The Undying Monster (John Brahm, 1942) [RePoPo]

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The Undying Monster (John Brahm, 1942)

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Type..................: Movie

Container file........: MKV

Audio Languages.......: English 2.0 (Mono, Untouched)

Subtitles Ripped......: Spanish

Subtitles in Subpack..: French, Spanish

Aspect Ratio..........: 1.33:1

Original Aspect Ratio.: 1.37:1

Color.................: B/W

Source................: NTSC DVD

Genre.................: Sci/Fi

IMDb Rating...........: 5.8

Movie Information.....: http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0035489/
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One of two 20th Century-Fox horror melodramas released in 1942 (Dr. Renault's

Secret was the second), The Undying Monster is a well-crafted variation on

Universal's "Wolf Man" series. Ever since the suicide of its patriarch, the

Hammonds, an old and wealthy English family has seemingly lived under a curse.

When a number of murders occur on the Hammond estate, Scotland Yard inspector

Bob Curtis (James Ellison) and his garrulous female assistant Christy (Heather

Thatcher) are sent out to investigate. Everyone on the premises-Helga Hammond

(Heather Angel), her brother Oliver (John Howard), family doctor Geoffrey Covert

(Bramwell Fletcher), family servants Mr. and Mrs. Walton (Halliwell Hobbes and

Eily Malyon)-seems to know more than he or she is letting on. Only in the final

few minutes of the film is the horrible family secret revealed and the murderer

dispensed with. Atmospherically directed by John Brahm on several impressive

standing sets (that gigantic stained-glass window is a knockout!), The Undying

Monster is a model "B" picture, hampered only by Heather Thatcher's intrusive

comedy relief.



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CAST

James Ellison - Bob Curtis

Heather Angel - Helga Hammond

John Howard - Oliver Hammond

Bramwell Fletcher - Dr. Geoffrey Covert

Heather Thatcher - Christy

Aubrey Mather - Inspector Craig

Halliwell Hobbes - Walton

Eily Malyon - Mrs. Walton

Heather Wilde - Millie

Charles McGraw - Stredwick

Alec Craig - Will

Holmes Herbert - Constable

Clive Morgan - Foster

David Thursby - Miles McGregor

Donald Stuart - Charles Clagpool

John Rogers - Tom Clagpool

Matthew Boulton - Coroner



CREW



John Brahm - Director

Bryan Foy - Producer

Lillie Hayward - Screenwriter

Michel Jacoby - Screenwriter

Jessie Douglas Kerruish - Book Author

Lucien Ballard - Cinematographer

Emil Newman - Composer (Music Score)

David Raksin - Composer (Music Score)

Harry Reynolds - Editor

Lewis H. Creber - Art Director

Richard Day - Art Director



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REVIEWS



by Eric Donovan



In The Undying Monster, a wealthy but cursed family is plagued by an ancestor

believed to have sold his soul centuries ago to the devil (or so the legend

goes). This monster now attacks people who wander the woods alone on moonlit

nights. Creating the template for British crime procedurals for generations to

come, a sardonic and weathered detective (James Ellison) agrees to help a brazen

and skeptical heiress (played by cult icon Heather Angel) to get to the bottom

of the curse while a twitchy, doomsayer butler warns them all of the grave,

unspeakable things the curse has wrought.



The film effectively maintains an atmosphere of dread despite scenes with

Victorian-era DNA testing and the sudden realization that the empty sarcophagus

in the basement might be a clue. And under the claustrophobic lens of Lucien

Ballard (The House on Telegraph Hill, The Wild Bunch), the family's sweeping

mansion begins to feel like a gothic prison.



DVD extras include "Concerto Macabre: The Films of John Brahm," a 15-minute

retrospective of director's work, trailer, advertising images and an overview of

the box set's restoration process.





Some IMDB review



Enjoyed taping this film recently, which was shown during the early hours of the

AM. It is a great picture from the 1940's and director John Brahm, who also

directed such film greats as, "Hangover Square",'45 and "The Lodger",'44,

starring Laid Cregar. Twentieth Century-Fox produced this film which is from a

good novel taken from Jessie Douglas Kerruish's 1936 book. It is a tale of a

family cursed since the Crusades and is rather moody stuff, quite spoilt by the

British censor's scissors. Not only did he remove the carefully photographed

final metamorphosis, leaving audiences to wonder why the dim thing that the

police shot should suddenly look like John Howard, but he also insisted on the

title being changed to The Hammond Mystery. Fortunately enough of Brahm's

brilliance was devoted to less shocking sequences so that most of his mood

remained. Lucien Ballard swung his camera round as ancient room, alighting on

odd objects at each dour bong of midnight. He also showed a large stain glass

window which made the old homestead very creapy. The phrase: When the stars are

bright on a frosty night, Beware the baying in the rocky lane" You will have to

see the picture to find out what the MONSTER REALLY IS !



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the first time I saw this horror classic was on TV in the 1950s and it really

scared me particularly the ending when the monsters face is shown as it appears

on the side of the rocks .And I couldn't sleep that night because I kept seeing

the monsters face.And after for several years of searching for it I went to a

movie show in New York City and found it and of course purchased it.And have

watched it several times over the past years .And indeed enjoyed it even

more.And the entire cast from john Howard heather angel James Ellison halliwell

Hobbes and the rest all did a spectacular job.And the spooky music and foggy

sets added to the creepies of the movie .Excellent Movie Classic





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MEDIAINFO REPORT





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Text

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Codec ID/Info : UTF-8 Plain Text

Title : Español

Language : Spanish



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