El ladrón de cuerpos

Título original: The Body Snatcher

1945
13
1h 18min

PUNTUACIÓN EN IMDb

7,3/10

11 mil

TU PUNTUACIÓN

Boris Karloff in El ladrón de cuerpos (1945)

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1 vídeo

99+ imágenes

Horror Thriller

Un médico despiadado y su joven estudiante premiado se encuentran continuamente acosados por su proveedor asesino de cadáveres ilegales.Un médico despiadado y su joven estudiante premiado se encuentran continuamente acosados por su proveedor asesino de cadáveres ilegales.Un médico despiadado y su joven estudiante premiado se encuentran continuamente acosados por su proveedor asesino de cadáveres ilegales.

Ver la información de la producción en IMDbPro

PUNTUACIÓN EN IMDb

7,3/10

11 mil

TU PUNTUACIÓN

Ver la información de la producción en IMDbPro

Premios
- 3 nominaciones en total

Mrs. Marsh
(as Rita Corday)

Sharyn Moffett

Georgina Marsh

Donna Lee

Street Singer

Ted Billings

Townsman
(sin acreditar)

Bobby Burns

Mourner
(sin acreditar)

Robert Clarke

Richardson - Medical Student
(sin acreditar)

Aina Constant

Maidservant
(sin acreditar)

Mary Gordon

Mrs. Mary McBride
(sin acreditar)

Carl Kent

Gilchrist - Medical Student
(sin acreditar)

Milton Kibbee

Dan
(sin acreditar)

Ethan Laidlaw

Pub Patron
(sin acreditar)

Jim Moran

Angus - Horse Trader
(sin acreditar)

Jack Welch

Boy
(sin acreditar)

Más del estilo

Argumento

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Curiosidades
Although based on a fictional short story by Robert Louis Stevenson, the author came up with the idea from actual events occurring in 19th century England and Edinburgh, Scotland in 1827, called the West Port murders of 1828.

At that time, medical schools lacked sufficient funding or the resources to provide their students with cadavers for study. Seeing a financial opportunity there, William Burke suggested to his landlord, William Hare, that they sell the body of a recently deceased boarder to Dr. Robert Knox, an instructor at a Surgeon's Square anatomy school. Knox was grateful to have a specimen for his class and Burke and Hare began a lucrative operation that quickly moved from grave-robbing to murder. They killed their victims by suffocating or "burking" them. Estimates were that they murdered up to 28 people, preying on drunks, prostitutes, and the destitute elderly.

Pifias
At the beginning, a castle is shown during the credits, then "In Edinburgh In 1831-"; then after that there is a closer view of the castle and a horse and carriage. Two or three automobiles are parked next to the castle.

Citas
Cabman John Gray: I am a small man, a humble man. Being poor I have had to do much that I did not want to do. But so long as the great Dr McFarlane comes to my whistle, that long am I a man. If I have not that then I have nothing. Then I am only a cabman and a grave robber. You'll never get rid of me, Toddy.

Créditos adicionales
Closing credits epilogue: "It is through error that man tries and rises. It is through tragedy he learns. All the roads of learning begin in darkness and go out into the light" Hippocrates of Cos

Versiones alternativas
Five cuts were made by the British censors on its initial release, mainly references to Burke and Hare, the original bodysnatchers. This cut print has been the only one available in the UK until 1998, when a complete version appeared on the budget video label 4-Front.

Conexiones
Edited into Mondo Lugosi - A Vampire's Scrapbook (1987)

Banda sonora
Huntingtower
(uncredited)
("When Ye Gang Awa, Jamie")
(Traditional Scottish folk song)
sung by Donna Lee

Reseñas de usuarios125

Reseña destacada

8/10

One of my favorite Val Lewtons

This is unlike some of the other Val Lewton mystery/horror films from the 1940s in that it is a classic Gothic horror tale with a classic Gothic horror topic - 19th century grave robbing for the purpose of medical research. There's no wartime engineer married to a mysterious and troubled woman who is afraid she'll turn into a leopard if sexually aroused in THIS Lewton film! But I digress.

Dr. MacFarlane (Henry Daniells) is a famous surgeon and medical school professor in Edinburgh. He gives a job to medical school student Donald Fettes because, otherwise, Fettes will have to leave school because he can't afford tuition and his living expenses, and MacFarlane thinks Fettes has the makings of a fine doctor. But, among other things, the job involves the intake of cadavers for dissection. And those bodies are the product of graverobbing by cabman John Gray (Boris Karloff). Of course the graverobbing is bad enough, but it soon escalates to murder on the part of Gray. And MacFarlane really can't do much about Gray who turns up at his home and lab unwanted and at all hours just to torment him. That's because of a secret of MacFarlane's that Gray has been keeping all of these years since MacFarlane was in medical school. Complications ensue.

Very atmospheric, this is the e creepiest I've ever seen Karloff. Such a versatile actor he was. Hard to believe he also portrayed the amiable Mr. Wong. Henry Daniell actually played a sympathetic character here with Karloff so effectively menacing him. With a terrifying final scene that some say was censored in England, I'd highly recommend this one.