When the Laemmle Family lost control of Universal Pictures in 1936 and his contract with them was at an end, Boris Karloff signed a one picture deal with Warner Brothers. That movie, THE WALKING DEAD directed by the legendary Michael Curtiz, was successful enough that the studio offered him a 4 picture deal. After finishing commitments in his native England for 2 pictures, BK returned to Warners and made the 3 movies in this set plus BRITISH INTELLIGENCE. Despite his reputation as “the King of Horror” and his undeniable box office clout, Karloff was generally viewed as a B movie actor and that’s precisely what these 3 titles are.
WEST OF SHANGHAI is a real oddity. Although set in China, the film resembles a Western with lots of horseback riding and a set that looks like a Mexican cantina. Then there’s a crime angle with lots of graft and double dealing concerning a local oil field. Finally there’s BK himself playing a Chinese warlord (in politically incorrect Asian make-up) with more than a hint of black comedy. He has some choice dialogue which he makes the most of. Sheila Bromley scores as a tough minded American woman as does Vladimir Sokoloff as a weary Chinese general. At 62 minutes the movie is enjoyable and doesn’t wear out its welcome.
The same cannot be said of THE INVISIBLE MENACE which despite its sci-fi sounding title, is just an ordinary murder mystery taken from an unsuccessful stage play called WITHOUT WARNING (it closed after just 17 performances). It is set on an Army base where a newly wed private and his smuggled in bride stumble across a grisly murder. At 59 minutes it feels roughly 30 minutes too long with stock characters and a totally wasted BK although, as usual, he has his moments. Both movies were directed by John Farrow (Mia’s dad) who would move up the Hollywood ladder to bigger and better things.
The last movie in the set, and the best of the three, is DEVIL’S ISLAND about an unjustly accused doctor who is sent to the infamous locale for treating an injured criminal. The parallels to the real life case of Dr Samuel Mudd (who set John Wilkes Booth’s leg after Lincoln’s assassination) and to Henri Charriere (made famous by Steve McQueen in the movie PAPILLON) are fairly obvious. This film, directed by B movie specialist William Clemens, is full of atmospheric photography (on the same cantina set as SHANGHAI) with solid performances from everyone involved. A decent script also adds to the viewer’s enjoyment.
Another in the long list of MOD Warner Archive DVD-Rs, this BORIS KARLOFF TRIPLE FEATURE is their usual bare bones release with no extra features and no subtitles. The films occasionally have contrast issues and in some places the volume is low but without restoration this is the best that they are going to be. While far from Boris’ best they are also far from his worst and give him the opportunity to play non-horrific roles. If you’re a Boris Karloff fan then you should have this set. The price is right and these forgotten films come from the 1930s which was BK’s most interesting and productive decade.
The Capsule Critic 