Lugosi: The Forgotten King (1986 TV Movie) User Reviews

The first ever in depth documentary on Bela Lugosi, since updated with new interviews

[kevinolzak · 7/10 · 24 July 2020]

1985's "Lugosi: The Forgotten King" was the first ever documentary about the life and career of Bela Lugosi, done on the fly by budding filmmakers who were only able to use public domain footage from trailers to flesh out his most famous roles. Enthusiastic contributors include Forrest J. Ackerman, illustrious editor of Famous Monsters of Filmland, who proudly serves as host in an actual Lugosi-owned cape, and interview subjects Ralph Bellamy, John Carradine, Carroll Borland, and Alex Gordon. Gordon's perspective was an interesting one, growing up in England during the crackdown on horror films to forbid children under 16 from viewing them, so in effect his first genre encounter with Bela was opposite Boris Karloff in "The Invisible Ray," after first seeing him in Universal's dirt cheap "Postal Inspector." Ralph Bellamy discusses how the studios glamourized their stars, and offers one anecdote about director Erle C. Kenton on "The Ghost of Frankenstein" (he also worked with Bela in "The Wolf Man"), while Carroll Borland shares her story of working on stage ( as Lucy in "Dracula") and film (as Luna in "Mark of the Vampire") with the handsome Hungarian, and the effect his presence had on women every time he walked in the room. A later screen Dracula, John Carradine, worked with Lugosi on four titles: 1934's "The Black Cat," 1944's "Return of the Ape Man" and "Voodoo Man" for Monogram, and Bela's last completed role in 1956's "The Black Sleep," admitting that he didn't really know him that well, other than he considered him a fine actor who appeared to be good friends with Boris Karloff (he also noted how quickly Monogram shot their films as opposed to the major studios). Carradine's most humorous comment is about the Lugosi funeral (Forrest J. Ackerman was present to share his thoughts with us), and the (false) rumor that Boris Karloff was in attendance, looking down upon his former costar to quietly intone: "come now Bela, you're putting us on!" Some 30 years after its disappearance into television syndication and home video flirtations, the filmmakers were contacted by the Lugosi family to update the documentary, promising the late actor's son Bela G. Lugosi as their first new interviewee, followed by what few survivors still lived: Carla Laemmle, Donnie Dunagan, Louise Currie, Janet Ann Gallow, and Anne Jeffreys. This more recent cut is much longer, preserving all the footage shot exclusively for the 1985 original so Forry Ackerman remains our guide, the grainy trailer footage now replaced by higher quality sources. From the early days in Hungary to the final days recovering from drug addiction, it is a respectful retrospective that may not be very detailed but offers its share of surprises for even the most dedicated buffs.

Interesting if flawed

[sirarthurstreebgreebling II · 9 May 2002]

This made for cable television documentary is by no means complete but it is a rare chance to see archive footage of interviews and various clips from his films but it is somewhat spoilt by the endless showing of the "Bela" ident which goes to show how many ad breaks there are in America.

Presented by Forrest J Ackerman (Famous Monsters of Filmland) it gives an honest portrait of a young man with dreams of coming to America to become an actor , his subsequent rise to fame and his tragic end as a Heroin addict.

Featuring interviews with co-stars, mostly form his later films with Ed Wood this documentary is a must for anyone interested in a man who changed the face of horror.

Worth Watching for the Interviews

[Michael_Elliott · 1 October 2012]

Bela Lugosi: The Forgotten King (1985)

*** (out of 4)

Oh, how time has changed. When this documentary came out it was okay to say Bela Lugosi was "forgotten" but today you could argue that he's one of the most popular horror stars out there. This documentary has a few of its facts wrong and there's no question that there are better ones out there but at the same time this here has a couple things that make it a must see. What made this a must see for me back in the day as a child is that it featured footage from various Lugosi movies that weren't available then. If you wanted to see clips from these movies the only way to do so was by watching a documentary like this. This here is what kept this in my player all through my young years. Today all of these films are easy to get your hands on so the documentary doesn't have that same need it factor. What keeps it entertaining and worth viewing to people of today is that it features actual interviews with those who knew Lugosi or worked with him. Host Forrest J. Ackerman does a fine job and gets to tell some good stories. We also get Carroll Borland talking about working with Lugosi on Dracula and we've also got Ralph Bellamy, John Carradine and Alex Gordon telling some stories. It's these interviews that make the film worth seeing and one wishes that we had more of them. BELA LUGOSI: THE FORGOTTEN KING isn't the greatest documentary out there but fans of the horror legend should enjoy it.