Warners’ attempt to ape Universal’s success in the horror genre misses the mark. (They’d get a bit closer with THE MYSTERY OF THE WAX MUSEUM in ’33 where director Michael Curtiz, Fay Wray & Lionel Atwill, design master Anton Grot and 2-strip Technicolor all repeat assignments seen here.) There’s no horror to speak of, it’s just a tricked out whodunit, and you can see how confused the studio was with the results by watching the trailer on this DVD. "It’s scary; It’s funny; It’s different!" The UCLA 35mm restoration is not as effective as the 16mm prints I recall seeing in the ‘70s. The color is less solid and the image is much softer. Go figure. But stick it out for the creepy climax where the film suddenly comes to life, and revel in Grot’s stupendous set for Doctor X’s study.
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