Murders in the Rue Morgue

Murders in the Rue Morgue
Warning - Contains a lot of pictures

Starring: Béla Lugosi, Sidney Fox
Director: Robert Florey

So now I've finally gotten around to another post and it's a Lugosi movie! When I first read a synopsis of this movie, I have to say that I was very confused by it. Although,I have to say the same about the other two Poe films Lugosi was in, they're certainly not simple stories. If you want a peek into my first response, take a look at this poster:

But, once I got past the enicial shock of Béla Lugosi's monobrow, it was a very good film and another after Dracula and Frankenstein(If I remember right) to use Swan Lake as an opening theme. Typical Universal cheapos.

The film's set in Paris in 1845 where there is some sort of carnival going on. Here we meet a pretty bog-standard couple, Camille L'Espanaye(Sidney Fox plays an original character here) and Pierre Dupin(Leon Ames- Credited as Leon Waycloff) and a few of their friends who are visiting the sideshows, along with a show owned by Dr. Mirakle(Béla Lugosi) where he is exhibiting Erik the 'talking' gorilla. (Any Phanatics reading this are permitted to cheer with me over a character being called Erik.) Both Mirakle and Erik are enchanted by Camille, who Mirakle plans to make Erik's mate. Why won't a normal gorilla do? Because Mirakle seems to be striving towards making themost human gorilla possible. What's not normal about that? Mirakle invites Camille to come and take a closer look at Erik who steals her bonnet. The ever brave and manly Pierre attempts to wrestle it back through the bars and is nearly strangled by the gorilla. After backing the gorilla of, Mirakle offers to replace the bonnet, but Camille refuses to give her address. Which seems silly, I mean who wouldn't give this smiling face their house number? After she has left, Mirakle sends one of his servants after her.

I'll take a little time out now to tell you what Mirakle is actually doing. For a Poe film, I think that this film actually stays quite close to the story, at least in the sense of Lugosi's character. Béla Lugosi, "Dracula" himself, as it says in the credits, which is a great bit of 'Gosi Glorification, is Dr. Mirakle who abducts young virgin women and injects them with ape blood in order to find a mate for Erik (Who looks suspiciously like a chimpanzee in some scenes). Lugosi is obviously playing his usual kind-hearted, shy, retiring-type character.

One of Mirakle's victims is found dead in the river (A homage to Poe's The Mystery of Mary Roget) and is taken to the police station after being fished out. Pierre, being a young medical student, attempts to examine her blood and discovers a foriegn substance which is also found in the blood of other victims.

Mirakle visits Camille and asks her to visit Erik again, but she refuses. Mirakle sends Erik after her to kidnap her. Pierre hears her screams, and tries to get into the locked room. When the police arrive, Erik has already gone and Pierre is arrested.

This scene is probably the most confusing I have ever seen. At this point one of three things could be happening:
1. A woman is being shoved up a chimney by a gorilla.
2. A woman is being beaten by a gorilla.
3. A woman is being raped by a gorilla.
When I watched, I got the third impression, as the the gorilla's chest is seen thrusting up and down, but afterwards, Camille's mother is found dead, inside the chimney, so I'll leave the choice up to the watcher.

From the fur left behind, Pierre points out that Erik must be involved. Pierre and the police present run to Mirakle's hideout, where Erik has turned on his master and strangles him. Grabbing Camille, Erik escapes with her and is chased along the rooftops of the dockside houses. Pierre confronts the ape and shoots him dead, saving his fiancee from the peril.

The end, like with most 20's 30's films seems to come so suddenly and is over very quickly, but this is proboably one of the better speedy endings I've seen, as it still manages to squeeze in an ounce of suspense in such a short amount of time.

This film has a great use of shadows, it's one of those films that wouldn't be as good in colour. That's what I love the most about these films.

And can some one tell me? Is that a gorilla in the carriage?