'The Strange Case of Dr. Rx' is worth investigating

The Strange Case of Doctor Rx (1942)

Starring: Patric Knowles, Anne Gwynne, Mantan Moreland, Edmund McDonald, Shemp Howard, Samuel S. Hinds, and Lionel Atwill

Director: William Nigh

Rating: Seven of Ten Stars

A successful private detective (Knowles) puts off early retirement at the behest of both a friend in the police department (McDonald) and a high-powered attorney to mob (Hinds) whose clients are being murdered by a seemingly invisible, intangible assassin.

"The Strange Case of Doctor Rx" is a fast-paced comedy-thriller starring a solid cast of mostly under-appreciated B-movie actors who are working with a script full of snappy dialogue and an intriguing murder mystery that deepens and becomes more convoluted as the film unfolds. In fact, everything about this film becomes more convoluted as it unfolds.

By the time "Strange Case" came to an end, I had the amusing thought that someone had challenged writer Clarence Upton Young to include every single mystery B-movie mainstay into one script... and he accepted. As this film unfolds, we get a charming gentleman detective and his befuddled manservant; a go-to-any-lengths-to-get-the-story lady reporter; cops who are tough but not bright; a rich, possibly crooked lawyer with a possibly even more crooked wife and family; gangsters and a gun moll; a suspicious mystery man who may or may not be the killer; a mad scientist; and a guy in a gorilla suit. In the end, nothing makes a whole lot of sense--and it feels a little like Young was hard-pressed to even formulate a satisfactory resolution to the everything-but-the-kitchen-sink mess he'd created. (I was left with one major question at the end, a question that was obviously left unanswered on purpose as it gave Mantan Moreland an opportunity to give us one final, mildly disturbing laugh.

Speaking of Mantan Moreland, this is another one of those films where he's more of a hero than any of the other characters give him credit for; his character isn't as smart as the one he portrayed in 1941's "King of the Zombies", but he absolutely key to the main hero's success and he makes a great personal sacrifice in the process. So, Moreland is perfectly cast here, as is everyone else. Most of the players in the film are at their best, with Moreland, Anne Gwynne, and Shemp Howard (of Three Stooges fame) are particularly fun to watch, even if Gwynne's performance is undermined a bit by the disjointed manner in which her character drifts through the story. Lionel Atwill plays a small but crucial role in the film, and the presence he lends is more a result of brilliant casting than anything Atwill does on screen. (Although, given his ability to slather on the villanous attitude, perhaps the harmless air he  air he has about him in the few scenes he's in is remarkable. At any rate, Atwill just being there brings with it certain expectations that help drive the story along and make it that much more entertaining.

"The Strange Case of Doctor Rx" is one of five movies included in the "Universal Cult Horror Classics" collection, despite the fact even the most creatve marketing executive or inventive critic could come with a good reason for why it should be considered a horror film. Nonetheless, it's fun flick, and it's presence is one of the many reasons why the set is worth owning if you enjoy old-time B-movies.

Every Day is Halloween!

This has been true every October for the past several years at Terror Titans where we celebrate 31 Nights of Halloween. Here at Shades of Gray... we're never quite sure what is going on, only that it needs to be in black and white!

Like the video for this fantastic version that Ministry recorded last year of their classic song "(Every Day is) Halloween". And while we're we fully aware the song is not about Halloween, we're presenting it here as part of our warm-up to the night of ghosties and ghoulies on October 31!





And here's the original version from the 1980s, set to clips from early Walt Disney cartoons!



(The cartoons featured in the video above are "Hell's Bells" and "The Skeleton Dance". Click on the links if you want to see the originals.)

Halloween Warm-up: Magic Mummy

Magic Mummy (1933)
Starring: Margie Hines (as the voice of the Mummy)
Directors: John Foster and George Stallings
Rating: Eight of Ten Stars

Tom and Jerry are police officers working the graveyard shift when they get a call about a stolen mummy. While working the case, they find their way to an underground theatre where a lich puts on performances for the undead.

"The Magic Mummy" is one of those 1930s animated romps that's a wild mix of visual puns, crazy humor, and horror that add up to a dreamlike, borderline nightmarish flight of fancy. From a playful opening scene with the heroes of our story patrolling the city streets in a literal radio car; to the portrayal of the jazziest, most laid-back jail in all of cartoon land; through the heroes invading the villains lair and discovering his plans for the mummy and ultimately disrupting them, this is a bit of animation that needs to be seen to be experienced. Any details I could describe here will ruin the surprising visuals and quirky little twists that will unfold before your eyes as you watch. I feel the ending could have been stronger, but getting to it was such a trip that I am mostly able to forgive the stumble at the finish.

