Movie Review: The Old Dark House (1932)

The Old Dark House (1932) directed by James Whale

A couple (Raymond Massey and Gloria Stuart) and their layabout friend (Melvin Douglas) are driving through a dark and stormy night when the road washes out and they are forced to take shelter at the only house around. The house is a creepy, blocky mansion that looks like it is about to get washed out too. The door is answered by the mute butler Morgan (Boris Karloff) who eventually lets them in. The house is owned by Rebecca (Eva Moore), though they first meet her brother Horace (Ernest Thesiger) who strikes them as eccentric and unwelcoming. Rebecca is also off-putting and inhospitable. The homeowners eventually allow the visitors to stay, offering them a meal as the siblings try to warn them about how unsafe they are, especially if Morgan starts drinking again. Another knock on the door brings Sir William Porterhouse (Charles Laughton) and his lady friend Gladys (Lilian Bond). They join in the festivities and the shenanigans. The mute butler does get drunk and troublesome downstairs. The lights go out and other house members locked away upstairs add to the mayhem. It's a long, dark night in the old, dark house.

Whale directed the film just after Frankenstein and gets another fine performance from Karloff. The rest of the cast is superb, especially Laughton as a blowhard nouveau riche playboy with a less happy side to him. Most of the character have more depth than you'd expect in a quick-running (72 minutes) horror film. The creepiness and a bit of comedy are on full display as the characters find out more about the house and themselves. The ending is a little abrupt and does not quite tie up the loose ends. Even so, the film is a delightful little spooker.

Recommended.

I watched this streaming on Kanopy and the print is great.