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Reviews
Charlie Chan at the Opera (1936)
Great Music
Music written by Oscar Levant makes this a Movie that I want to experience over and over again. Boris Karloff is excellent in his depiction of an emotionally injured Opera Singer, and he gives an excellent Performance by correctly Lip syncing and offering the impression that he was playing Piano. There is one error that has to do with the Subtitles in all three Languages: French, Spanish, and English. All three Languages give an incorrect Dollar Count of $3.00 asked for by the Florist when he speaks to Number One Son, Lee. The Florist says $6.00, as Lee counts some Money in his Hand as he asks Charlie (Pop) Chan for help. Charlie gives him $3.00 to help pay for the $6.00 Tab.
Murder by Television (1935)
The Right Ideal
Nice performance by Bela Lugosi. The overall Quality of this Film however, is Poor at best, yet it is still entertaining. Someone found the Song boring, but l feel it should be mentioned that the beautiful song was written by Oliver Wallace, and that the Lyrics and Music seem to be unavailable from any on line Source. Furthermore, Mister Oliver Wallace wrote many great Songs for Walt Disney. It's a shame that they did not include Subtitles to help clarify the Dialog spoken by the Chinese Butler, Ah Ling as well as the Song lyrics that are for the most part incomprehensible in this Movie. I will try to determine the Lyrics, and add them to this Review if possible.
Flash Gordon's Trip to Mars (1938)
Entertaining Nostalgia
Uncredited, Thomas Carr is mentioned as being one of the Forest People, but he played another Role in the very beginning of this Extravaganza as the man taking the Code Messages at the Desk of the WGAB Radio Station. Thomas Carr went on to be involved in the Television Version of Superman, starring George Reeves, and many other Sci-Fi Productions.
Mark of the Vampire (1935)
Commentary Flaw + Clarification
I gave Mark of the Vampire Ten Stars for its entertainment value. However, there is a Flaw in the Commentary by Kim Newman and Steve Jones. They did not listen carefully to the Dialog of the script, and they therefore assumed that the actor playing Sir Karell actually drank a drugged wine. The Professor played by Lionel Barrymore says: (He thinks he drugged your wine.) The point being that the medication used by Jan the Butler was not at all real, so when Baron Otto pours an excessive amount into the wine as he did to commit the original murder, the phony medication would have no effect. The Commenters, Newman and Jones missed that important factor, and they went on to talk about Sir Karell drinking the drugged wine as if it was a flaw in the Script when there was no flaw because the wine was not really drugged or poisoned. Someone asked who attacked Fedor. The answer is given when Holmes Herbert tells us that, after the attack on Mr. Vincente, Miss Borotyn believed that Baron Otto was guilty of the crime. Thus, Baron Otto attacked Fedor in an attempt to get him out of the way so he could possess Miss Borotyn. We can also note that at the Inquest, it is mentioned that a farmer was found dead with his body drained dry of blood with the same wounds as Sir Karell. That implies that Baron Otto murdered the farmer to support the Vampire Myth, and deflect suspicion away from him.
Dracula (1931)
Bela (Genius) Lugosi
The genius of Lugosi can be realized in the way he delivered his memorable line: (Listen to them... Children of the Night...) Those of us that paid close attention to the way Bela accentuated the Words in the line of Dialog that followed, know that Bela did not simply say: (what music they make.) Bela stressed that phrase with a subtle alteration that all imitators miss completely. Bela's inflection was... (what music They! Make.) Lugosi stressed the word THEY! In that phrase. Lugosi's decision to stress the word THEY, proves he understood that the children of the night were special, and that he had a good grasp of English. Bela Lugosi did not simply play Dracula in any of the many Films in which he starred. Bela's vocal subtle intonations were specific to each Role despite his Hungarian Accent.