The Murders in the Rue Morgue (1932) Director: Robert Florey
“Heresy? Do they still burn men for heresy? Then burn me monsieur, light the fire!
Do you think your little candle will outshine the flame of truth?”
One of the minor classics found within the iconic Monster Movies produced by Carl Laemmle Jr.’s Universal mostly in the 1930s and 1940s, The Murders in the Rue Morgue is loosely based on Edgar Allen Poe’s story of the same name (though it bears several key distinctions from the story). This film was only the third film released in the Monsters series, following Dracula (1931) and Frankenstein (1931), though it is often overlooked.
With obvious nods to the moody German Expressionist aesthetic of The Cabinet of Dr. Caligari, The Murders in the Rue Morgue features a similar mad scientist running amok but instead of a somnambulist, the monster is an ape (sometimes a real ape, other times an actor in an ape suit). In Paris 1845, young lovers Pierre and Camille enjoy a carnival night at the fairgrounds where they see risqué Arab dancers and Native Americans (who are pitched as “bloodthirsty savages”) before they enter a large tent and are treated to a foreboding scientist’s account of human evolution.
The evil scientist is Dr. Mirakle, pronounced “Meer-Aaah-Cull” (Bela Lugosi), a biologist who is trying to create a new species, a new half breed of human-ape. He kidnaps innocent women (including a prostitute), injecting them with ape blood which serves as a kind of poison, killing each woman and leaving a trail across the city. There are plenty of goofy moments of levity in this film, but there are also some decidedly horrific moments –censors were keen to block several scenes (especially the slightly disturbing moments wherein Dr. Mirakle straps a prostitute to a giant “X” and stabs her). Bella Lugosi’s character is essentially contains the same mannerisms as his quintessential performance of Dracula (released the prior year). In the end, Mirakle’s ape Erik turns on him as the French police hunt them down in a rooftop chase sequence.
I found The Murders in the Rue Morgue to be another terrific installment in the classic Universal Monster films. Is it as memorable as Dracula or Frankenstein? Decidedly not, but it still a wonderful picture. Interestingly enough, Director Robert Florey left Universal after this film (he previously directed the classic Marx Brothers film The Cocoanuts) and went on to enjoy a lengthy career at Warner Bros –he also directed episodes of The Twilight Zone and The Outer Limits.
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Credits
- Directed by: Robert Florey
- Screenplay by: Tom Reed and Dale Van Every
- Based on: “The Murders in the Rue Morgue” by Edgar Allan Poe
- Produced by: Carl Laemmle Jr.
- Starring:
- Bela Lugosi…..Dr. Mirakle
- Sidney Fox…..Mademoiselle Camille L’Espanaye
- Leon Ames…..Pierre Dupin (as Leon Waycoff)
- Cinematography: Karl W. Freund
- Edited by: Milton Carruth
- Production Company: Universal Pictures