The Black Cat 1934

     Joan and Peter Allison are on their honeymoon in Hungary.  They are traveling on a train and a porter asks them to share their compartment with Dr. Vitus Verdegast.  He is returning to the remains of the town he defended before he became a prisoner of war for fifteen years.  They also share a bus going to their hotel but it crashes in a mountain storm.  Joan is slightly injured and the group seeks refuge in a fortress-like home built upon the site of a bloody battlefield.  Famed architect Hjalmar Poelzig designed the house and he is a friend of Dr. Verdegast.

     There is a LOT going on in the house after the Allison’s and Dr. Verdegast arrive.  Joan Allison is sent to bed to recover from her injury and regain her strength.  Dr. Verdegast is afraid of black cats and there is one living in the house.  He is also asking Hjalmar what happened to the wife and daughter he left behind before the war.  There is also LOT of creepiness in this film since Boris Karloff and Bela Lugosi are usually creepy and in horror movies!!  3 ½* (I liked this movie)

65 min, Adventure directed by Edgar G. Ulmer with Boris Karloff, Bela Lugosi, David Manners, Julie Bishop, Egon Brecher, Lucille Lund, Henry Armetta, Albert Conti.

Note:  Imdb 7.1 out of 10, 87% critic 70% audience on Rotten Tomatoes, Amazon 4.5* out of 5* with 84 reviews, TCM Leonard Maltin 3.5* out of 4* user reviews 4.40

Special Note:  Filmed in Universal City, California.  There is a mistake when the organ is played because none of the notes played are correct.  The sounds of explosions don’t match the visual scenes of Hjalmar’s house.   Shown on TCM during Halloween.