Starring Boris Karloff, Ricardo Cortez, Edmund Gwenn, Marguerite Churchill, Warren Hull
Directed by Michael Curtiz
(actor & director credits courtesy IMDB.com)
A gang of racketeers frame an innocent man for their murder of a judge, but after the man is executed, a scientist is able to bring him back to life.
One of Warner Brothers' few early ventures into horror, the picture is masterfully directed by Curtiz, and perfectly framed around another memorable performance by Karloff. Believable as a decent man wrongfully convicted and looking for work after his prison sentence, Karloff's John Ellman is noble and a gentleman, a fine reflection of Karloff's craft and his own personality. His performance changes but is just as expert after his resurrection, to a man silent and almost zombie-like, with one eye tearful and another simmering with hatred when he recognizes the men who did him in. Standing somewhat off kilter as he walks like a somnambulist, the role shows off his talents, and it's a shame Warners weren't able to showcase him in more features like this while he was under contract. He's supported by Gwenn as the well-meaning scientist who nevertheless is ready to take terrible risks to secure Karloff's knowledge of the afterworld, and Cortez, wonderfully slimy as the attorney behind Ellman's framing. Curtiz and his crew also enhance the story and its themes with a number of atmospheric touches, from expressionistic lighting in the prison, to a violent thunderstorm during a showdown in a gangster's apartment, to the haunting image of Karloff wandering among the graves of a cemetery.
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