The Monkey's Paw (1948) User Reviews

It's a talisman...

[hitchcockthelegend · 7/10 · 2 September 2013]

Based on the famous story written by W.W. Jacobs, The Monkey's Paw is directed by Norman Lee who also co-adapts the screenplay with Barbara Toy. It stars Milton Rosmer, Megs Jenkins, Michael Martin Harvey, Eric Micklewood and Brenda Hogan. Filmed out of Kay Carlton Studio, music is by Stanley Black and cinematography by Bryan Langley.

Story finds the Trelawne family purchasing a fabled Monkey's Paw from a peddler, it is said to be an item that can grant three wishes, but many believe that those wishes come at a cost. The Trelawne family is about to find out if the tale of The Monkey's Paw is fact or fiction...

It's such a strong premise in story it has been mined many a time over the decades, in film, radio and television. Here we go back to a time of British cinema of minimal budgets, straight backed delivery of scripts and economical running times of just an hour. Norman Lee's film is a splendid piece of atmospheric unease that makes the most of some sparse but effective sets, however, that is on proviso you can allow for its obvious limitations. It's safe to say this will not terrify anybody, but it has the capacity to tingle the spine as the story builds to a finale played out in the flashes and bangs of a thunder storm. Right there, before a cheeky coda, suggestion is everything, proof once more that quite often what you don't see is more frightening...

It's no must see lost British Chiller Classic, and the best available print from Renown Pictures Ltd (paired with The House in Marsh Road) is still scratchy and has the odd reel jump and unintentional patches of blackness, but it's still a watchable print and of interest to those with a bent for really old British chillers. 6.5/10

Be careful what you wish for!

[Stevieboy666 · 6/10 · 10 January 2019]

Minor British chiller about a monkeys' paw talisman that can grant three wishes but comes with a heavy price. Just watched it on the channel Talking Pictures. It is very crackly and the print looks older than 1948 but that does add a certain element of charm. Despite it's short running time the first 30 minutes do drag somewhat, however it does build to a quite impressively eerie climax. I recognized Meg Jenkins, who starred in the fantastic Wurzel Gummidge kid's TV series some 30 or so years later. Also filmed in 2013, which wasn't a bad effort either.

The Short Story At Length

[boblipton · 5/10 · 7 August 2021]

Norman Lee takes W. W. Jacobs' classic short story and transforms it into a second feature.

One of the strengths of the short story is that it is a short story; there is no fat on it, leaving the reader to put the real horror into the story: the failure of the first wish; the hint at what it is knocking, unseen, at the door; the tragic necessity of the third wish. It all takes place in the reader's imagination, the elaborations of what the reader thinks is terrifying. Instead, in order to bring this to an hour's length, there is effectively, a forty-minute prologue; first we are introduced to a seller of curios. Then we see various wares; then the monkey's paw, and finally, the story. Lee paces it very well, and adds a platitudinous epilogue, but the story, although still interesting, is weakened. With Milton Rosmer, Megs Jenkins, and a lot of art direction by Victor Hembrow and George Ward.

"It Turned In My Hand! It Turned Like A Snake!"...

[azathothpwiggins · 20 May 2021]

Based on the classic short story, THE MONKEY'S PAW concerns the Trelawne family, their need of money, and the result of the paw's entry into their lives. As the story goes, it's supposed to grant three wishes to anyone who simply holds it and asks. Of course, the devil truly is in the details!

After the first wish, we're already dreading the second!

True to the original tale, "Be careful what you wish for", "Don't tempt fate", and "Be satisfied with what you have" are the main ideas.

Though there is some padding, the added story line actually reinforces the idea of the paw's alleged occult powers, as well as the Trelawne's desperate situation. The sparse production takes nothing away from the horror that unfolds.

The short story scared the hell out of generations. This movie does it justice...

"There's Someone at the Door..."

