The Human Monster (1939) - Walter Summers

Bela Lugosi turns in a fantastic performance. It is right on par with the exact same films that had made him famous like Dracula. My personal favorite being The Black Cat. Like the latter, this film suffered from poor circulation and lack of advertisement. Either that or the public wasn't interested in seeing Lugosi in anything else other than his famous bloodsucker. This film has a broad and well acted plot that was rich with detail. 

Lugosi has two sides in this picture. His well loved and compassionate side. The other is a strict, brutal lone shark that acts as a sinister villain to blind and handicapped people. He really brutalizes his victims. It's a macabre message to pay your bills. 

The film is slow moving and plagued by the usual setbacks from its time. Most of the nation wasn't really that concerned with horror at the time. But studios knew that they would always have an audience. This film is a prime example of that. It's sad because it's  such a gem. Definitely could have benefited from being released by a major studio.

Director: Walter Summers
Country: United Kingdom

Style: Post-Expressionist Low Budget

Did ya know...

This film was the first official "Horror" movie of the United Kingdom. The film quotes Lewis Carrol's The Walrus and The Carpenter.