Weird Woman

Another installment in the INNER SANCTUM series, WEIRD WOMAN once again stars Lon Chaney Jr. This time out, he plays Professor Norman Reed, whose wife, Paula (Anne Gwynne) just might be returning to her tribal ways.

Cue backstory, complete with bongo drums and leopard skin-clad dancing girls.

Indeed, Professor Reed fell in love with a "jungle woman" while on Safari in Africa. Now, after bringing her back to civilization and marrying her, bizarre hoodoo hijinks have ensued!

Arguably, the best of the SANCTUM films, it features a bevy of horror movie queens, including Evelyn Ankers, Elizabeth Russell, and Lois Collier, in addition to the aforementioned Ms. Gwynne.

Mr. Chaney Jr. Is his usual, remarkable self. This is enjoyable horror hokum for the whole family...

This had always been the one "Inner Sanctum" I was most interested in because it was an adaptation of Fritz Leiber's "Conjure Wife", later filmed as a superior British horror film, NIGHT OF THE EAGLE aka BURN, WITCH, BURN! (1962). This version is highly enjoyable, even if some of the fun to be had is the result of its unexpected goofiness and campiness (at least when compared to the deadly serious 'remake'). The would-be sinister native rituals consist of nothing more than harmless Tahitian dancing and risible mumbo-jumbo! Lon Chaney's irresistibility to the female sex is unconvincingly stretched to no fewer than 3 women in the film when, ultimately, he is no more than an amiable beefcake of a leading man!

Still, the female roles here are surprisingly strong: Anne Gwynne (as Chaney's superstitious native wife), Elizabeth Risdon (as the acid-tongued Dean), Elizabeth Russell (as the ambitious wife of Chaney's senior colleague) and especially Evelyn Ankers (relishing a rare villainous role as Chaney's vengeful ex). Ralph Morgan (as Russell's ill-fated husband and Chaney's direct competitor) also makes a good impression. While the film is occasionally atmospheric, it suffers in comparison with NIGHT OF THE EAGLE and that film's memorable climax is sorely missed (especially since the supernatural element is heavily toned down here). A highlight of the film is Ankers' nightmarish vision as she is haunted by her victims into confessing her crimes.

P.S. As with the previous entry in the series, CALLING DR. DEATH (1943), the Ygor theme from THE GHOST OF FRANKENSTEIN (1942) is incorporated into the music score! By the way, am I the only one bothered by the fact that Chaney is billed merely as "Lon Chaney" rather than "Lon Chaney Jr." - or, for that matter, the fact that the credits merely state that the film is based on a story by Fritz Leiber without mentioning its actual title?

Universal's Inner Sanctum mystery series gets a lift with not one, not two, not three, not four, but FIVE horror queens from this genre: Evelyn Ankers, Anne Gwynne, Lois Collier, newcomer Kay (Jackie Lou)Harding, and borrowed from Val Lewton's RKO unit, Elizabeth Russell. Ankers, Gwynne and Collier all privately joked about the script which had them all competing for Chaney's affections, when in 'real life' Chaney was not any of the girls' favorite leading man; Ankers and Gwynne, being best friends, would constantly break up laughing during filming because the script had Ankers being so mean to Gwynne. The end result of filming shows none of the comedic goings-on and the mystery-chiller is a high camp surprise that only Universal could produce. Reginald LeBorg directed and according to Gwynne was a good sport dealing with the 'break-ups' between her and Ankers during filming. Flavorful music, very familiar to Universal horror fans, and spooky autumn-like surroundings on a dark college campus add to the suspense. Definitely the BEST of the Inner Sanctum series from Universal.

Weird Woman was one of several mystery films with supernatural overtones shot by Universal in the 1940's starring Lon Chaney, Jr. as part of the Inner Sanctum series (using the title of the popular radio suspense program). Chaney was always the lead. This entry is probably the second best in the series surpassed only by Calling Dr. Death (1943), the first of the Inner Sanctum pictures. Weird Woman was based on Fritz Leiber's novel The Conjure Wife, a very good read which was later done on television with Larry Blyden. Chaney is a professor of sociology who has devoted his academic life to rational thought and logic and the fight against superstition, witchcraft and magic. When he marries an exotic young women who secretly practices sorcery and brings her back to his campus home, strange events are unleashed. The film captures the tensions and jealousies of the competing faculty members and their wives and is well acted by a strong cast including Anne Gwynne, Evelyn Ankers (often Chaney's leading lady), Ralph Morgan (the brother of Frank Morgan, the Wizard of Oz), and Elizabeth Russell. Chaney gives a compelling performance as the rational professor who suddenly finds his comfortable, logical world upset by superstition and witchcraft. The film is short, moves quickly, has a nice climax, and is fine as a "B" programmer. If you want to see how good Leiber's work really can be as a film, however, compare this 1944 version with the 1962 British remake Burn, Witch, Burn with Janet Blair which is is a truly intriguing and genuinely scary film.

After 40-odd years of watching horror films,I finally caught up with this one. My expectations were not high and I thoroughly enjoyed it. I found the opening satisfyingly creepy as the movie is liberally larded with all the necessary elements of the genre e.g. howling wind, "haunted house" organ music, Lon Chaney's thoughts vouchsafed to us in the form of voice-overs etc etc. I thought the tension was maintained throughout the film, with the exception of the jungle scenes which are dopey.The ending is fantastic but appropriate. The companion feature on the video, "The Frozen Ghost", I thought was dull.