![]() ![]() Everything about this movie should induce cold sweats and elevated heartbeats. Or maybe it's the chants of the well-dressed satanist disciples, who downstairs take part in some sort of black mass ritual. Perhaps it is the appearance of Werdegast's long-dead daughter. But there's something slightly amiss within these walls. They seek shelter inside Poelzig's home until the morning. Along with Werdegast are two blissfully innocent American travelers who were the victims of a near-fatal car accident. Vitus Werdegast, who travels to the home of an well-know acquaintance, Hjalmar Poelzig (Boris Karloff), who has built his art-deco dwelling on top of what was a particularly gory battleground. By 1934's standards, it's really a miracle that this film was even made. ![]() Ulmer, what we're presented with is a macabre tale of revenge, human sacrifice, vivisection, and outright satanism. Co-written and directed by poverty-row filmmaker genius, Edgar G. Though we're led to believe that it is inspired by Edgar Allen Poe's fictional story, there's really nothing to relate to it at all, except of course for a black cat that occasionally appears on screen. For me, Universal's 1934 film, "The Black Cat," starring big-screen titans Bela Lugosi and Boris Karloff, totally personifies what an effective horror movie is supposed to be. ![]()
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