THE MARK OF ZORRO (1940)

THE MARK OF ZORRO (1940). Director: Rouben Mamoulian. 

Diego Vega (Tyrone Power) returns to Los Angeles from Madrid and discovers that in his absence his elderly father (Montagu Love) has been unseated and a petty tyrant, Don Quintero (J. Edward Bromberg), is taxing the people to death and brutalizing the rebellious with the aid of nasty Captain Pasquale (Basil Rathbone). Diego's father is appalled by what his predecessor is doing but can't see himself fighting against the government, no matter how corrupt. Therefore Diego dons the mask of Zorro to fight his people's oppressor, and begins to act as a carefree, callous fop to avoid suspicion being focused upon him. This very good movie about one of the first masked "super-heroes" of sorts is fine entertainment, with smashing performances from all -- this is one of Power's best -- and an excellent sword fight between Power and Rathbone, who is also at his snarling best. Linda Darnell is lovely as the romantic interest and Gale Sondergaard splendid as Quintero's catty and unfaithful wife. Eugene Palette scores as the Padre, and there's a good scene when Power reveals his secret identity to the priest. Bromberg and Love are also in top form. Not as thrilling as the serial Zorro's Fighting Legion but much superior to Zorro Rides Again. 

 Verdict: Very entertaining classic. ***.

MR. MOTO TAKES A CHANCE

Mr. Moto (Peter Lorre) in disguise as an old guru

MR. MOTO TAKES A CHANCE (1938). Director: Norman Foster.

"If I was casting a horror picture I'd have him play the murderer." -- reference to Mr. Moto.

Mr. Moto (Peter Lorre) is on an archaeological dig in Cambodia, which is under French rule, when who should drop in by parachute but Victoria Mason (Rochell Hudson), who was flying around the world until her plane caught fire. Among the other supporting characters are filmmakers Marty (Robert Kent of Who's Guilty?) and Chick (Chick Chandler of Circumstantial Evidence), who hope to photograph some of the forbidden royal temples. Objecting to this is Bokor (George Regas), the High Priest, who is in a power struggle with the portly and deceptively amusing Rajah Ali (J. Edward Bromberg of The Mark of Zorro). Then one of the Rajah's wives is murdered by poison dart. Half of the time Moto disguises himself as an elderly guru  who gives orders to the High Priest while spies are plotting and trying to kill each other -- and Moto -- everywhere. If this sounds interesting, be warned that Mr. Moto Takes a Chance is essentially a plot-less stew with a thrown-together script that just gets duller as it goes along until a fairly exciting climax in the temple. Peter Lorre gives his customary good performance but one senses he was mighty bored with the material, along with the audience.

Verdict: Where's Charlie Chan when you need him? **. 

PILLOW OF DEATH

PILLOW OF DEATH (1945). Director: Wallace Fox.

Donna Kincaid (Brenda Joyce of Tarzan and the Amazons) lives with her mostly stern and unpleasant relatives in a creeky old house. Her Aunt Belle (Clara Blandick) heartily disapproves of Donna's relationship with her boss, Wayne Fletcher (Lon Chaney, Jr.), because he already has a wife. This becomes moot when Mrs. Fletcher is found murdered in her bed. Things get complicated when the murders continue, with the victims always found suffocated (hence the "pillow"). In addition to the already named, the suspects include the medium, Julian (J. Edward Bromberg of The Mark of Zorro); the poor relation and servant Amelia (Rosalind Ivan of The Corn is Green); old Uncle Sam (George Cleveland); and creepy next-door neighbor Bruce (Bernard Thomas), who has a thing for Donna and is always puttering surreptitiously around the estate. Pillow of Death is decidedly one of the better "Inner Sanctum" mysteries, with an entertaining story, interesting characters, and a lot of plot twists, not to mention its quota of stupid moments along with a generous amount of suspense. The acting in general is quite good as well, with the character actors being somewhat more effective than the leads.

Verdict: Good "Inner Sanctum" mystery. ***.

GIRLS' DORMITORY

Simone Simon and Herbert Marshall

GIRLS' DORMITORY (1936). Irving Cummings.

"A boy who is graduating is just a boy, but a girl who is graduating stands before you a full-fledged woman."

Professor Anna Mathe (Ruth Chatterton) has been helping Dr. Stephen Dominik (Herbert Marshall), director of a girl's school, with a book project, and is secretly carrying a torch for him. She gets unexpected competition from Marie Claudel (Simone Simon), a pretty 19-year-old student at the school, who is also in love with the middle-aged Professor Dominik. When Professor Augusta Wimmer (Constance Collier, in a most unsympathetic role) finds a love letter Marie wrote to an unknown man in a waste basket, she convenes a council to determine if Marie should graduate. Wimmer and another male professor think her behavior -- they believe she had a rendezvous with this man -- is scandalous and brings disfavor to the school, while two other professors think they are making too much of a school girl's infatuation. As one of them puts it, "my mother was married and had two children at Marie's age." Anna and Stephen are both sympathetic to the girl. The simple story is okay, but it's the acting from all concerned, especially Simon [in her first American film] and Marshall, that put this over. [Not to give away the ending, but if this movie has a moral it's that men like 'em young.] Chatterton (Dodsworth) is not photographed at all flatteringly in this, but her warm, self-sacrificing character is not meant to be glamorous. Tyrone Power shows up very late in the picture as Marie's handsome cousin. John Qualen is a likable if rather outspoken hand around the school, and others in the cast include J. Edward Bromberg and Dixie Dunbar.

Verdict: So-so romance with good performances. **1/2.  

THE INVISIBLE AGENT

THE INVISIBLE AGENT (1942). Director: Edwin L. Marin.

The third in the Invisible Man series (The Invisible Woman was a comedy that did not follow the continuity of the first two films) has the grandson (Jon Hall) of Frank Griffin, the original Invisible Man, living under an assumed name and besieged by Nazi agents who want his grandfather's formula, as does the United States. After the sneak attack on Pearl Harbor, Hall uses the formula himself to enter enemy territory and acquire vital information from the Nazi's. Ilona Massey plays a double-agent who helps Hall even though he doesn't quite trust her. Hall and Massey are fine, but the picture certainly benefits from the participation of J. Edward Bromberg and Sir Cedric Hardwicke as Nazi agents, and Peter Lorre as a sinister Japanese baron -- all three gentlemen give outstanding performances despite the nature of the material (Lorre and Hardwicke each brilliantly underplay a final encounter).

Verdict: The Invisible Agent is a competent B thriller with some excellent effects work courtesy of, as usual, John P. Fulton. **1/2.

SON OF DRACULA (1943)

SON OF DRACULA (1943). Director: Robert Siodmak.

Imagine fearing death and oblivion so much that you would desire to become a vampire so that you could "live" eternally with your beloved. That is the premise of this fascinating, chilling, and ultimately poignant horror film, one of the best of the Universal Dracula/monster flicks. Lon Chaney (Jr.) plays Count Alucard, who comes to a sleepy Southern town at the invitation of Katherine Caldwell (Louise Allbritton), and who begins a reign of terror against those who figure out who he really is. Frank Craven is the kindly Dr. Brewster, who calls upon his friend Professor Lazlo (J. Edward Bromberg) for information on vampires. Robert Paige is Katherine's fiance, Frank, and Evelyn Ankers is her sister, Claire. Son of Dracula is well-acted (although Chaney can't compare to Lugosi and is rather disappointing), well-directed, and quite unpredictable, with a terrific conclusion. Lots of atmosphere. NOTE: There is no actual reference in the film to Chaney being the son of the original Dracula.

Verdict: Outstanding Universal horror film. ***1/2.