The Black Room (1935).

Review #2454: The Black Room (1935).

Cast: 

Boris Karloff (Baron Gregor de Berghmann / Anton de Berghmann), Marian Marsh (Thea Hassel), Robert Allen (Lt. Albert Lussan), Thurston Hall (Col. Paul Hassel), Katherine DeMille (Maska), John Buckler (Buran), Henry Kolker (Baron de Bergman), Colin Tapley (Lt. Paul Hassel), and Torben Meyer (Peter)

Directed by Roy William Neill (#846 - Frankenstein Meets the Wolf Man, #873 - Sherlock Holmes and the Secret Weapon, #925 - Sherlock Holmes in Washington, #936 - Sherlock Holmes Faces Death, #1021 - The Spider Woman, #1040 - The Scarlet Claw, #1056 - The Pearl of Death, #1161 - The House of Fear, #1216 - The Woman in Green, #1262 - Pursuit to Algiers, #1620 - Terror by Night, #1681 - Dressed to Kill)

Review: 

Sure, let's see someone play double for historical horror. This was made by Columbia Pictures with the original intent of being titled "The Black Room Mystery" that had Boris Karloff appear in a one-off from them, doing so in the year where you could see him in Bride of Frankenstein and The Raven but without being billed as just "KARLOFF" or with as much makeup this time around. The evident choice to direct was to go with Roy William Neill, a dependable vet for many movies (some for Columbia, as one does when directing since the 1910s) in one of his last films before moving to London for a five-year visit in 1935; for whatever reason, he is billed as "R. William Neill" in the movie. I assume from the varying levels of information one could find about the movie (i.e. one that had a story from Arthur Strawn, who was credited with writing the film with Henry Myers) that the movie has languished a bit in obscurity, but Karloff kept busy with performances at any rate.

It is a neat little movie, when you get down to it. The 68-minute runtime lends itself to a welcome surprise when you figure that Karloff really is playing three roles: a benevolent nice twin, his evil (and older) twin brother...and the impersonation of the former by the latter. You might wonder what the title is about, and, well, it refers to a room where apparently an older brother will be killed by his young brother in a certain room of the castle (yep, it's a baron who worries about his sons, particularly since he'll die before they get old). Why the room wasn't just sealed up way, way before is anybody's guess (of course it is sealed up early in the movie only to be revealed to be in use again). For a movie that has a good chunk spent in a castle setting to go along with the usual melodrama approach of its time (a bit of haughty stuff and stuff you hear about more than see, some for obvious reason). It is evident Karloff is pretty good in the movie, specifically when playing his dastardly evil twin that shows more malice in what he is shown to do more than if he was simply in an effects-laden role (or in a less subtle movie about someone throwing women in a pit). His impersonation of the good twin (remember he is meant to have a bad arm) is especially fascinating, one that we know has cracks in the foundation but is still amusing to see how long he could actually pull off the act of benevolence. The rest of the actors are fine, with Marsh pulling in a bit of despair to come from being the object of a supposed nice person that can't even write their own fate (spoiler, it is a dog who plays into the climax). At least the climax is a hoot, finding a way around the whole "wait, how does one die by someone's hand?" thing before swiftly ending. In a way, it is like a fairy tale (okay Joe Dante said that [in regard to the sets], but judge for yourself anyway) with a dash of macabre that is worth looking into more than just being for those who like Karloff. In general, you have a solidly fine movie, not a great one by any means beside possibly its set design and ways around having someone play two roles on the same screen, but it is still a neat one to go with for those who like a bit of Gothic melodrama.

Overall, I give it 7 out of 10 stars.

Double Door.

Review #1839: Double Door.

Cast: 

Evelyn Venable (Anne Darrow), Mary Morris (Victoria Van Brett), Anne Revere (Caroline Van Brett), Kent Taylor (Rip Van Brett), Guy Standing (Mortimer Neff), Colin Tapley (Dr. John Lucas), Virginia Howell (Avery), and Halliwell Hobbes (Mr. Chase) Directed by Charles Vidor.

Review: 

Sure, what is there to really expect from a movie that is billed in its opening credits as "The play that made Broadway gasp"? The play was written by Elizabeth A. McFadden and had been performed in 1933. The film script was done by Jack Cunningham and Gladys Lehman, who each wrote dozens of films in Hollywood. Who knows where the inspiration came from, but one can always wonder where the minds of eccentric millionaires go to wander, whether that involves the current age or famous ones like the Wendel family, a New York family with a famously frugal head brother that ruled over the affairs of his sisters with iron grip (the last of the Wendels died in 1931). Morris and Revere are reprising their roles from the original production, as done in New York for over a hundred performances. This was the third feature film for Charles Vidor (second credited). Born in Hungary, he developed an interest in film after serving in World War I, and he moved to the United States in 1922. He worked as an assistant to Alexander Korda alongside other jobs in productions before his first film in The Bridge (1929 short) got him his first chances to work with studios. He worked with a variety of studios such as MGM, Monogram Pictures, and Paramount Pictures before his death in 1959 at the age of 58.

Well, it is a chamber thriller full of petty domestic strife that seems ripe for a stage-bound film like this, one with name actors in a production that doesn't need many sets or much to really drive itself beside careful pacing. Think about it: you really would not change too much going from stage to film even now, if only because adding shades of gray to the lead character wouldn't really add to much to the overall story that can be boiled down to "crazy relatives with too much money and time to spend on people". The 75 minute run-time means a fairly efficient film that doesn't go off to any unnecessary tangents or become overdrawn in hysterics. Morris (not to be confused with the Fijian-British actress of the same name) studied at Radcliffe College and made her professional debut on stage in 1916 (where she would act for the next forty years); she made exactly one film appearance: this film, doing so at the age of 39. Yes, you read that right, because here she is playing a character likely twice her actual age and doing so with no real trouble at all. This results in quite a steely performance, one with the timing of a rattlesnake waiting to stalk prey that fits the bill of one loves to hate. Venable is technically the other main star (i.e. the outsider in a family drama), and she does fine in making a suitable presence to follow without just being a goody-goody broomstick actor. The climax between the two involving a soundproof vault door proves suitable in terms of wicked interest (seeming a bit like The Cask of Amontillado). Taylor is the man in the middle, and he does alright in maintaining balance for useful chemistry with Venable without being a pale square, capturing the machinations that come with trying to break free from what one was to become what one believes they should be. This was the first feature film for Revere, who would star in roughly three dozen features as a character actor alongside work in television and theater that resulted in an Academy Award and a Tony Award. She does well here in a performance built to be wrapped around Morris with desperation that proves quite convincing. Standing and the others are okay in being the neutral set-pieces to the action (that word is used for confrontations of words, remember), since no one really overacts or under-acts the scenarios presented. The final shot is a doozy, since it actually ends with someone giving out a scream before the "The End" title card appears. As a whole, the movie proves suitable for a watch for what it draws in its effective one-of-a-kind performance from Morris and the rest of the crew with useful pacing from Vidor that makes for a solid recommendation on a curious day.

Overall, I give it 8 out of 10 stars.