The Crime of Doctor Crespi

Although certainly not up to the standards of the competition over at Universal, this little horror film provides enough good moments to warrant at least a look. Stroheim is wonderful, and it's always a treat to see Dwight Frye in anything.

There are some great moments, all involving Stroheim, but some of the best scenes are ruined by sloppiness either in direction or editing. Stroheim's best scene is where he gloats above his paralyzed victim, but the scene is choppy and the edits are so jarring that it's simply a tribute to the actor that the scene works at all.

The funeral scene, however, is very well done. The intercutting between the funeral and the restrained Frye attempting to kick his way to freedom is very good, and continually reminds the viewer of the fate of the poor man in the coffin. The subjective camera angle as the dirt hits it was probably pretty strong stuff in 1935.

If your a fan of horror movies, especially 1930's films, this one should be on your list to view.

Horror movies from the 1930s don't get more basic and poverty row than "The Crime of Dr. Crespi. The film looks as if it didn't cost much more than the price of an apple and an egg to make, what with its limited number of sober sets and hardly any use of exterior locations, costumes, make-up, or whatsoever. And yet, most genre fans - myself included - seem aligned about this being a spine-chilling and effectively uncanny fright tale thanks to the involvement of some incredibly competent people. The plot, for starters, is inspired by the writings of Edgar Allan Poe. His tales, and specifically "The Premature Burial", automatically guarantee horrific atmosphere and grisly themes. Secondly, Erich von Stroheim as the titular Dr. Crespi. Wow, this man is good! His performance alone eliminates the necessity of expensive set-pieces and advanced special effects.

Von Stroheim stars as the brilliant titular surgeon called upon to rescue another doctor who got near-fatally injured in a car accident. This other doctor, however, is also Dr. Crespi's love-rival, so the wrathful doctor sees his change to get his revenge. Von Stroheim's charisma is diabolical, his evil stare is penetrating, his tone of voice is petrifying, and his unpredictable mood swings are menacing. Simply put, he turns this simple thriller into a scary horror film. If you then also have the versatile but criminally underrated Dwight Frye ("Dracula", "Frankenstein") running around in the supportive cast, you can safely conclude it's a hidden gem.

I only just realized this was an update of Edgar Allan Poe's "The Premature Burial" and, in fact, had been filed in my movie collection under the Thriller label! Indeed, I had acquired it on account of the star presence of the great Erich von Stroheim (tellingly, his baptism of fire within the fantasy genre came soon after his distinguished but infuriating directorial career ground to a definite halt!) but, watching the opening credits, was pleased to find Dwight Frye was in it, too. For the record, Stroheim's three other horror roles were in the superior THE LADY AND THE MONSTER (1944) and the upcoming THE MASK OF DIIJON (1946) and the German-made ALRAUNE (1952). Now, back to the film proper, which is undeniably interesting in its borrowings: not merely Poe (incidentally, his middle name is lazily spelled Allen in the titles, just as the star's own loses the 'h'!) but, in Frye's incompetent (and grave-robbing) assistant, FRANKENSTEIN (1931) and, while the morgue scenes and modern setting are redolent of MYSTERY OF THE WAX MUSEUM (1933), the all-important funeral scene – in which the occupant of the coffin is aware of what goes on but is unable to do anything about it – obviously owes a lot to Carl Theodor Dreyer's VAMPYR (1931). However, I must say that I was disappointed by the slackness of the script: Stroheim (whose aristocratic mannerisms – especially his propensity for smoking and, in imitable fashion, drinking – are in full sway here) not only puts to a death-resembling sleep his amorous rival and former protégé in full view of the contended party but writes down the all-important time of 'demise' in advance on the certificate so that, when he signs it, Frye proves an unwitting witness. But, then, he also inexplicably fails to get rid of him (after amusingly spending much of their scenes together lambasting the junior doctor for something or other)…thus effectively precipitating his own come-uppance – though not before being visited by the ghastly (and which he initially takes to be ghostly!) victim of his wiles. Being mostly set inside a hospital, with medical staff in white walking about in appropriately antiseptic surroundings, the detail sometimes gets lost in the fuzzy copy I watched! As for comic relief, an obligatory balancing ingredient in most films of its ilk (certainly at this point in time), we get an excited Italian (one Joe Verdi!?) speaking in broken English – another cliché – whose inordinately-delayed expectancy of parenthood eventually rewards(?) him with quintuplets.

This is a film that I didn't know about until compiling my list of horror from 1935. I found this one online. What interested me was that this was inspired by an Edgar Allan Poe story. I'll be honest, knowing that and the specific one does give away a major plot point. I also don't know if that hurt my first watch. I was also intrigued to see that Dwight Frye co-starred. This is my Voyage through the FiVes watch for the week on Journey with a Cinephile as well.

Synopsis: a crazed scientist invents a serum that induces a catatonic state in anyone who gets the injection. He uses the serum to paralyze his enemies, in order to bury them alive.

We start this by looking out of the windshield of a speeding ambulance. It is from there that we shift to the Taft Clinic. The head surgeon is Dr. Andre Crespi (Erich von Stroheim). We then meet his team, which includes Dr. Thomas (Frye), Dr. John Arnold (Paul Guilfoyle), Nurse Rexford (Geraldine Kay) and Nurse Gordon (Jean Brooks). What I don't like here is that both nurses seem to be almost secretaries, waiting for calls to relay information.

