The Bloody Pit #229 - BLACK DRAGONS (1942)

David Annandale and I walk back down Poverty Row just after the attack on Pearl Harbor to watch one of the most confusing and strange attempts at wartime propaganda a low budget studio could produce. BLACK DRAGONS (1942) has Bela Lugosi as a mysterious, menacing man who seems to be on a mission of revenge. But what does he have to do with the corpses that keep popping up on the steps of the Japanese embassy in Washington? Will FBI agent Clayton Moore be able to figure things out or will he spend his time chasing Joan Barclay around her uncle/father’s house until all the characters are dead? And how does David find a way to link Christopher Nolan and Bela Lugosi? Listen and learn!

 

BLACK DRAGONS is probably the oddest of the nine films Lugosi made for Poverty Row film producers and certainly the one with the most unintentionally funny dialog. Just as it was about to go into production the decision was made to shoehorn in topical plot elements ripped from the headlines. This means that the original reason behind events in the script has been lost leaving bits of their probable supernatural nature flapping around in the film. This is the only explanation I can imagine for the never addressed ability of Lugosi’s Monsieur Colomb to seemingly teleport in and out of moving taxicabs! But David has an interesting take on the film as a bizarre treatise on the subject of ‘acting’ both onscreen and within the structure of the story. His idea is a bold way to look at the picture as a whole and certainly makes it more entertaining as you try to figure out what the hell is happening at any point in the film’s hourlong running time. Rarely has such a barely planned collection of quirks and gaffs been so mesmerizing!

 

If you have any comments about this movie or any other film we’ve covered on the show thebloodypit@gmail.com is the place to send them. Thank you for listening and we’ll be back soon. 

Video - BLACK DRAGONS (1942)

If you have never seen this mad Poverty Row horror-espionage-mystery film then here it is on YouTube! This bizarre movie is the subject of the next episode of The Bloody Pit with David Annandale and I trying to figure out not just what is happening, but what it might mean. Like a message beamed from a different universe BLACK DRAGONS has always seemed like a film reassembled from fragments left over after a fire. It isn't coherent but it is fascinating! 

BLACK DRAGONS (1942) Poster Art and Lobby Cards

Without a doubt this is one of the most incoherent movies I have ever watched more than ten times. And I'll watch it again, I promise!

 

Happy Thanksgiving!

Remember to share the roast beast.

 

MARK OF THE VAMPIRE (1935) Poster Art and Publicity Photos

Rewatched this very entertaining film the other night and was reminded of all its fine elements and why so many are frustrated by it. On my first viewing years ago I was peeved by the ending too but I've come to an appreciation of it that makes it a great addition to my annual October horror film watching.
 

The Bloody Pit #202 - THE RETURN OF CHANDU (1934)

My friend Chris Herzog joins me to talk about a serial from 1934 – THE RETURN OF CHANDU! Chris hasn’t been on the show since we discussed the Johnny Weissmuller Tarzan films back in episode #15. It was Bela Lugosi’s starring role that enticed him to come back for a conversation about this fantasy adventure in which the legendary horror actor plays the heroic lead! That’s right - Lugosi is the hero in this twelve-part serial. Will wonders never cease?

 

We discuss the radio show Chandu the Magician, from which this was adapted and the 1932 film that preceded this production in which Lugosi played the villain, Roxor. Neither of us can think of another sequel that recasts the hero to be played by the actor who portrayed the bad guy in the original, but that’s what happened with Chandu. We talk about the director’s work in Hollywood and his other serials as well as his work with the great William Whitney. We point out the reused sets from KING KONG and marvel at the giant cat statue in the Lemurian temple set. Cool stuff! And we lament that Chandu’s family seems to have been put on this earth to serve as eternal victims in need of rescuing. You think he could have let one of them die just to get the others to stay home next time!

 

If you are a Bela Lugosi fan or a fan of his various serials thebloodypit@gmail is the place to let that flag fly. And if you enjoy the show let us know. Thanks for listening. 

THE RETURN OF CHANDU (1934) Poster Art and Lobby Cards

 

Video - THE RETURN OF CHANDU (1934)

For those keeping up at home, here is the subject of the next episode of The Bloody Pit podcast. Yes, it is a little creaky and the number of characters that seem to have been born to be cult victims are far too numerous but it has Bela Lugosi playing the hero! How often have you seen that? 

Trailers From Hell - THE DEVIL BAT (1940)

Joe Dante talks a little about the Bela Lugosi Poverty row classic THE DEVIL BAT (1940). I love this movie!

