The Black Cat (1934)

Director:

Edgar G. Ulmer

Writers:

Edgar Allan Poe (story)
Edgar G. Ulmer (screen story) ...

Release Date:

7 May 1934 (USA)

Genre:

Horror | Crime | Adventure | Thriller

Tagline:

Things you never said before or even dreamed of!

Plot:

American honeymooners in Hungary are trapped in the home of a Satan- worshiping priest when the bride is taken there for medical help following a road accident.

Plot Keywords:

Hungary | Chess | Storm | Prisoner Of War | Architect

Cast

Boris Karloff	...	Hjalmar Poelzig (as Karloff)
Bela Lugosi	...	Dr. Vitus Werdegast
David Manners	...	Peter Alison
Julie Bishop	...	Joan Alison (as Jacqueline Wells)
Egon Brecher	...	The Majordomo
Harry Cording	...	Thamal, Werdegast's Servant
Lucille Lund	...	Karen Werdegast Poelzig
Henry Armetta	...	Police Sergeant
Albert Conti	...	Police Lieutenant

Also Known As:

The House of Doom (UK)
The Vanishing Body (USA) (reissue title)

Runtime:

65 min

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Color:

Black and White

Aspect Ratio:

1.37 : 1

Sound Mix:

Mono (Western Electric Noiseless Recording)

Certification:

Finland:K-16 (1987) | UK:15 | Australia:PG | Finland:(Banned) (1936) | USA:Approved (PCA #4601) (11 August 1938 for re-release)

Filming Locations:

Universal Studios - 100 Universal City Plaza, Universal City, California, USA

Company:

Universal Pictures

Trivia:

The ill-fated bus driver is a direct homage to the doorman in Der letzte Mann (1924), on which Edgar G. Ulmer worked as Production Designer.

Goofs:

Revealing mistakes: One of the women in Poelzig's glass coffins visibly moves while he is admiring her.

Quotes:

Peter Allison: I don't know. It all sounds like a lot of supernatural baloney to me.
Dr. Vitus Verdegast: Supernatural, perhaps. Baloney, perhaps not. There are many things under the sun.

Movie Connections:

Featured in "Svengoolie: The Black Cat" (2006)

Soundtrack:

Les Preludes

Lugosi + Karloff = Fireworks!

I can't imaging how this movie would have been without both Bela Lugosi and Boris Karloff, probably very very bad. The chemistry between the two is amazing.

This is one of those movies in which the story absolutely doesn't matter. The story is totally absurd and very simple (The black cat storyline has absolutely nothing to do with the movie and serves no purpose at all) but yet that is what maybe makes this movie extremely fun and easy to watch.

Watching this movie made me realize something; Bela Lugosi actually was a very good actor that was ahead of his time. The way he delivers his lines and his eye for details shows that acting was a great passion for him. Yes I think I can now be considered one of his fans.

Another great thing were the sets that were wonderful and even now 70 years later they still look very modern.

Don't expect a movie with ghouls and monsters, it rather is more fun to watch then it is scary and the Lugosi/Karloff combination is what makes this movie a real classic.

7/10