fire breathing dragon (that looks like Gorgo). Brandon's head winds up on a trophy wall and Sibyl turns into a panther and kills Lodac. Somehow all the deceased knights show up alive at George's wedding to the princess.

THE MAGIC SWORD was directed by Mr. BIG himself Burt I. Gordon who after overseeing such low budget but entertaining 50's drive-in “classics” like THE AMAZING COLOSSAL MAN (and it's sequel) and ATTACK OF THE PUPPET PEOPLE seems to have taken one giant leap with this technicolor sword and sorcery adventure tale. While the imaginative SFX (created by BIG and his wife Flora) aren't the greatest the inclusion of Rathbone, Lockwood, Winwood, Sullivan and Vampira make this seem like an all star cast! I think I saw Angelo Rossitto in one scene.

Thanks for reading!

Basil Before Sherlock

THE BISHOP MURDER CASE-1930-Basil Rathbone portrays detective Philo Vance in this early talkie. It involves several mysterious murders (one by bow and arrow). Vance uses a lot of analytical theorizing and there’s a comic know it all sergeant who helps out. I wonder if anyway remembered this when Rathbone was picked to first play Sherlock Holmes (in 1939) ?

Co-Star Leila Hyams was later in FREAKS and ISLAND OF LOST SOULS. She was a popular actress in the early ‘30’s but her screen career lasted only around ten years. Other co-star Roland Young later played “Topper” in a series of films and future director Delmer Daves has a small role.

Director Nick Grinde’s career began in the 1920’s. He was a fast competent worker but mostly his output remains undistinguished except for three of Boris Karloff’s “mad doctor” films. He uses several nice techniques in TBMC and keeps it from being more than just a filmed play as many early talkies were.

The Philo Vance character was created in 1926 by S.S. Van Dine (real name: Willard Huntington Vance) and was featured in 11 novels. TBMC was the fourth adaptation of a Dine novel to feature the Vance character. William Powell played him in the first three (and would play him once more in 1933) but this was the only time Rathbone portrayed him.

Warren William Paul Lukas Edmund Lowe and others would play him in the future but the last film
featuring the character would be in 1947.



Thanks for reading!

Elementary My Dear Blogger

TERROR BY NIGHT-Universal-1946-Murder On The Orient Express Sherlock Holmes style. Basil Rathbone and Nigel Bruce return as Arthur Conan Doyle’s famous duo.

Holmes is called in to protect the famed “Star Of India”. Nearly all of the story takes place on a moving train bound for Scotland. Of course, the diamond gets stolen and there are a few murders, most from a poison dart. Suspects naturally, abound. A mysterious woman (Vivian Vedder) with a coffin (that has a secret compartment), a conductor (the always creepy Skelton Knaggs), a cranky professor (Frederick Worlock) and Watson’s old friend (Alan Mowbray) are all suspects. Holmes deduces that it could be the work of Col. Sebastian Moran, a former henchman of the insidious Dr. Moriarty! But no one knows what he looks like! Inspector LeStrade (Dennis Hoey) is on board too and he and Holmes actually work together for a change. Watson is his usual incompetent self until the climax where he actually helps out a bit!

This was the second to last entry in the very successful series, all of them (since SHERLOCK HOLMES AND THE SECRET WEAPON in 1942) directed (and produced and even occasionally written) by Roy William Neil, the underrated veteran responsible for THE BLACK ROOM (1935), FRANKENSTEIN MEETS THE WOLF MAN (1943) and a host of others. Sadly, he died later in ’46 at the age of 59 after making two more pictures. Screenwriter Frank Gruber wrote MASK OF DIMITRIOS (1944) and the last Holmes effort DRESSED TO KILL. Make-up was provided by the soon to be released master, Jack Pierce.

Because this blog is up in the air and backwards, I reviewed the last Rathbone/Holmes movie first. Here's the link in case you are interested:

moviemeltdown.blogspot.com/2008/07/curse-of-mr-basilbone.html

Thanks for reading!

The Curse of Mr. Basilbone

DRESSED TO KILL-1946 –Basil Rathbone & Nigel Bruce played Sherlock Holmes and Dr. Watson respectively for the final time in the last of the series produced by Universal Pictures.

This time Holmes investigates the connection between some small music boxes and some stolen 5 pound minting plates. Patricia Morison (who later became a Broadway star) plays the ruthless and cunning villainess who manages to outwit Holmes at one point and nearly has him asphyxiated! Watson does his usual bumbling but it’s one of the weakest entries despite being helmed by producer/director William Roy Neill (who’d worked on the series since 1943). 

The famous duo discuss another Holmes case “A Scandal In Bohemia” throughout the film (although Universal never adapted that story) and one crucial scene is actually taken from it. Also featured are Holmes Herbert, Ian Wolfe and Mary Gordon once again as Mrs. Hudson, the housekeeper.

Conspicuously absent is Dennis Hoey as Inspector LeStrade.

After this Rathbone refused to sign another contract to appear in the Holmes role. Since he was so identified with the character (a major reason why he wouldn’t re-sign) Universal dropped the whole series entirely! Though he would continue to make other films and even win a Tony Award in 1948 (for THE HEIRESS) the role of Holmes would always dog Rathbone. However according to The Internet Movie Database he planned to re-create the role and reunite with Nigel Bruce for a stage play in the 1950’s but Bruce died before the plan was realized.

"A consultant is someone who saves his client almost enough money to pay his fee"-Arnold Glasgow

Thanks for reading!