The Face Of Marble (1946)

Starring John Carradine, Claudia Drake, Robert Shayne, Maris Wrixon, Willie Best
Directed by William Beaudine
(actor & director credits courtesy IMDB.com)

A scientist and his assistant are on the verge of success in bringing the dead back to life, but their experiments have unintended side effects, exploited by their voodoo-practicing housekeeper.

An interesting cast and unusual story, if derivative of a great many other films, make this low budget effort stand out.  Carradine is excellent as the kindly but unethical scientist and it's good to see Shayne (of TV's Adventures Of Superman) as his more principled assistant.  Drake and Wrixon, primarily known for their poverty row productions, are good enough, and although Willie Best again plays his usual stereotypical manservant, he surprisingly isn't turned to for comic relief, and is largely inoffensive this time around.  With limited sets, mostly interiors of the scientist's house, and a meandering script, the picture does drag quite a bit.  However, it's special effects are a bit more advanced than I expected, with plenty of Strickfadden-like equipment in the lab, and creatures with the ability to walk through walls.  Overall I'd say, especially since this movie has been hard to see over the years, it's worth checking out, but it doesn't elevate itself to much more than any typical Poverty Row production.  The film's title comes from the appearance of the scientist's subjects' skin after being resurrected, although it's pretty hard to make out in black and white.