Bride of the Gorilla (1951)

Note Générale:

4,2/10   

Réalisateur:

Curt Siodmak

Scénariste:

Curt Siodmak (writer)

Date de sortie:

octobre 1951 (USA)

Genre:

Horreur

Accroche:

Her clothes torn away, screaming in terror!

Intrigue:

The owner of a plantation in the jungle marries a beautiful woman. Shortly afterward, he is plagued by a strange voodoo curse which transforms him into a gorilla.

Plot Keywords:

Jungle | Gorilla | Curse | Transformation | Voodoo

Avis des utilisateurs:

Not good but not as bad as its reputation suggests.

Ensemble

Barbara Payton	...	Mrs. Dina Van Gelder
Lon Chaney Jr.	...	Police Commissioner Taro (as Lon Chaney)
Raymond Burr	...	Barney Chavez
Tom Conway	...	Dr. Viet
Paul Cavanagh	...	Klaas Van Gelder
Gisela Werbisek	...	Al-long
Carol Varga	...	Larina
Paul Maxey	...	Van Heusen
Woody Strode	...	Nedo, Policeman
Martin Garralaga	...	Native
Felippa Rock	...	Stella Van Heusen
Moyna MacGill	...	Mme. Van Heusen
reste de la distribution par ordre alphabétique:
Steve Calvert	...	Gorilla

Réalisé par
Curt Siodmak

Scénaristes (dans l'ordre alphabétique)
Curt Siodmak		writer

Produit par
Edward Leven	....	associate producer
Jack Broder	....	producer (uncredited)

Musique originale
Raoul Kraushaar
Mort Glickman		(uncredited)

Image
Charles Van Enger

Montage
Francis D. Lyon

Direction artistique
Frank Paul Sylos		(as Frank Sylos)

Décorateur de plateau
Edward G. Boyle		(as Edward Boyle)

Création des costumes
Elmer Ellsworth		(costumes: men)
Betty Zackin		(costumes: women)

Maquillage
Ann Kirk	....	hair stylist
Gustaf Norin	....	makeup artist (as Gus Norin)

Assistant réalisateur
Richard Dixon	....	assistant director

Technicien du son
Buddy Myers	....	sound (as Bud Meyers)

Effets spéciaux
Lee Zavitz	....	special effects

Divers
Herman Cohen	....	assistant to producer

Companies de production

• Jack Broder Productions Inc.

Distributeurs

• Realart Pictures (1951) (USA) (theatrical)
• Alliance Releasing Corporation (1952) (Canada) (theatrical)
• Alpha Video Distributors (2004) (USA) (DVD)
• Englewood Entertainment (1998) (USA) (VHS)
• Englewood Entertainment (2002) (USA) (DVD)
• Gotham Distribution (2003) (USA) (DVD)
• Image Entertainment (2002) (USA) (DVD)
• Mill Creek Entertainment (2007) (USA) (DVD)
• Nothing's New Video (2005) (USA) (VHS)
• Reel Media International (2004) (worldwide) (video)
• Reel Media International (2007) (worldwide) (all media)
• Something Weird Video (SWV) (video)
• Vintage Video (1988) (USA) (video)

Autre(s) titre(s):

The Face in the Water (USA) (working title)

Durée:

70 min | USA:66 min (DVD)

Pays:

USA

Langue:

Anglais

Couleur:

Noir et Blanc

Rapport de forme:

1,37 : 1

Son:

Mono (Western Electric Sound System)

Classification:

USA:Unrated (2005 DVD release) | USA:Passed (National Board of Review) | USA:Approved (PCA #15472)

Lieux de tournage:

Samuel Goldwyn/Warner Hollywood Studios - 1041 N. Formosa Avenue, Hollywood, Los Angeles, California, USA

Société:

Jack Broder Productions Inc.

Anecdotes:

Although it only took seven days to shoot the movie, Chaney was scheduled to go on a ten day publicity tour on behalf of the film which eventually grew to 4 1/2 months according to Chaney biographer Don Smith.

Goofs:

Révélant des erreurs: When Dina goes searching for Barney in the jungle for the first time, we see a quick shot of a leopard climbing up into a tree. Although this scene is supposed to be outdoors (the jungle), both the leopard and the leaves around him are casting shadows on the "sky" behind them. The sky is obviously a wall or backdrop.

Guillemet:

[first lines]
Police Commissioner Taro: [narration] This is Jungle - lush, green, alive with incredible growth - as young as day, as old as time. I, Taro, Police Commissioner of Itman County, which borders the Amazonas River, know it as well as any man will ever know it. Isn't it beautiful? But I have also learned that beauty can be venomous...

Connexions:

Référencé sur 1st Annual Mystery Science Theater 3000 Summer Blockbuster Review (1997) (TV)

Not good but not as bad as its reputation suggests.

In my movie reference books this movie is variously described as a "bomb" or recommended as a suitable choice for inclusion in the 100 worst movies of all time. Nevertheless, I have no qualms in saying that it is not that bad, and was quite happy to sit for 65 minutes (the short running time probably helps) and see it through until the end.

To begin with Curt Siodmak's story is interesting enough (as are many of his screen writing efforts), and has more than a touch of complex moral ambiguity. His direction here however has very little flair and tends to be on the perfunctory side. The low budget is a major constraint, and for the most part the film tends to be on the flat side visually, with unimpressive jungle scenes and minimal interior set pieces of the kind typical for a low budget production.

The cast (described in one reference book as 4 non-actors) are actually all competent, and Raymond Burr, in fact, is quite good in the part, managing to impart a human dimension to what could have been merely an unsympathetic villain. In fact it is interesting to actually analyse how much of the films dramatic load actually rests on his shoulders.