FORGOTTEN KARLOFF & LUGOSI SCI-FI CLASSIC
Added 11/15/2007
This is a film many horror fans pass by but, it is an interesting early Karloff and Lugosi team up. There is no Jack Pierce monster make up in this one but, the FX are very good for the time. The film is available on DVD and the transfer in very good. The set is called the Bela Lugosi franchise collection and it is worth picking up for this and the four other horror films included.
2 out of 2 people found this helpful.
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Unjustly neglected vintage horror
Added 10/31/2007
Boris Karloff ,after toiling in the cinematic vineyards for years without much success ,achieved fame as Frankenstein's Monster -the creation of a mad scientist .In this movie he gets promoted to playing the crazed scientist himself ,one Dr Janos Rukh ,a man who when in Africa finds a strange meteorite .When he touches the glowing rock he is contaminated by a substance he labels Radium X which renders him lethal to the touch ,once the daily doses of antidote wear off .He deploys his new found killing power on his unfaithful wife (Freances Drake),her lover and indeed most of the cast before the movie reaches its climaz
Karloff in his first horror movie outing without heavy makeup is moving and dignified as ever and Lugosi as ever complements him admirably .The acting elsewhere is less compelling but overall this works well.Lambert Hillyer -who made the wonderful Dracula's Daaughter in the same year-directs with brio ;the efefcts are for their day admirable ,and this is a good minor shocker .It may well be the first movie to echo those grand old horror sentiments "There are somethings that man is not meant to know"- a line spoken in the movie
This is a good little movie and I recommend it to your notice
0 out of 0 people found this helpful.
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not very good
Added 9/28/2006
This film is o.k. But the plot is dumb. Boris Karloff has a bigger part and not a very excing one, than costar Bela Lagosi. The title has nothing to do with the story and the makeup is bad. The film is wierd so I would rather watch The Black Cat, The Raven or Murders in the Rouge Morge.
1 out of 1 people found this helpful.
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Not a Classic, But Still Exceptional and underrated.
Added 7/8/2006
The Invisible Ray was yet another teaming between Boris Karloff and Bela Lugosi coming off their successful 1934's The Black Cat and 1935's The Raven. While the Invisible Ray is not as good as these films, it is very underrated and stands up quite well as a horror/sci-fi film. Karloff gets more screen time but Lugosi at least has more to do in this film than he would in 1940's Black Friday where his role was minimal.
Karloff is eccentric scientist Janos Rukh and his much younger wife Diana is played by Frances Drake. Rukh is visited at his castle in the Carpathian Mountains by scientists Sir Francis Stevens and Dr. Felix Benet (Lugosi) along with Lady Stevens and her nephew Ronald. I sure would like to know how scientists can afford these big castles in all these old horror films. Ronald and Diana have an immediate attraction to each other who are much closer in age than she and her husband Janos. Benet is skeptical of Rukh's ability but is soon proven wrong. Rukh has invented a kind or Ray/Time machine projector that allows them to see back into Earth's long past and see a meteor striking Africa millions of years ago.
The entire group is off to Africa to locate the meteor and the mysterious element known as Radium X. Rukh leaves his wife and the rest of the group behind in the sweltering jungles while he is off with the native guides to try and find the meteor. While he's gone the attraction between Diana and Ronald develops into a full-blown romance. Janos finds the element and soon fashions an invisible ray that can literally melt solid rock but can be used for good if its power can be harnessed and remains in the jungle for further testing. But the Radium X has poisoned Rukh. In the dark his face and hands begin to glow and he soon finds his touch can kill within seconds. Benet creates a temporary antidote but Rukh will have to take it for the rest of his life and Benet warns it could have negative effects on the mind.
When Rukh's wife runs off with Drake and Benet and Stevens take their own samples of Radium X., Rukh condemns them all as thieves and vows revenge. He follows the entire group to Paris and then fakes his own death. He then tracks them down and kills them one by one until the last few decide and set a trap for him.
While not a classic, The Invisible Ray, one of the last horror films of the initial horror cycle in the 30's, as a lot of strong elements. The opening segments and Rukh's castle and the dark, story night are reminiscent of Frankenstein with plenty of gadgets and electricity machines. Jack Pierce is the uncredited make-up man as well. The film was directed by Lambert Hillyer who would also direct Dracula's Daughter, also released in 1936. Karloff is a bit hammy as the mad scientist but that's what makes these films so fun. Lugosi gets to actually play the good guy here as Dr. Benet who uses Radium X to cure blindness and other maladies and tries to help Rukh to no avail. Solid Horror film.
Reviewed by Tim Janson
3 out of 3 people found this helpful.
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An Okay Sci-fi Movie....
Added 12/23/2004
I am a HUGE Karloff and Lugosi fan. I've looked
all over and finally found this movie here
on Amazon.com, so I snatched it up.
This movie is Okay. It didn't grab me. In Fact,
I put it on and found myself doing other things
around the house. It's a classic and it's good for
what it is, and for the time that it came out,
but I enjoy the Karloff/Lugosi
movies The Raven and The Black Cat way more.
1 out of 3 people found this helpful.
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