The Body Snatcher (1945)

Too much of everything

If you like to be scared, if you like to laugh, and if you like to learn a thing or two at the movies, this absolutely cannot be missed.

It’s fine. It's literally the definition of a fine movie. You’ve seen it before, you know every beat and outcome before the characters even do. Only question is how much escapism you’re looking for.

Blistering performances.

This movie shows why Karloff makes the ultimate evil person. He just oozes nasty. I was hoping for a painful death for him because he killed the dog.A man who will kill a dog for no reason other than barking, their is no redeeming quality in him. Even with that, this is quite possible the best preformance of Karloff. This movie has it all, strong story, great dialog, superior actors, creepy atmophere. This is the measuring stick of great movies.

Regarded by many as being the best of the Val Lewton classics, this top-notch tale not only has the producer's renowned atmospherics, but also features a winning performance from Boris Karloff in one of his very best roles as the graverobber, Gray. Everything is spot on in this classic, from the pacing to the setting, which really evokes the feeling of a nineteenth century Edinburgh. A good cast help considerably to raise the level of authenticity, leaving us with solid characters whom we care about.The classic images of Karloff digging up corpses are hard to omit from the mind after watching this film - they're that memorable. However his performance is so good because he makes Gray not a cold-hearted beast, but rather a friendly, likable sort, a personality totally at odds with his chosen profession. Indeed the first time we see Karloff he is gently helping a young child stroke a horse. Karloff is always full of jokes, and seems genuinely hurt when people are angered by him. Yet minutes later he quite happily suffocates a helpless victim with the flat of his hand without any feeling of remorse.The banter between enemies MacFarlane and Gray is priceless. Another excellent moment comes when Karloff and Lugosi finally meet up again in a film together, Lugosi sadly looking drawn and old here. Although the addicted actor was nearly seventy when this film was made, he still manages to deliver a good performance (despite the odds) as a dim-witted servant who mistakenly believes he can blackmail Karloff. Of course, Karloff seemingly agrees, and politely plies him with drinks. The dialogue in this scene is a work of sheer brilliance and had me reaching for the rewind button. Another great moment comes at the film's climax, which I won't spoil. I can't emphasise how spooky and memorable these scenes are without you watching the film yourself.The only odd note comes with a rather sickly tale of a girl who can't walk due to a tumour on her spine - this leads to a terribly sugary feel-good ending which thankfully doesn't mar what has come before. Karloff ruthlessly bashing a dog to death with a shovel, dark deeds in the graveyard, and a wonderful script make this one of the all-time best.

The story of this movie is incredibly simple. We have doctor McFarlane who is more of a teacher of medical science than practicing doctor and than there cabbie Gray who is making much more money as a gravedigger for McFarlane. At one day a woman comes to see the doctor with her daughter who is suffering from a paralyzed back. The little girl can be cured by surgery but the doctor has no time and not the appropriate body parts to do so. Gray challenges the doctor to do the operation and even provides him with a fresh dead body. The conflict between the two men escalates, they cannot live with but not without each other either. When the doctor thinks he got rid of the annoying Gray and thinks he can continue his work without the cabbie he is in for a surprise and we as viewers are in for a great finale. Wonderful performances by Boris Karloff as Gray and Henry Daniell as MacFarlane. Other horror icon Bela Lugosi also has a small role.

(46%) A creaky old grave robbing era horror that has lost any power it once had to scare or remotely shock, but this is still a halfway decent watch. Forget about this being a Boris Karloff picture as Henry Daniell is the main focus of attention here, and to be fair Daniell was a good actor in his time, and he's fine here as a pioneering surgeon at the heart of the picture. Bela Lugosi is given a small shoe string role, but at least he plays a part in one of the better, more memorable scenes of the whole movie. This isn't a must watch by any means as it really lacks bite, but the performances are worthy and there are much worse chillers out there.