[richardchatten · 5/10 · 15 September 2019]

A once-in-a-lifetime cast includes late appearances by Milton Rosmer and Hay Petrie (the former soon retired and the latter soon died) and early ones by Sydney 'Taffler' (sic) and Alfie Bass. A young Megs Jenkins is ironically made up to look older here than she did in the seventies; while Michael Martin Harvey, who here plays your friendly neighbourhood poacher, was promoted by director Norman Lee the following year to the lead in 'The Case of Charles Peace'.

It looks good, and passes it's short running time agreeably enough. But as several previous reviewers have already noted devotes very little time to W.W.Jacobs' spine-chilling short story of 1902 itself (beautifully parodied in 2005 in the 'South Park' episode 'Marjorine'), clutters up the story with a gratuitous flashback structure; and even adds a little coda having at last given us the famous final act, just in case we'd found it all a bit too scary!

Don't Wish Against Fate

[Mike-764 · 7/10 · 2 August 2007]

A man comes to the Trelawne shop to obtain a painting and one of the items he offers in the trade is a severed monkey's paw. One worker, a dishonest sort named Kelly, at the shop knows the secret of the monkey's paw, that it will grant three wishes for its owner, but the wishes will only bring tragedy for the owner. Trelawne later trades the painting for the paw. He later finds out that he owns 200 pounds to his bookmaker and as a last resort uses the paw to wish for the money. He gets the money but at cost of his son's life when he was killed in a motorcycle race and was given the 200 pounds, the purse for the race. The Trelawnes feel the guilt over the loss of their son, but Mrs. Trelawne knows there are two wishes left, and uses one to wish they here son returns from his grave. Despite the obvious low budget, this film succeeds in telling the story with excellent atmosphere, cinematography, acting, & directing. It does start off slow with establishing characters and settings, but after Kelly tells the story of the paw, it is able to flow better in its story telling. The ending of the film where Mrs. Trelawne uses her wish is amazing to look at despite sounding stagey. Thankfully the film doesn't settle into the obvious generic answer to the story. Rating, 7 out of 10.

Disappointing version of oft told story

[malcolmgsw · 5/10 · 23 June 2012]

IMDb lists no less than 12 versions of this tale.This is a British quota film made in 1948.It is rather disappointing.It just meanders along for the first half an hour and really squeezes the plot developments into the last half hour.Being a rather cheaply produced film the ending is done in a way that leaves more to the imagination.To bring off that style you need to have the inspiration of someone like Val Lewton.Needless to say this is not an attribute of this production.There is an appearance by a young ish Sydney Tafler shown with 2 fs in his surname.All told rather disappointing.At least i have reviewed the film unlike 2 of the reviews on this page.

Think again what you wish for - it could come true!

[mail-671 · 6/10 · 20 March 2008]

Mike-764's summation is obviously that of an updated US presentation & not that of the original short story originally set in the '20s by one of Britain's most popular & prolific spinner of yarns with a twist,W W Jacobs.Through the 30s-50s it was a popular choice for Rep groups and BBC Radio and rates with the best - the famed "Sorry,Wrong No!" as a suspencer for the imagination. Small wonder it was a popular choice for the US "Suspense" series. Adaptations from the 50s for film & TV have altered the "McGuffin" but not always for the best. I probably saw this particular version but not recently, so I can't properly rate it. I have,however,read the play & it is that with which I am familiar. Listen to this in the dark in the original version with the original finish which is the real clincher. Who - or what was knocking at the door after that final wish? Would you have opened it?

Sleep-inducing rather than horror-inducing

[Leofwine_draca · 4/10 · 9 May 2016]

THE MONKEY'S PAW, one of many versions of the classic horror story by W. W. Jacobs, is a rare foray into the horror genre for that notoriously cheap film studio, Butcher's Films. It's a slow-moving potboiler that feels endlessly dragged out even though it runs for little over an hour, and is perhaps of note today for featuring some location photography in Maida Vale.

The storyline is a straightforward one about a mummified monkey's paw that has the power to grant the owner three wishes. However, the wishes come true in an unforeseen way. The problem with this tale is that it's brief indeed, and to adapt it would take little more than 20 minutes or so. And that's exactly what happens here: all of the story proper is packed into the last 20 minutes, and before then the viewer must sit through 40 minutes of stodge and non-events. It's a non-starter.

