THE BODYSNATCHER (1945)
If there was ever a film that showed the employment fates of Boris Karloff and Bela Lugosi, then this is it. After playing stumbling horror creatures Karloff was now afforded far more verbose characters to work with. There's plenty of variety and screen presence in this period. Producer Val Lewton wasn't sure about the casting in this case, but was quickly persuaded by the actor's charm. Lugosi on the other hand looks unwell and is given a minor role. Their places have changed since the likes of Son of Frankenstein. This is their last film together, and the cruel events on screen may mirror reality in some ways. But it is still a very entertaining film worth talking about for other reasons.
There have been several attempts at bringing the crimes of Burke and Hare to the screen. Grave robbers, and later murderers, who sold their ill-gotten goods to medical science. This is a fictional story adjacent to those events, mentioning them by name more than once. Like The Flesh and the Fiends it's based on a Robert Louis Stevenson short story, lending it some literary clout. But it's the cinematic style that makes this all so memorable. Director Robert Wise amps up the suspense as Robert De Grasse casts the scenery in stark shadows and eerie fog. The cold stone streets of Edinburgh and the sinister locations within are a perfect setting for what is afoot.
Dr. MacFarlane (Henry Daniell) is a respected surgeon, with more than his share of fame. But it's his association with a carriage driver John Gray (Boris Karloff) that he wants to keep hidden. Gray has a secret past with the doctor, who he calls 'Toddy' no matter how much protesting MacFarlane does. It's enough to persuade him to do all kinds of acts, some respectable and others not so much. It's Karloff's movie and this power play gives him plenty of opportunities to flex his acting powers. He shows up at the doctor's home, at his classroom, and at bars in which he just wants to be left alone. It's a sinister performance depicting someone who enjoys all this control and lives for little else.
The nature of their so-called friendship isn't exactly hard to decipher, and soon there are mysterious bodies appearing on the doctor's slab. All in the name of scientific research of course. But it's not really a story about morality and medicine, it's a dark and dramatic thriller. Several moments stand out in what is a relatively tame Hays Code era film. Val Lewton's famous walking shot is in here, and sequences in church yards and back alley homes are striking, often in more ways than one. It's a B-feature but it never feels cheap. The nature of the characters, combined with the nature of the visual style, make it chilling even with a low budget.
However, if there's one dud in the cast it's got to be MacFarland's student Donald Fettes, (Russell Wade) the voice of duty and morality. He's not just a drag because he feels like a mandatory counter-point to all the death by candle-light. And it's not just that his American accent feels out of place, conflicting with his amusingly stereotypical Scottish outfits. It's the way that his involvement circles a sub-plot in which MacFarland is blackmailed by Gray into helping a wheelchair-bound child. It should be a brief moment in which the doctor is tested, but it keeps being reprised. Perhaps it would work if it was all more clinical, but the results are pure melodrama. It's frequent a diversion from the real conflict of the story.
Things do get back on course as the battle of wits between MacFarland and Gray begins to boil over. Lab assistant Joseph (Bela Lugosi) adds an interesting wrinkle to the proceedings, before it all starts to go awry. With the whole child operation story gone it can become more focused on their personalities. Gray is a sadist without any interest in money while 'Toddy' starts to become desperate to escape him. But eventually Fettes begins to realise that perhaps the two men are not so different. The secrets start to unravel as he realises he's no longer just a student or a protégé, but may be an accomplice. If only his involvement was more charismatic it might have more impact, but here we are.
The result is an effective chiller and a compelling character study, despite a few stumbles. The central duo depict obsession and ambition in different ways, making it a engaging drama. It's not that interested in exploring how grave desecration might help surgery or research. Despite all the screen time for a paralysed girl and her mother they're not that important. But it is interested in showing how a supposedly altruistic doctor might be tied to an amoral opportunist. As Gray puts it during the tense climactic moments, MacFarlane will 'never be rid of him.' It's a memorable final image that wraps everything up nicely, and as a result the overall story holds up.
4/5
BONUS REVIEW
ISLE OF THE DEAD (1945)
Elsewhere a troubled production involving the same crew produced this tale of wartime madness and disease. Another sinister location, this time an isolated house on a Greek island, and another great performance from Boris Karloff. But despite his talents being used to portray a military leader stuck trying to gain control over a group of civilians, the film is far more uneven. The island itself is a great backdrop to a story in which this group must wait out an infection, to avoid it being brought to the mainland. But the war torn countryside across the water already has this plague, and other problems. If only the plot was focused on these issues instead of veering into supernatural madness.
It turns out that this is also a story about rational minds fighting superstition and ancient beliefs. The General starts to consider the warnings of housekeeper Kyra (Helene Thimig) who suggests the illness is some kind of vampire threat. It's really never that kind of movie of course, and instead it's about how isolation and fear can make people start to hurt one another. But despite Karloff's best efforts it's never convincing that a man in his position would ever believe this sort of thing. It pushes really hard during the third act so that his attentions will be drawn to Thea (Ellen Drew) as the culprit. The results feel rushed instead of earned, undermining any sort of underlying theme or message.
All of the imagery is still very dramatic, particularly during moments in which certain characters die or are buried alive. There's still a lot of great camera work and the island is enveloped by dark shadows and stormy weather. The idea of a man used to commanding a huge army with ruthless efficiency, suddenly becoming weak and paranoid, is interesting. But some of these individual pieces don't quite fit together properly as things go on. There's a half-hearted romantic sub-plot and a lot of side characters with little to do. It would be more appropriate to depict the General as someone with self-doubt earlier on and let it unfold. But this was a difficult shoot and so perhaps these issues are to be expected.
3/5
