The Mask (1961)

The Age of Commercialism

That was an excellent one.

Highly Overrated But Still Good

Pretty good movie overall. First half was nothing special but it got better as it went along.

Well, I am in no way as enamored with this film as others. I was bored right out of my mind through most of it. We get some guy at the beginning who kills young women, goes to his psychiatrist for help, then commits suicide and sends the deadly mask which has made him a killer to the doctor. What does the doctor do? Put the mask on! Yep, he does. Soon he wants to kill. To be what primordial man is all about. To experience everything life has to offer - like killing! There really is no plot to this film. Take out the dream sequences(the 3-D bits) and you have very little to work with. Yes, it pushes what little story there is...but to nowhere. By the end of the film there is no real ending. I did like the final bit with the mask in the museum. What about those dream sequences when the mask is being worn? I don't have a clue what they are to represent. Yes, they are done stylishly. I enjoyed the creativity put into them(that is why I gave this dreck four stars instead of two). We get skulls emitting blue and red flames. A masked figure in a robe cavorting with some strange man(was that the doctor?) A beautiful girl on a sacrificial alter. Things like that. The 3-D effects are some of the better ones for its age, but that is really all this film has going for it. Dream sequences done artistically but no real plot, no directorial savvy, and no acting. None of these folks are very good in front of the camera. The doc is played by Paul Stevens(a very dramatic performance indeed!). How about his doctor friend played by Leo Leyden? All the spark and life of a dead battery! The female cast doesn't fare better in the acting department yet both leads are gorgeous. The doctor's girl is played by Claudette Nevins in her first screen role. You can tell it is her first role, but she is so pretty with those alluring eyes. His secretary is played by blonde lovely Anne Collings. Not much talent but she is a sight for sore eyes. Outside of those perks, I was not impressed at all with The Mask. I did watch the Elvira version on video and was disheartened that she didn't interrupt during the film. She was, as always, funny and has her own highlights to showcase.

I saw this once as a kid on television. They usually showed like a 3-d movie once a year and it was usually this one with a killer monkey this particular year they put this movie on about a mask and its super freak out nightmare visions. This one was the better of the two as far as the 3-d effects as the monkey one had only a couple of scenes where one would even notice the effects. This one though had lots of them in the nightmare world when the mask was put on. However, the non nightmare sequences were rather boring and seemed to go on forever. Granted, that really made the build up when he was about to put on the mask even better! The story has some sort of doctor, a psychiatrist I think, treating a guy who has gone killer. The guy blames the mask so the doctor tries it on and he is taken to a strange place full of very big elaborate scenes, scenes that really showcase the 3-d effect. In the regular world though there was virtually nothing going on and it was very slow, made you want to scream at the doctor to put on that mask!

saw photos from this in the Re/Search "Incredibly Strange Films" issue. taped it when shown locally, and later snagged the Elvira edition. oddly enough, the 3D works a little better from the EP recorded tape of the local broadcast. why? no idea. I disagree with the comments about how bad the film is. Other than the 3D. it's a typical, thriller of the time. No better or worse than much else. But, when the narrator says, "Put the mask on now!", it really comes alive, with beautifully composed 3D hallucinations that hang in the mind for a while. Among the best 3D movies ever made, aided by the fact that the glasses are only needed part of the time. Only a perfect showing of "Flesh For Frankenstein" in a local theater, ever even came close, and it was mostly just gore. Not to be missed, if you get the chance.

I actually saw this in a sticky-floored, popcorn-smelling old theater in about 1963 or '64, at age seven or eight. I believe it was the first 3-D movie I had ever seen. We had the little two-tone cellophane and cardboard eyeglasses and everything. What can I tell you, the dream or hallucination sequences made a big impression on me at the time. When I stumbled upon a copy of the Elvira-hosted version in the mid-'90s I snapped it up. It's actually in 3-D, and comes with the special 3-D viewing spectacles. I was a little let down. It all seemed so blurry and out of focus, and struggling with the glasses broke the mood. A couple of years later it was broadcast on one of the cable movie channels and I watched and taped it. I thought it was actually a little *better* without the distracting 3-D effects.