It's hard to criticise the film too much, because the film-makers were obviously on a tight budget, and the actors try their best. Director Norman Lee also helmed THE CASE OF CHARLES PEACE and THE DOOR WITH SEVEN LOCKS, and there are bit parts from future stars Alfie Bass and Sydney Tafler.

"Take my good hand!"

[adamjohns-42575 · 4/10 · 3 November 2023]

The Monkey's Paw (1948) -

As this film began there was a lot of character establishment and considering how short the film was that certainly made it drag before anything really happened, almost right before the end.

I actually thought that 'The Simpson's' (1987-) version was much better, more succinct and interesting. It probably had a higher budget too, because this one didn't exactly scream A-list stars and high production values.

There were some obvious plot holes in the story too - Tom entered a Motorcycle Race on the first day he owned the bike and he received the prize money, despite skidding out of the race to name but two of them.

I would imagine that the scares were tame even by the standards of 1948 and I could easily have watched this with a small child without them being frightened even slightly. That's if they could be bothered with it.

I was glad of my TV's subtitles for the Irish character of Seamus Kelly (Michael Martin Harvey), because he played the accent so thickly at times, but that's all I could really say about the cast.

It was a cautionary tale of "Careful What You Wish For", because everything comes at a cost and it was a vehicle that has been used many times since and not just in cartoons.

If you want the gist of the story watch 'The Simpson's' and be entertained, but if you only want something for a bit of background noise, put this one on as there was far less to concentrate on, but personally I would avoid it.

440.11/1000.

The Monkey's Paw

[CinemaSerf · 5/10 · 5 January 2023]

A small shop-keeping family acquire a rather gruesome looking monkey's paw from a passing peddler who promises them it will bring good luck - something they need as "Mr. Trelawne" (Milton Rosmer) has got himself into bother with a local bookie over a £200 debt he has run up. A slightly comically over-made up Megs Jenkins plays his wife with Eric Mickelwood as "Tom" their twenty something son who decides that he can perhaps win the money by racing his new car "Alice" at a local racetrack. Needless to say, they try to use the talisman to help them out and disaster accompanies them each time... The problem with this whole story is that it is way too short; if you wish on the paw then you get your wish but pay a terrible price - but that's it; there isn't anything else to do with the hour, so whilst it concludes in quite an eery and atmospheric fashion (helped by some creative use of thunderstorm sound effects) the rest of it is character establishment and as such is quite dull and unremarkable.

Believe me, don't ever wish for the impossible.

[Peter22060 · 28 December 2003]

I read the review of the English production. It matches one which was filmed for the TV series, LIGHTS OUT as well as the one for SUSPENSE. This story is the reason that so many short horror and mystery stories broadcast on radio in the 1940's should be brought back by the mega film producers of today.

A fine half hour show, broadcast weekly would spellbind their audiences. Hitchcock's, "Hands of Mr. Ottermole" and "Banquo's Chair" were this kind of remake. The fabulous, "Lamb for the Slaughter" was great, but it made murder into a light comedy fantasy.

No major staging, no great sets, just ordinary actors in fear and terror trying to get some advantage from this curious monkey's paw was so powerful. The classic radio show and subsequent motion picture 'Sorry, Wrong Number" should make people see the power of the short story.

Those jokes about three wishes from a genie in a bottle make light of the potential terror from getting what you wish for, with an amulet made from a monkey's paw.

Decent

[Michael_Elliott · 29 February 2008]

Monkey's Paw, The (1948)

** (out of 4)

British version of the famous story has two elderly folks getting the monkey's paw, which will grant three wishes but usually follows those wishes with tragedy. The father wishes for riches and gets them but his son is killed at the same time. Then, the couple wish for their son to return to life. The horror elements of this thing are discussed and talked about for the first sixty minutes and then finally happen during the last three. I see there are many other versions of this out there and I'm sure one has to be better than this rather disappointing film.