I encourage you to take a few minutes and watch this great little cartoon right now. It's a perfect warm-up for Halloween, and it may also be the most fun you'll have today!

Trivia: Margie Hines also did the voices of Betty Boop and Olive Oyle during the late 1930s and early 1940s in some 50 cartoons.. She was, in fact, also the very first voice of Betty Boop in 1930, but was replaced for a number of years by Mae Questel.

Saturday Serial: My Father's Brain

"My Father's Brain" by Richard Sala originally appeared in Blab #8 (1994). We're featuring it here over the next few Saturdays (along with other stray samples of Sala's wild and spooky work) as part of our annual effort to spread the encourage the Halloween Spirit in the young and the old. Click on the strips for larger versions. Please come back next Saturday for Part Two.

MY FATHER'S BRAIN: PART ONE

By Richard Sala

To Be Continued...

Meanwhile, in the Shadows!

Richard Sala's creations is a stew of all the things that get covered by this blog. We should have done more to spotlight his work than just feature a couple stray cartoons during 2009 and 2010. But... the Saturday Serials give us the perfect opportunity to put him front and center!

Firearms Friday with Dorothy Sebastian

Born in 1903 in Birmingham, Alabama, Dorothy Sebastian was a Zigfield Girl who turned to screen acting. When she wasn't militantly enforcing safe driving practices around the MGM lot (we kid... maybe), she portrayed femme fatales and other "tough" female characters, both villainous and heroic, in a range of genres.

Sebastian's first film was "Half a Hero" in 1925, and she stayed busy playing supporting roles of varying sizes through the end of the Silent Era. Stardom, however, eluded her, and with the arrival of sound, her career entered a steep decline. By the mid-1930s, she was mostly taking small parts in Poverty Row B-movies, and even those became fewer and farther between as the 1940s arrived. (Highly public scandals involving tax evasion, multiple divorces, and drunk driving didn't help either.)

Sebastian's final film roles were uncredited bit-parts, with the last one in 1948's "The Miracle of Bells". She passed away in 1957 after battling cancer for several years.

Halloween is coming...

... and here's a little treat of a film to start getting you in the spirit for the season where ghouls and goblins are lurking in every shadow... even in the laundry room!

The Midnight Cycle (2016)
Starring: Lauren Calhoun
Director: David Westphal
Rating: Six of Ten Stars



For more a differen mini-fright film every day this month, visit our sister blog Terror Titans!

The 31 Nights of Halloween are Almost Here

Starting tomorrow, you (and monsters all around the world) will be able to enjoy a mini horror film each and every night at 4:44PM (Pacific Time) at the Terror Titans blog until Halloween.

The Autumn chill will be felt here at Shades of Gray, as we will be offering a variety of posts to help you get in the mood for Halloween. You'll find spooky music videos, comics, reviews, and the annual visits from Vampirella, so be sure to check back frequently.

The Milla Jovovich Quarterly

Halloween is several weeks away, but we are wondering if Milla Jovovich is dressing up like a devil, or if a devil is dressing up like Milla Jovovich?

Musical Monday with Depeche Mode

Depeche Mode's greatest album was, arguably "Music for the Masses", and, it was released on date--September 28--exactly 33 years ago. Here's a video released in support of the album to celebrate. It tells the tale of a crippled man whose car breaks down, and he is miraculously healed by a sexy chick on a moped. He then roams the countryside with her.


Depeche Mode: Behind the Wheel (1987)
Starring: Dave Gahan and Ippolita Santarelli
Director: Anton Corbijn
Rating: Seven of Ten Stars

School kids get creepy with "What Lies Beneath"

In 2014, Middle School teacher Candace Craig taught an intensive four-day course on silent movies, with an emphasis on horror films. At the end of it, her students made a rather remarkable little film. With the Halloween festivities starting next week at this blog, as well as the return of the 31 Nights of Halloween over at Terror Titans, this nicely done little film will serve as a warm-up for the things to come.

I'm going to refrain from my usual critical comments--this film WAS made by Middle Schoolers!--aside from observing that while the ending they gave this film was in perfect keeping with the films they were emulating, but I still it had ended a moment earlier, as the angry ghosts are closing in on our hapless teenaged trespassers.

If you like silent movies, I think you'll love this. I hope the kids who were the main drivers behind this film continued to be creative and perhaps even found a way to make a living in the film business.

(Also, check out the "Making Of "What Lies Beneath" here.)