Horror Movies | Hollywood Yesterday

Elsa Lanchester as the Bride of Frankenstein: One of My Favorite Old Hollywood Monsters

October 31, 2020 By Joi Leave a Comment

Elsa Lanchester as The Bride of Frankenstein

As I’ve said before on Hollywood Yesterday, I am one of the only people in the world who doesn’t like The Bride of Frankenstein.

Like… at all.

For one thing, Frankenstein’s monster, himself, simply doesn’t do it for me. I hated the book and wasn’t remotely fond of the first Frankenstein film. However, these aren’t the only reasons I have such contempt for The Bride of Frankenstein. The greatest reason I don’t like it has to do with the lovely monster you see here…. the big lug’s bride.

With the absolutely, devastatingly wonderful Elsa Lanchester in the role, they had the opportunity to make possibly the greatest movie ever made and create one of the greatest stories ever told. Had she been presented early in the movie and had she actually been the star (or at the very least, the co-star) of the movie – it would have been sensational. Even her makeup is extraordinary!

As it is, she is on screen for mere minutes (minutes which are, without a doubt, the best part of the whole movie).

Mind you, these are only my opinions and, yes, I’m very aware that I’m in the minority with this one. Heck, I may even be a minority of one!

It is what it is, though, and I will forever wish this film had been handled differently. This was one of the greatest, most talented actresses of all time and she would have been extraordinary in her own film. I’ll never forget the first time I saw this movie. I kept waiting for the movie’s namesake to show up… I waited, and waited, and waited… then there she was – in spectacular glory! – right before the movie ended.

Years later, I rewatched the movie – thinking that maybe, knowing how little she was in the film, I’d give the rest of it a fair chance.

Nope. Still didn’t like it.

I’ve tried, probably 8 times over the years to see if it, I don’t know, grows on me. Never has. I simply do not like it, I guess. Which is crazy because I am a huge fan of Boris Karloff and I absolutely LOVE Elsa in the role!

Elsa Lanchester as the Bride of Frankenstein

The Bat Lobby Card: Vincent Price, Agnes Moorhead, and Lenita Lane

October 30, 2018 By Joi Leave a Comment

The Bat Lobby Card

The Bat (1959) is a fun movie that doesn’t take itself too seriously. Is it a “scary” film? Not by any stretch of the imagination (unless you’re 3-1/2), but it is a hoot.

The film stars Vincent Price, Agnes Moorehead, Lenita Lane (excellent with Agnes Moorehead), Gavin Gordon, Darla Hood (yes, that Darla.. you will recognize her IMMEDIATELY as Alfalfa’s buddy), and the ridiculously beautiful Elaine Edwards.

Check this one out when you get a chance. The best things about it are Vincent Price (always worth the Price of admission), the camaraderie between Moorehead and Lane, and the sight of Darla’s sweet little face on a beautifully filled out female figure!

Surprisingly, you can find The Bat on DVD on Amazon. I say “surprisingly” because there have been a lot of great “off the beaten track” old movies I can’t find on dvd. I plan to take advantage of this one being available and adding it to my Vincent Price collection!

The Bat (1959)

The Bat: FUN Classic Horror Movie With Agnes Moorehead and Vincent Price (Review)

October 8, 2018 By Joi Leave a Comment

Vincent Price and Gavin Gordon in The Bat

Although the weather here in Kentucky doesn’t seem to have gotten the memo, we are fast-approaching Halloween. What better time to focus a few movie reviews on delicious old horror films?!

First up to bat… well… The Bat!

I’m sure I’ve mentioned in my Old Hollywood movie reviews before that there are precious few classic movies I dislike. I am so completely in love with the Golden Age of Hollywood that I’m very easy to please when it comes to movies. Honestly, I’d rather re-watch the movies I don’t particularly like (Frankenstein, Bride of Frankenstein, The Prince and the Showgirl, Mogambo) than to watch anything from Hollywood since 1980.

But that’s just me.

So, there will inevitably be movies now and then that I like or even love that others (possibly even you) may feel lukewarm about or even hate with a vengeance. The movie I want to rave about today might just be the poster child for such a situation. In fact, I’m not sure I’ve ever read anyone liking The Bat as much as I do.

The Bat was made in 1959, so you have to be understanding when it comes to special effects. Of course, those of us who pretty much live for our next old movie understand that.

The movie stars the always perfect Vincent Price and one of my favorite actresses, Agnes Moorehead. The wonderful cast is round out by Lenita Lane, Gavin Gordon, BEAUTIFUL Elaine Edwards (all caps… yes, deserving), John Sutton, and Darla Hood. Yes! That Darla Hood, from The Little Rascals. You’ll know her the minute she walks in the room – same face, same hair. It’s as though little Darla was simply stretched out and gussied up. Her role isn’t a large one, but she’s memorable.

