The Face at the Window (1940)

You won't be disappointed!

Strong and Moving!

I don't have all the words right now but this film is a work of art.

It’s not bad or unwatchable but despite the amplitude of the spectacle, the end result is underwhelming.

Director: GEORGE KING. Screenplay: Ronald Fayre, A.R. Rawlinson. Based on the play by Brooke Warren. Photography: Hone Glendinning. Film editor: Jack Harris. Art director: Philip Bawcombe. Production manager: Harold Richmond. Assistant director: Hal Mason. Sound recording: Harold V. King. Producer: George King. A Pennant Pictures {George King} Production. London trade show: April 1939. U.K. release through British Lion: January 1940. U.S. release through Arthur Ziehm, Inc: 25 October 1940. 70 minutes. Cut to 65 minutes in the USA.COMMENT: Who's never heard of the legendary Tod Slaughter? Well, count me as one. His movies never played in cinemas in my neck of the woods, nor were they ever televised. Never mind, it's nice to catch up with them now for Slaughter is a grand villain if ever there was one. Unfortunately, he creams the rest of the cast. Warwick was no doubt a feeble hero at the best of times, but here he's not just an also-ran, but a positive liability. Marjorie Taylor also makes little impression as the "desirable" heroine. Only two of the minor players-Robert Adair as the inspector and Margaret Yarde as the sinister procuress-come close to matching Slaughter's charisma. AVAILABLE on DVD through Sinister Cinema. Quality rating: at least nine out of ten.

A mysterious killer called The Wolf is responsible for several killings in Paris. A bank clerk who is suspected of robbery and murder tracks down the killer. The plot doesn't really hold together but if you want full-blooded melodrama this has it all; lecherous chevalier, misunderstood hero, mad scientist, lovely heroine and the eponymous malformed face at the window. It looks good with great sets, The Blind Rat tavern being particularly good and appropriate plangent music accompanies the mayhem. Very enjoyable.The lead is played by the unique Tod Slaughter and he outshines the rest of the cast. It depends of course on how you view a Slaughter performance. Some think it is silly and laughable but others (like myself) take great delight in the unparalleled ham of his acting. His characters are unashamedly villainous and his unbridled libido when near a pretty young woman seems startlingly daring for the time. His proper surname really was Slaughter. Considering the roles he played it was a definite case of nominative determinism.

It was a night full of heavy rain and thunderstorms yesterday. We decided to watch some scary films from 1939 with the lights down low while our dog hid by us from the thunder. The first one we watched was 'The Face at the Window' (1939). The second was 'Human Monster' also from that same year.'The Face at the Window' takes place in Paris probably in 1880s. The story concerns grisly murders that are committed right after the victim sees a gruesome werewolf-like face in their window. Soon after that vision they're found with a knife in their back accompanied by an eery howling sound. While these murders are being investigated another side story is going on. The partner of a rich banker has eyes for his associate's much younger daughter. This creepy and lecherous character is played with gusto by actor Tod Slaughter. The daughter he wants for his wife is in love with a young penniless bank clerk in her fathers employe. The evil older man must find a way to get rid of his young rival. The story is slow at times, still most fans of 1930s crime/horror films should enjoy it like we did. I would not call it a great film; it is entertaining with some genuinely scary scenes.

Another crime movie from the Slaughter& King team of the '30s; Slaughter acts in his usual Captain Fracasse style, he was, like Zucco, one of those movie stars who after-wards sank without a trace (and I certainly mean no disrespect to Zucco, he's not as trashy as Slaughter). A young, hopelessly bland and obviously tame bank clerk is pitted against a cereal killer who ravages the Paris sometimes in the 19th century. The unlikable young clerk is very in love with his employer's daughter, whom the father is quite disposed to sell in exchange for a large deposit of gold that would balance his firm. This crime movie also has a vaguely Sci—Fi subplot; the idea being that a person would raise from the dead with the clearest mind and able to give the police the sought after details. The story is dragged into Paris' underworld of taverns and lowlifes. Like other King flicks, it has that vaudeville atmosphere and stage look. These are sensational, eminently morbid tales told with a sort of grim enjoyment. The movie equivalent of the thrash rock of the '80s—or a Buttgereit of the '30s, take your pick.As an actor, Slaughter was the vilest trash; which you can see for yourself.