The Bloody Pit #161 - It's Alive! by Julian David Stone

This episode I welcome writer Julian David Stone to discuss his new novel, It’s Alive! The book explores the struggle to produce FRANKENSTEIN (1931) at Universal Studio. Stone’s story uses the perspectives of Bela Lugosi, Boris Karloff and studio head Carl Laemmle, Jr. to relate the difficult path to getting that revered classic film off the ground. We get inside the heads of this trio of talented people giving us an insightful view of each and their motivations during this important period in film history. Fans of the Universal classic horror movies often think of these films in terms of one success leading inevitably to another but the resistance to bringing these macabre tales to the screen was strong. ‘It’s Alive’ presents an excellent look at the battle to create not just one movie but an entire cycle of them that changed how Hollywood thought about horror cinema.

Of course, I can’t have a discussion that touches on the Universal horror films without the conversation spiraling out to other movies in the series. We dig a little into favorite entries including defenses of some of the underpraised films of later years. As expected, Mr. Stone is a Monster Kid from way back and his love for these film shines through. We had a great time talking and I can highly recommend It’s Alive!

If you have any comments or questions thebloodypit@gmail.com is the place to write or send voice messages. Thank you for listening and we’ll be back soon.

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The Bloody Pit #140 - FRANKENSTEIN MEETS THE WOLF MAN (1943)

Troy and I rejoin the Universal Horror Films of the 1940’s, already in progress.

With FRANKENSTEIN MEETS THE WOLF MAN (1943) Universal’s monster films took off in a radical and cinema altering direction. For the first time the studio combined characters from two different series into one new story regardless of the things that have to be ignored to make this work. In what decade are we supposed to think this movie is happening? It’s a sequel to THE WOLF MAN (1941) which took place firmly in the 1940’s but it’s also a sequel to THE GHOST OF FRANKENSTEIN (1942) which seemed to be happening in the early 1900’s. And dialog clearly states here that four years have passed since Larry Talbot was killed by his father, so mid-1940’s would seem to be accurate. But everything feels like WWI never occurred and certainly like WWII wasn’t a factor in anyone’s thinking. Welcome to the alternative world of Universal Land where several European decades are mashed together with bits taken from any time and place to create a habitat where monsters can come together to work toward shared goals. And then try to kill each other!

We plunge immediately into our long-awaited discussion of this classic, pulling on every loose plot string we can find and marveling at the bizarre changes from the previous movies. Was the last film’s finale set in a modern hospital or an ancient ancestral castle? Who cares! We just need to get a massive amount of dynamite into the hands of the local hot-headed pub owner so we can drown everyone and a castle looks much cooler being ripped apart by water. Fire last time so water this time! How did they never end one of these movies using an earthquake? It seems like the obvious next step. And then a tornado. But, I digress.

In just under two hours we talk about the fine cast, the wonderful atmosphere, the decision to edit out all of Bela Lugosi’s dialog and some subtle moments that are often overlooked even by fans. To us it seems clear that the written work of Doctor Frankenstein must be destroyed if for no other reason than it has the power to turn even the most mild-mannered physician into a mad scientist. I mean, damn! Has there ever been a faster turn to the dark side than Dr. Mannering? Were there any warning signs at all?

We hope you enjoy the show and thebloodypit@gmail.com is how we can be contacted. The next film in this series is another Sherlock adventure and we’ll have a new NaschyCast episode up soon too. Thanks for listening.

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Bela Lugosi Dracula Art

The Bloody Pit #133 - NIGHT MONSTER (1942)

Troy Guinn and I jump back to the 1940’s for our next Universal horror film of that decade.

NIGHT MONSTER (1942) has two ‘horror stars’ first billed in the credits – Bela Lugosi and Lionel Atwill – leading first time viewers to expect them to feature heavily in the scary tale being told. But both actors are relegated to supporting roles which gives unexpected players the chance to step forward and take position of possible villain. This sidelining of Lugosi and Atwill has been cited for years as the reason this is less well known than it might otherwise be, but I would argue the opposite should be true. By allowing actors not usually associated with the genre to step forward and take on the prime roles NIGHT MONSTER becomes a rare thing in Universal’s horror output on the 40’s – a real mystery! And, to make it more impressive, the film attempts to create an entirely new screen monster that the studio could have used in the future. That the choice was made to continue producing Frankenstein, Dracula and Mummy sequels probably speaks more to making safe money decisions than to a desire for new, creative monsters and that is a shame.

