Introduction
Welcome to my corner! This week, I'm sharing my thoughts on the film The Black Room. The TCM television channel played The Black Room as part of their 'Dangerous Twins' lineup on June 26. Enjoy!
The Black Room
The Black Room (released in Great Britain as The Black Room Mystery) is a 1935 American horror film directed by Roy William Neill (as R. William Neill) and starring Boris Karloff. Cinematography was done by Allen G. Siegler. Written by Arthur Strawn and Henry Myers.
Plot: In Tirol in the late 19th century, when twins are born to the ruling Baron de Berghman, the youngest, Anton is sent away due to a family legend that the youngest twin will kill the oldest. Two decades later, the elder twin, Gregor (Boris Karloff) arranges for Anton's (also Karloff) return so that the brothers may rule their country jointly. Upon Anton's arrival, mysterious disappearances and murders occur—and when the local peasant accuse Gregor, he assumes his more popular twin's identity.
Acting: Boris Karloff played Baron Gregor de Berghmann/Anton de Berghmann. Karloff had 206 screen credits to his name. His real name was William Henry Pratt, which I find hilarious. Apparently 'Karloff' was a family name that he decided to use as part of his stage name, though there are people who dispute this. He chose 'Boris' as his first name because it sounded foreign and exotic. Hehe.
His acting career began in 1911 on stage in Canada. His first screen credit was in 1919; his last was in 1971, two years after his death. Karloff's scenes were filmed in 1968, before his death in 1969. however, the movie producer died before the films were officially released. The films got tied up in legal purgatory until 1971 when they were finally released.
I love Karloff's voice. I could listen to it all day. He was really able to challenge himself in The Black Room because he was playing twin brothers, not that he needed the challenge.
His four most notable screen credits include The Bride of Frankenstein, The Black Cat, The Mummy, and Frankenstein. i wrote a bit about The Black Cat for one of my columns in November 2024. I feel like I've seen so many of his films, and yet I haven't even scratched the surface. Picking a favorite (so far) is hard. I really do love his narration in How the Grinch Stole Christmas! (1966). I watch it every year, as I'm sure many of us do.
Marian Marsh played Thea Hassel. She did a fine acting job, especially in the scenes where she had to cry. I thought she was a very believable crier, which is hard to do on screen. I haven't seen any of her other work. Her four most notable screen credits are Beauty and the Boss, Five Star Final, Murder by Invitation and Svengali.
Robert Allen played Lt. Albert Lussan. Anther fine performance. I haven't seen any of his other screenwork either. His four most notable screen credits include Rio Grande Ranger, Air Hawks, The Awful Truth and The Unknown Ranger.
Thurston Hall played Col. Paul Hassel. He has an even longer list of screen credits than Boris Karloff! It looks like he had a lot of bit parts in television series. It also seems he didn't play many big parts, but he had a lot of them. He did have a commanding presence onscreen, similar to that of Karloff's, though it's hard to compete. His four most notable screen credits are Carson City, The Lone Wolf Returns, I Dood It and Two Sisters from Boston.
Technical Aspects: Writing for The Spectator in 1935, Graham Greene described the film as "absurd and exciting," and "wildly artificial." Greene praised both the acting of Karloff and the direction of Neill, noting that Karloff had been given a long speaking part and "allows to act at last," and that Neill had "caught the genuine Gothic note" in a manner that displayed more historical sense than any of Alexander Korda's films. Author and film critic Leonard Maltin awarded the film three out of four stars, calling it "[an] Excellent, understated thriller." Maltin also praised Karloff's performance as one of the actor's best.
From retrospective reviews, Tony Rayns reviewed the film in Sight & Sound, finding The Black Room as having "obvious aspirations to be a Paramount movie" noting its setting and "lavish deployment of crowds of extras." Rayns found that Karloff appeared to be relishing his dual role and that he "makes the most of some Hays Code defying hints of blasphemy."
Final Thoughts: I haven't yet found a Boris Karloff movie I didn't like. He's just so good! He makes any movie he's appearing in 10 times better. And in The Black Room, he played TWO characters! How lucky can you get? In all honesty, the rest of the cast doesn't matter, I didn't even really pay attention to them. Karloff demands your attention, and he certainly gets it from me.
I wasn't really sure what to expect from The Black Room. After the prophecy was given about the younger brother killing the older brother, I laid in wait to see the twist, the surprise. And I was surprised! the things I thought might happen didn't I can really enjoy a movie when the plot isn't obvious and easy to guess. This one wasn't for me from the get go.
This is a perfect classic horror movie. A perfect Boris Karloff film. I'd say if you're a fan of either, or both, you should definitely give this movie a watch.
Where to watch it: According to Google, The Black Room is not currently available to stream/watch with a service. However, you can purchase or rent a digital copy for a few dollars. I've also donated a DVD copy of the film to the Emil M. Larson Public Library in Clark for you all to enjoy if you choose to.
That's it for this week! What were your thoughts? Feel free to share them with us! You can call us, email us, visit us at the office, leave us a comment or message on Facebook, or even mail us something. Keep the comments, suggestions, questions, submissions, etc. coming our way! We'd love to hear from you!
