The Raven Review

Review of The Raven (1935) by screenqueeen: 👍 3.5/5

45/100 the thirteenth night in the lonesome hooptober film 1 day 2 cats: 0

the third Poe story to get more or less adapted by universal and the third in a row Lugosi stars in. his chemistry with Karloff is some of the most entertaining in film let alone horror. i enjoyed how this doesn't really adapt the titular poem and is more about a stark raving super fanatic of Poe's work who hyperfixates on the sadistic elements of that which he has read exclusively. the zealotry dr. Vollin employs in his literally literary devices of torture could very well shock a person like John Kramer (of the univerSAWl pictures) into maybe easing up a bit but give a guy like dr. Phibes a rivalrous chuckle.

everything actually feels comically yet convincingly dastardly, with layers of personal insurance spread about Vollin's booby-trapped mansion that shows how universal could take something like CAT AND THE CANARY and THE BLACK CAT into a more purposeful intent for bodily harm than just some notion of vague corporeal threats of death within a lot of universal horror films. things end how you'd expect but circumstances get nicely dark with Bateman's fate and Vollin's brief taste of torturous victory.

the film ends on a light hearted disposition meant to bolster the masculine image of Jean's fiancé despite the fact that he did nothing to influence their ability to escape, something that feels out of place in a film that has a pretty unified sense of theme and spirit otherwise and in a quick instance erases the notion that anything that happened has and will ever affect the both of them. maybe it would be a funny story to tell at their wedding party but nothing to lose sleep over. i reject the ending myself, although the rest of the film is well done & interestingly unique. i had a good time with it.

*technically a character i can relate with -- i too want to have a fully functioning slab with retractable manacles and descending bladed pendulum apparatus installed in my home

**normally i would apologize but no, this is funny and fuck you

*hey lionsgate/blumhouse: i have a good SAW XI/XII pitch for you