We enthusiastically dive into this film asking all the usual questions horror movie fans have posited for decades. We don’t have all the answers but we do have some solid speculation and a few guesses. We remark on the casting choices including having a female doctor play such a prominent role. The treatment of Hindu mysticism in the story without the expected condescension for such ‘foreign’ religions is surprising, as is the relatively adult tone of the entire affair. The film strikes a more modern attitude in several ways even if it still seems to take place in a time oddly unaware of the then current war. We also note that the film seems to drop at least one character (Lugosi’s!) from the finale without ever letting us know if he was complicit in the crimes taking place in and around the crazy old dark house. The oddest point in the show might be when I conjure a fictitious Three Dog Night song out of thin air leaving only a little blood on the floor!

If you have any comments or questions about the show thebloodypit@gmail.com is the email account and we’d love to hear from you. Thank you for listening to the show!

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Dracula Graphic Novel Featuring Bela Lugosi’s Likeness!

There is going to be a new comic adaptation of Bram Stoker’s classic Dracula from Legendary Comics and it is set to be the most faithfully version of the classic horror story yet done in graphic novel form - with one wonderful cinematic addition. Dracula has been drawn to look like Bela Lugosi, with the use of the late horror legend’s likeness being approved by the Lugosi Estate! I can hardly wait until November 3rd! 

Poster Art and Lobby Cards - THE BLACK CAT (1935)

Brief Thoughts - ZOMBIES ON BROADWAY (1945)

After owning this film on DVD for over a decade I finally got around to watching it and was surprised that it was enjoyable - not good but also not as bad as I had assumed it was going to be. My expectations were dialed very low because, in general, the combination of Bela Lugosi and comedy is a sure sign that you're in for cinematic trouble. For me, all horror comedies from this period pale in comparison to the all-time great ABBOT & COSTELLO MEET FRANKENSTEIN (1948) and so I generally expect the worst but hope for the best. The level of humor in horror comedies of the 1940’s was usually pitched at around the level of the broadest of vaudevillian stylings and that never has translated well to the screen for me. Maybe because I've spent the last year catching up with about a dozen previously unwatched Abbott and Costello films, I've grown accustomed to the type of humor commonly found in this decade and therefore I’m more easily amused by them than I would have been in the past.

The old-fashioned joys of this film are the kinds of things that more and more I find myself enjoying as I explore the lesser known efforts of the comedy genre. One of the best elements is the cast with Bela Lugosi getting to play it straight and, in the one scene in which he participates in some actual physical comedy, he is perfect! It couldn’t have been easy to work with a monkey that continues to appear and disappear in a chest of drawers but he actually is spot-on in his timing, expressions and delivery. Plus, any movie in which I get to see Sheldon Leonard playing a quick-to-anger gangster is worth my time. ZOMBIES ON BROADWAY (1945) not a great movie but it's also not bad so I found myself actually enjoying the film for its brief running time. It is far from a classic, but it is a pretty interesting time waster for fans of the star and for comedies of the period.

The Bloody Pit #98 - MURDERS IN THE RUE MORGUE (1932)

Mark Maddox returns to the show to talk about one of the more overlooked of the Universal horror films of the 1930’s - MURDERS IN THE RUE MORGUE (1932). This movie’s lack of attention may be because it doesn’t have one of the classic monster characters as a draw or, possibly, because it is one of the darkest, nastiest sixty-one minutes the studio ever released! Luckily, I don’t think it will remain as underseen in the future as it has just gotten a tricked out new Blu-Ray release which gives the film the best visual presentation it’s ever received on home video. The picture is so sharp that you can almost see the evil thoughts as they flicker in Bela Lugosi’s eyes!

We start the episode with a brief discussion of some of some of the projects Mark has coming out soon including some fun information about the genesis of his cover art for the upcoming Blu-Ray of Hammer’s EVIL OF FRANKENSTEIN. We then move into a rather scattered discussion of MURDERS IN THE RUE MORGUE, jumping from one topic to another as we explore the qualities that make it a unique part of the decade’s horror output. Lugosi’s masterful acting is examined along with his bizarre uni-brow. That is one strange look! The not-so hidden strain of bestiality embedded in the story is touched on as well as the fears of a Darwinian view of the world that the script uses to terrify its audience. We disagree about the inserted chimp scenes but both of us find some generally held ideas about this movie to be a bit silly. We bring up the legendary first edit of the film along with Tim Lucas’ Video Watchdog article (in issue #111) in which he proposed a way to re-edit the existing film to approximate the director’s original version. It’s a shame there wasn’t an attempt to include such a variation for the new Blu.

If you have any thoughts about this film or any other that we’ve discussed on the show, write to us at thebloodypit@gmail.com or over on the Facebook page. Mark will return in a few weeks to talk about another movie so you could even ask him some questions directly, if you wish. Thanks for listening!

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Bela Lugosi as Dracula