Plot: A crazy killer known as “The Bat” is on the loose in a mansion (“The Oaks”) filled with people. Agnes Moorehead plays mystery writer Cornelia Van Gorder who has rented The Oaks, along with her secretary/friend Lizzie (played by Lenita Lane… quite the scene-stealer).

{Review Continued Below…}

Agnes Moorehead in The Bat

Agnes Moorehead, Vincent Price, and Lenita Lane are outstanding in this movie. Somehow it just seems Mr. Price was born for this type of film, doesn’t it!?

Ironically, in an interview on Sinister Image in 1987, Vincent Price revealed that the stage version of “The Bat” had absolutely terrified him when he was a child. Apparently this is why he accepted the role in this film because he thought the filmmakers “would revive it and bring it up to date.” Sadly, he was disappointed with the final result because he didn’t believe it was a good script.

Could the script have been better? Well, yes. But that simply points out how wonderful the cast and director were to take an “okay” script and make a very entertaining film out of it.

The Bat would be the last film for both Lenita Lane and Darla Hood. Each actress would go on to live out their life outside of movies rather than in them.

The Bat isn’t, in my opinion, a very frightening film, but it IS very enjoyable and entertaining and absolutely perfect for this time of year!

On Amazon:

Vincent Price 5 Frightening Features (The Bat, Shock, The Jackals, The Last Man on Earth, and House on Haunted Hill )
Horror Hall of Fame Gift Set (Vincent Price, Boris Karloff, Donald Sutherland, Christopher Lee, Peter Cushing…)

Boris Karloff: One of the Pioneers of Classic Horror Films (The Man Behind Frankenstein and The Mummy)

September 19, 2017 By Joi Leave a Comment

Boris Karloff as Frankenstein’s Monster

Hello, handsome! The face above needs no introductions. Frankenstein’s monster is as synonymous with horror movies and Halloween as Fred Astaire is with musicals. You could argue that the wonderful Boris Karloff is the Fred Astaire of horror films and, as far as I’m concerned you’d be right. Dead right. Sorry, I couldn’t pass that one up.

With Halloween right around the creepy corner, I thought it’d be the ideal time to look at classic horror movies and the stars who brought them to life.

When they first hit the scene in 1912, Universal Studios focused primarily on melodramas and action films (such as Westerns). However, in 1923 they found a deliciously fun new niche and rode it like a cowboy on caffeine. This is the year Lon Chaney (one of the studios biggest silent movie stars) rocked the movie world when he starred as Quasimodo in The Hunchback of Notre Dame.

It was also around this time (late 1920s – early 1930s) that several actors and directors from Germany immigrated to America and went to work at Universal.

Universal, and the world, would never be the same!

“Most had worked in German Expressionism, which they introduced to Hollywood through low-key lighting techniques, set design preferences, and a penchant for visual symbolism. This was the birth of the American horror genre as we know it.” – Armchair Reader Goes Hollywood

William Henry Pratt was born on November 23, 1887, in London, England. When he entered the entertainment industry, he took the stage name Boris Karloff. When he came to Hollywood, he worked as a truck driver to help support himself while picking up work in the silent film industry.

The Deadlier Sex (1920), Omar the Tentmaker (1922), Dynamite Dan(1924) and Tarzan and the Golden Lion (1927) are a few of his pre-Horror movie films.

His big.. and I mean huge… break came in 1931 when he was cast as “the monster” in Universal’s Frankenstein (1931). While the film ultimately made Boris Karloff a star, he was actually billed as a punctuation mark in this film’s credits! He’s listed simply as “?” in the opening credits. The movie and Boris were hits and he quickly racked up other memorable roles in movies including the The Old Dark House (1932), The Mask of Fu Manchu (1932), The Mummy (1932), The Ghoul (1933), and The Lost Patrol (1934).

Karloff returned to his neck bolts in 1935 with the wonderful Bride of Frankenstein (1935) and in 1939 film, Son of Frankenstein, which if we’re being honest, is one we Karloff fans want to forget.

I mean, everyone else has.

The Mummy was directed by Karl Freund, Germany’s greatest Cinematographer. Karloff starred as Im-Ho-Tep (the monster who returns to life). The lighting, angles, and use of shadows Freund employed in The Mummy defined classic horror films for years to come.

Karloff is also remembered for his appearances in several Abbott and Costello monster movies (always FUN!): Abbott and Costello Meet the Killer, Boris Karloff in 1949 and Abbott and Costello Meet Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde in 1953.

While his career included a wealth of interesting roles and movies, he is most associated with his monstrous performances and for being one of the talents that defined the horror film industry.

Personally, I remember him for these wonderful roles and for one another, equally wonderful role… as the narrator of How the Grinch Stole Christmas! “You’re a mean one, Mr. Grinch…”

Boris Karloff died in 1969 at the age of 81.