Pillow of Death

When Vivian Fletcher is found murdered, her husband, attorney Wayne Fletcher (Lon Chaney Jr.), is the prime suspect: the man has romantic feelings for his pretty secretary Donna Kincaid (Brenda Joyce) and his wife's death is all too convenient. Other murders follow, and Fletcher desperately tries to prove his innocence despite the mounting evidence against him.

Pillow of Death is another one of those hokey Inner Sanctum murder mysteries starring an already past-his-prime Lon Chaney Jr. (not that he was all that great when he was in his prime). It's packed with tired cliches (a creepy old house, ghostly voices, a seance, a secret passageway) and, for the most part, is a wholly unremarkable affair. However, just as I was about to write the entire thing off as another dull and predictable gothic B-movie thriller, it delivers a final act that was not what I was expecting to see, but was exactly what I had been hoping for. See it and you'll understand.

4/10, bumped up to 6 for that ending.

On video, this film is part of a two film set of Inner Sanctum mysteries--the other being the more interesting DEAD MAN'S EYES.

PILLOW OF DEATH is a "B-movie"--a shorter film with a lower budget that is meant as the second film at a double-feature. In most cases, people came to the theater to see the "A-picture" and the B-movie was more like an added bonus. Most B-films are definitely on the cheap side and have pretty anemic budgets, though occasionally one rises above these lower expectations. While most of this film is purely average and not particularly noteworthy for the genre, the film definitely ends very well as a murder mystery--catching me by surprise by who the real murderer was. So, for lovers of mystery and suspense, this film is well worth seeing, though others might be a bit unimpressed by the overall product. Not bad at all, but far from great or memorable.

Last of the Inner Sanctum movies. It was pretty obvious these weren't making money--this doesn't even open with the floating head in the crystal ball.

Attorney Wayne Fletcher (Lon Chaney Jr.) is in love with his secretary Donna Kinkaid (Brenda Joyce), but he's married. His wife is found smothered to death and he's the prime suspect. He's released (lack of evidence) but a seance is held and his wife is heard accusing him of murder...then her body disappears from the crypt...then members of the Kinkaid family are getting murdered...

Busy little murder mystery. It's shot on big, beautiful, atmospheric sets (I'm assuming from another movie) and has good performances and keeps you guessing who's doing it, and why, till the very end. Entertaining--one of the better Inner Sanctums. I give it a 7.

Pillow of Death is the last of the six Inner Sanctum mystery / thriller films that Universal made in the 40s. And, in my opinion, it's one of the two best (Weird Woman being the other). In this one, Lon Chaney Jr is Wayne Fletcher, a lawyer in love with his secretary. The problem is, he's got a wife at home. So when she's found dead under mysterious circumstances, Fletcher is the natural suspect.

Despite what I consider to be a rather silly title, Pillow of Death is a solid little film. The writing is excellent with a surprising (at least surprising to me - even on a repeat viewing) solution that works nicely. The atmospheric "old dark house" trappings, complete with a seance, and plot twists keep things interesting. The direction is crisp as the film moves along at a good pace. And, like most of Universal's B output from this time period, the sets and cinematography look better than they have any right. It really is quite beautiful to look at. Overall, Pillow of Death is a well made movie.

As for the acting, there's very little to complain about. Chaney is fine in the lead, but I admit the "tormented soul" routine he perfected in The Wolf Man gets a bit old. Co-star Brenda Joyce, taking a break from playing Jane in the Tarzan series, is more than capable. There are a number of notable performances in the supporting cast, but none quite like George Cleveland. What a joy!

7/10.

Pillow of Death (1945)

* 1/2 (out of 4)

Final installment in the Inner Sanctum series has a lawyer (Lon Chaney, Jr.) suspected of murdering his wife. After her death he gets involved with a group of psychics. This film, even at 61-minutes, dragged along and bored the hell out of me from the start. Chaney is very bland here as are the supporting characters. The story really isn't too interesting and all the spiritual stuff comes off silly.

This is certainly the worst in the series but you can now view all six films via Universal's DVD collection.