El valle de los zombies

VALLEY OF THE ZOMBIES has Dr. Ormand Murks (Ian Keith) use voodoo to rise from the dead. He's now in need of human blood and will acquire it by any means necessary. Murks' victims are found drained of blood and filled with embalming fluid.

While the police are baffled, a young doctor and nurse set out to solve the series of bizarre murders.

Keith is fantastic as the ghoulish Murks. His gaunt face, bulging eyes, hat, and cape are the perfect combination. This character could / should have been seen in other such films.

Deserves to be rediscovered...

Dr. Maynard (Charles Trowbridge) tells Dr. Terry Evans (Robert Livingston) and his nurse, Susan Drake (Lorna Gray), about the theft of ten pints of blood from his lab. Later, he is visited by Ormand Murks (Ian Keith), a man Maynard had once had committed to an insane asylum.

What attracted me to this film is quite simple: it is old and it is short. I am all about short films to watch while eating breakfast, and I am all about watching older movies (as a reviewer, my job simply cannot be done properly without knowing the history of film, particularly horror).

Ian Keith plays a very cool, creepy man, wrongly judged insane, who wears a grave robber outfit. He is the highlight of the film, and what makes this one more horror fans should see. There is also a fun homicide detective scene where they question Lorna Gray and try to get her to falsely confess to murder. The back and forth is pretty fun, and it makes me wish that Gray was in more films like this (or like her Three Stooges work).

This is not your traditional zombie film - they do not mean "zombie" in the way we think film them in films. I won't tell for it would ruin the film. With this film think Jack the Ripper is a Vampire in a way... this one is really hard to describe, you would just have to see it for yourself.

Ian Keith as Ormand Murks is super! He reminds me a lot of Boris Karloff as Cabman John Gray in "The Body Snatcher (1945)" and, as I said, Jack the Ripper. Ormand Murks is right up there with them - he is a madman.

This is a really good late at night film - great atmosphere: graveyard, a madman on the loose, talk of an asylum, embalming... if you like the classic films with these things then you should enjoy this "Valley of the Zombies".

8/10

The 40s weren't exactly known for high-quality genre fare, but there are always exceptions, and the premise here sounds interesting. I do rather think the telling here is troubled in at least some measure given instances of lagging pacing, a variable but often lighter tone, and ill-fitting wry humor (from bullying and ignorant police, naturally). On the other hand, those deeply unlikable cops are counterbalanced by the fabulous, combative wit of other characters, and the pacing and occasional tonal issues by tinges of atmosphere that the feature ably fosters. That atmosphere comes to us by way of smart use of lighting, the more haunting of those chords in the music, and Ian Keith's dramatic, imposing performance as the antagonist. It's still true that the horror 'Valley of the zombies' offers is more thematic than it is actualized, yet between Dorrell and Stuart E. McGowan's screenplay and Philip Ford's capable direction, this is sufficiently well made to rise a little bit above the more middling level of some of its contemporaries.

The darker notions in the storytelling and of the accompanying ambience are adjoined with broader airs of mystery as lab workers Terry and Susan seek to discover by themselves the truth surrounding recent murders. Usually I'd criticize the levity in the chief characters' dialogue as unbecoming of the nature of the material, nevermind how they are written (especially as Susan is a woman prone to jumping at her own shadow). I do think that holds true here to no small degree, and for the fact of it the resulting tableau will hold less appeal for genre purists, those who have a hard time engaging with older films, or those who look above all for visceral thrills in their horror. Yet the McGowans gave Robert Livingston and Adrian Booth some genuinely sharp and clever lines to impart as Terry and Susan, and overall I think the picture is just balanced enough so that the touches of comedy, the mystery, and the underlying horror concept all blend together fairly well - a balance which itself is sadly relatively rare in genre flicks from this timeframe.

The art direction is terrific; stunts and effects are modest by most any standards, but appreciable. Even sound effects are employed well, and the cinematography; other minutiae like costume design, hair, and makeup are just swell. The narrative is fundamentally solid, despite the details in its telling that weigh upon it to its detriment, and the same definitely goes for the scene writing. The horror vibes this has to offer may be less robust than in countless other examples among its brethren, yet they are present and meaningful nonetheless; one can easily imagine what 'Valley of the zombies' would look like if it were made at any point from the 60s or 70s onward. What we have here, then, is a movie that's ultimately very well written, and very well made by the standards of its timeframe. If the final product lacks the vibrancy of that genre enthusiasts are accustomed to it's only as a matter of the sensibilities by which such titles were once made, and not a specific failing on the part of anyone here. In fact, though it's no exemplar, I'm inclined to believe that this is one of the better horror films to have been released under the Hays Code.

It's not perfect, but it's duly engrossing, certainly entertaining, and unexpectedly satisfying. That's more than can be said of innumerable features even in all the decades since. Anyone who isn't receptive to the stylings of 40s cinema won't find anything here to change their minds, yet if you're open to all the wide possibilities of what the genre has to offer, there's much more to like here than it may seem at first blush. Don't necessarily go out of your way for 'Valley of the zombies,' but if you do have the chance to watch, this is actually well worth a mere fifty-six minutes of one's time, and I'm pleased to give it a firm recommendation.

Fondly remembered, just for the title. In the 70s it turned up a lot on weekends, and the later at night the better. Creature Feature or Chiller Theater time. A real gas.

A modest B film, basically what critics at the time said, but that's the key to its creepiness. Ian Keith, a veteran actor from the old school, makes an outstanding villain, in search of blood transfusions to keep himself alive. The cobwebs, an abandoned mansion and graveyard are also fun and put to good use. By the way, our heroes (Robert Livingston and Adrian Booth) are locked in a tomb for a ghoulish minute or two.

Keith plays Ormond Merks, executed years ago for past crimes, now looking for his next "blood" victim. More of a vampire-type film, and Keith keeps it going, replete with a long, black cape and the best lines. No valley or zombies, although he does hypnotize Booth and arm her with a gun. Sometimes compared to the RETURN OF DR. X (1939), starring Humphrey Bogart, though Bogey's makeup was more outlandish, also sporting a Bride of Frankenstein gray streak hairdoo.

Very good supporting cast featuring character actor Tommy Jackson playing the detective on the case. Robert "Bob" Livingston plays the two-fisted hero, known for westerns. Filmed by Republic Pictures and catch some of the area footage of surrounding Studio City (Ventura Blvd) and possibly North Hollywood back in the 40s.

Interestingly, Keith was originally considered for the role of DRACULA, before Bela Lugosi. Not too long after this film, he was considered again for the part in ABBOTT AND COSTELLO MEET FRANKENSTEIN.

Catch the closing gag line by Livingston said to gal friend Adrian Booth. Best dvd is coupled with THE VAMPIRES GHOST, released through Fast Fushion Films, and with some nice artwork. A super Halloween treat, though short running time at 56 minutes.