There is then an interesting introduction to each. Dr. Thomas is considered careless by his superior. There was a pilot who passed away, but Dr. Thomas isn't confident in the time of death. Dr. Crespi scolds him as well as makes a rude remark to a nurse who gives a report. Dr. Arnold aspires to take over the clinic but is afraid of Dr. Crespi hearing. We also see that he is up to an experiment of his own, one that he works alone on.

Estelle Gorham Ross (Harriett Russell) keeps trying to reach Dr. Crespi, going as far as coming to the clinic to see him. Apparently, Dr. Crespi was in love with her. His best friend, Dr. Stephen Ross (John Bohn), didn't know. The two were married and he's been brooding since. Dr. Ross was in a car accident, leaving him in a critical state. Dr. Crespi is said to be the only one who can save him. Estelle pleads for his help. The doctor cannot refuse her.

He has a devious plan though. Andre visits his patient and something happens. His vitals drop and he's pronounced dead. Dr. Thomas finds this suspicious. We also see that things aren't as they seem, much like the synopsis states.

That is where I'll leave my recap and introduction to the characters. Where I want to start is that this film is borrowing elements that I've seen in other films from the era. We have this love triangle where Dr. Crespi is the odd one out. He isn't handling the rejection well. As someone who has been passed over for a friend when it comes to the opposite sex, I get it. I even wanted to hurt my friend. The big thing is that you realize that you can't tell someone who they like so you move on. Dr. Crespi though can't do that. He can be upset, that's in his right but his plan is going too far, as murder isn't the answer. It also brings in the ethics and the oath that all in the medical profession take before caring for patients. There is the idea of playing God and the power that comes with it.

Now that I've set that up, let's delve more into what we're getting. I'll go ahead and say here, since the synopsis as well the opening credits reveal it, this is based on the Poe story of Premature Burial. This is a terrifying idea. We get an updated take on the story, so I appreciate that. What is interesting is that this might be the first cinematic take, as far as I know, of this story. We will see this story used later, including one that uses the same name from Roger Corman or Short Night of Glass Dolls being another. Since it is from this story, I must give Poe credit. Being one of the first doing it on film deserves credit.

We are also getting a mad scientist story as well. There is a scene or two of Dr. Crespi working on his experiment before it is used. It is more heart wrenching that he saves Dr. Ross, only to put him in this suspended animation. This is devious and diabolical because he comes to talk to Stephen in the morgue. He wants him to suffer. Andre knows that Stephen will be able to feel and experience his time like this, including being buried alive. The depravity to do this to someone is great to see this early into film history.

Where I want to then finish out the story elements with subplots. There is one with Dr. Arnold who wants to take Dr. Crespi's position. He's encouraged by one of the nurses who believes he's better suited. John is worried that Andre will hear him, which is good to set up so that the staff fears repercussions. Dr. Thomas is also interesting as he isn't careful. We learn from the start that he had a patient pass away. There could be another that needed additional care. This strengths the fear of Dr. Crespi when Dr. Thomas is berated in his office. It also proves to be Dr. Crespi's downfall for how he treats his peers. Other than that, we get a slight soft side to Andre that Estelle cares for him. Just not in the way he wants.

I will then discuss the acting performances. The acting here is fine. Von Stroheim is diabolical as the titular doctor. The only issue is that we don't get enough of his baseline. He just comes off as mean outside of a couple scenes with Estelle. I do think softening him slightly would help. Frye and Guilfoyle work as his two employees who are faced with a dilemma of what to do. Brooks and Kay work as the two nurses. My issue there is that I wish they were given more to do instead of just comedy and love interests. Russell is solid as the catalyst for why Andre is after Dr. Ross. Bohn is good in that role as well. The rest just round this out for what is needed.

All that is left then is filmmaking. I do think this is where it is limited. Seeing the inside of the Taft Clinic is fine. I do like the modern feel there. We do also see the inside of the Ross' house and then the graveyard. There are limited effects here. I'm glad they don't lean too much into science because I'm not sure we need it. It avoids needing to explain too much. Other than that, the soundtrack was fine without necessarily standing out.

In conclusion, I do appreciate what this film is doing in updating the Poe story. We got a good villain in Dr. Crespi. Credit to von Stroheim for bringing the role to life. My problem is that he is too one-note for me. Softening it slightly makes it more terrifying. This early take on putting someone in a suspended state to kill them is terrifying. The acting here works in support to push things where it ends up. It is made well enough. There isn't much that stands out though unfortunately. This is an interesting mystery though and with a runtime under an hour, it flies by so credit for that. I can only recommend it to fans of early cinema and if you're looking for deeper cuts.

My Rating: 6 out of 10.

Nifty little horror-thriller in which Erich 'The Man You Love to Hate' von Stroheim stars as a mad doctor who paralyses his love rival in order to feign his death. It's inspired by Edgar Allan Poe's The Premature Burial, but bears little resemblance to that work. Von Stroheim is great, especially when gleefully visiting his paralysed victim in the morgue to maintain the dosage and inform him of how it should wear off just as they're tamping down the last sod of earth on his grave.