El castillo negro

The writer drew on famous sources :Edgar Poe ("buried alive") and Shakespeare ("Romeo and Juliet").The beginning is quite scary and the interest is sustained till the end.The screenplay is certainly smarter than the average horror flick.Boris Karloff is the stand-out ,even if he is not really the scariest thing of the movie.The castle in question is full of traps,dark dungeons and crocodiles pit (which makes sense ,for the story really begins in Africa).The countess and the hero make a good romantic couple inside the gloomy walls of her husband's desirable mansion.The leopard hunting is also a very exciting moment.Very entertaining and a must for Gothic horror buffs.

Richard Greene plays British nobleman Sir Ronald Burton, a man intent on proving that an evil Austrian count, Karl von Bruno (Stephen McNally), was the person responsible for murdering two of his friends. So he travels to the Counts' domain, the Black Castle of the title, under an alias, enjoying the Counts' hospitality, as well as participating in a leopard hunt. Along the way he falls in love with von Brunos' beautiful young wife, Elga (Rita Corday).

Greene is an effective hero, and Corday is absolutely lovely. There are lots of impressive supporting performances here, by John Hoyt and Michael Pate as two associates of our villainous Count, Tudor Owen as Burtons' travelling companion Romley, and especially Henry Corden as Fender the servant. Greene, as handsome and stoic as he is, still can't compete with the entertaining theatrics of one eyed McNally, who's fun to watch. Lon Chaney Jr. is kind of wasted in a thankless role as a nearly mute thug. Boris Karloff does his usual delightful work as a distraught doctor who joins the heroes' cause, although his fans should be aware that this isn't really a Boris vehicle. His role, too, is a supporting one.

There's a fair bit to enjoy here, in particular that leopard hunt, which is very atmospheric and is the best part of the movie. Nathan Juran directs, with his typical efficiency. The story, concocted by Jerry Sackheim, is a rather straightforward one and also an agreeable one. You gotta love von Bruno for having a castle with such standard features as booby traps and an alligator pit.

All in all, this isn't a great Universal-International production, but it is a good one.

Seven out of 10.

When I saw Lon Chaney, Jr. and Boris Karloff in the cast, I was expecting to find a typically "schlocky" 1950's style horror movie. The opening scene (a graveyard with a wolf howling in the background) seemed to confirm this. Once I began watching it, though, what I discovered was a nifty little mystery about an Englishman (Richard Green) seeking to discover what had happened to two of his friends who had disappeared in the Black Forest and, if necessary, to take revenge against the evil Count (Stephen McNally) who ruled the territory. Chaney, as the voiceless Gargon, had a rather limited role (one which reminded me of the Hunchback of Notre Dame, actually) while Karloff had a somewhat more substantial role as Dr. Meissen. In fact, Meissen was one of the more interesting characters in the movie, and it was difficult to know until the very end whether he would be established to be a good guy or a bad guy! The castle set was magnificent, and even the limited depiction of the Black Forest was real enough. It certainly didn't come across as low-budget, compared to other movies I've seen anyway. The only disappointment, I thought, was Rita Corday's performance as the Countess. She seemed somewhat dry and didn't seem to put much passion into the role.

That aside, I found that this movie held my attention throughout, and there was enough suspense about how this was all going to turn out to make it well worth the watching. Definitely recommended, with a 7/10 rating.

The British noble Sir Ronald Burton (Richard Greene) decides to search his two best friends that have disappeared after visiting Count Karl von Bruno (Stephen MaNally), an evil and powerful man who lives in the Black Castle. Sir Burton travels undercover with another identity, since he fought against Count von Bruno in Afrika with his two missing friends and the count lost one eye in the battle. When he arrives in the castle, he is invited to hunt in the Black Forest around the castle with the count,.while he looks for evidences that the count has killed his friends. Later, he and the count's wife, Countess Elga von Bruno (Rita Corday), fall in love for each other and with the support of Dr. Meissen (Boris Karloff), Sir Burton and the countess try to escape from the claws of Count von Bruno.

"The Black Castle" is an excellent movie from a romantic time, with action, romance, mystery and even horror. The story is gripping, and is a great entertainment for any audience. The cruel count is a great villain and the performances are manigicent. Boris Karloff performs the count's doctor and is a gentle person in an evil environment. My vote is nine.

Title (Brazil): "O Castelo do Pavor" ("The Castle of the Fear")

Note: On 24 May 2024, I saw this film again.

I decided to check this out because I love costume movies, especially 18th century ones. At the same time, since I'm about 50/50 when it comes to Bori Karloff films, I told myself not to expect too much. It turns out I was pleased with this one, a combo action/suspense with some thriller/horror thrown in, with a bit of humor as well as a touch of romance.

Richard Greene did a good job as the hero out for revenge on the villain (excellently played by Stephan McNally), while at the same time falling for his wife (Paula Corday). Boris, for a change, plays a good guy (of sorts) and thinks up a clever (if dangerous) way for the couple to escape the wronged husband's wrath. (Though in his case, wronged was the wrong word). There's also another horror star featured here, Lon Chaney, Jr.

Worth checking out!