In 1932, a year after their smash hit Frankenstein, star Boris Karloff reteamed with director James Whale to make The Old Dark House. Karloff appeared here as Morgan, the unruly servant to a house filled with weirdos whom the Addams Family would be proud to know. Fans of Karloff may be disappointed with the small role that he had--despite the fact that Karloff received top billing in the credits. As writer James Curtis states in his smartly done commentary, Karloff fans would have to wait another few months until the release of The Mummy before they could see Karloff in a substantial role. Faithfully based on the novel by J.B. Priestley, Whale’s take on The Old Dark House is a bit more funny, with humorous line readings by the cast from dialogue that was largely lifted directly from the novel.
Melvyn Douglas, Lilian Bond and Dr. Kildare himself, Raymond Massey, all starred
as the hapless travelers who have no choice but to pull over at the first house
they see for a respite from a bad rain storm--only to find themselves facing
mystery and danger ay every turn. Charles Laughton also appears as Sir William
Porterhouse, another traveler who has stopped at The Old Dark House for the night.
Although this film was shot first, and was technically Laughton’s first American
film, it was held back as a favor to Paramount Pictures, who lent Laughton to
Universal for TODH. Although it was shot later, Paramount’s Laughton film,
Devil and the Deep, became known as Laughton’s American debut because it came out
first. As for the film itself--well, let’s just say that The Old Dark House is a bit creaky.
It doesn’t age very well in the almost 80 years since its release. It feels
very stilted, and both the humor and horror is very overwrought and melodramatic.
Not much happens for a while except lengthy conversations (which are still made
interesting by the superb acting), and the blocking also makes it feel like
you’re watching a live stage play. But leave it to James Whale to still add a
little flair to the dry proceedings, thanks to his ingenious use of camerawork.
He uses distorted reflections to show how warped a character is, and his use of
close ups is just as striking here as when he used them to introduce the
creature in Frankenstein. The Old Dark House is a fun viewing experience for
film buffs like myself, but casual viewers may want to watch the DVD with the
fascinating commentary by Mr. Curtis, which is filled with handy information and
tidbits about the film and the people who worked on it.
--SF
Main Review Page | Horror Page | Email Me | Buy The Old Dark House On DVD Here!
