utgard14 Monogram contribution to the war effort. Bela Lugosi plays a Nazi doctor involved in a plot to surgically alter Japanese saboteurs to look like American leaders so they can take their places. A maskless (and Tonto-less) Lone Ranger saves the day. One of the more dreadful of all the cheapies Lugosi made for poverty row. The plot actually sounds like it could be interesting or even somewhat offensive, which itself can be interesting. Unfortunately, it's just a dull way to spend an hour. Lugosi is relatively subdued, which means his critics can't make fun of him as much but it also means his performance isn't very memorable. I like my Bela performances with lots of ham, thank you.

zardoz-13 This modest, low-budget, Monogram propaganda release produced by Sam Katzman's Banner Productions pits the man who played Count Dracula against the man who went on to play the definitive "Lone Ranger." "My Four Years in Germany" director William Nigh and "The Corpse Vanishes" scenarist Harvey Gates derived their incredibly far-fetched murder-mystery about a Nazi surgeon who wrecks vengeance on treacherous Japanese who have infiltrated the upper echelons of American industry from Robert Kehoe's story. Basically, the Third Reich dispatch Dr. Melcher (Bela Lugosi of "Dracula" with a goatee) to wield his superb skill as a plastic surgeon to turn several Nippons into dead ringer doubles of influential American industrialists. Dr. Melcher does such an admirable job that the Japanese have no choice but to imprison him for fear that he could expose them. The trouble is they incarcerate him with another fellow who looks just like him! Of course, Dr. Melcher manages to escape, but since Katzman produced this epic on a shoe-string budget who don't know how he got from Asian to America. Several cavernous holes appear in the plot. Nevertheless, the idea is clever. Nigh doesn't waste time telling his tale as Melcher shows up late one evening in the comfortable house of Dr. Bill Saunders (George Pembroke) in Washington, D.C., and repays the Japanese from their evil treachery. Dozens of wartime espionage movies came out during the early days of World War II because these thriller was easier for Hollywood studios to produce. Most of the action transpires in America so the movie makers didn't have to dress armies in enemy uniforms. Indeed, this movies dealt with undercover investigations and it was simple Hollywood to tweak a crime thriller and turn it into a contemporary spy chiller. Mind you, "Black Dragons" was Lugosi's only excursion into the espionage genre. Nonetheless, he plays a villainous Nazi who exacts his revenge on untrustworthy Japanese. Moreover, since the Japanese bombed Pearl Harbor in a surprise attack, the undercover mission that these industrialists were carrying out to sabotage American industry from within was properly fitting for the time. Once Dr. Melcher shows up at Dr. Saunders' house, virtually everybody at the dinner party starts to drop dead, with Kearney as the first. Wallace snoops around Saunder's house and Melchor kills him. Meantime, FBI Chief Colton (Kenneth Harlan) has assigned a handsome field agent, Richard 'Dick' Martin (Clayton Moore of future "Lone Ranger" fame) to conduct the investigation. Not long after Kearney shows up dead at the entrance of the closed Japanese Embassy. Saunder's daughter, Alice Saunders (Joan Barclay of "The Corpse Vanishes"), shows up, but she finds her father a sick recluse behind the locked door of his bedroom. Dr. Melcher claims to be his physician. One by one, Melcher kills the Japanese impersonating wealthy American industrialists. Eventually, with less than ten minutes remaining, one of the Japanese explains with the help of a flashback how Melcher came to do what he did. The performances are good and the Axis enemy is depicted as vile. They turn on each other without a qualm. Along with the revelation about the plastic surgery, "Black Dragons" boasts another surprise. The action takes place primarily in rooms and there are no gunfights or car chases.

ReelCheese None of the critics have much good to say about it, but BLACK DRAGONS is a much better-than-expected attempt at an entirely new genre: flag-waving horror.Bela Lugosi is a mysterious man who mysteriously shows up at a renowned doctor's home, soon after which his guests start mysteriously being murdered. Could it be that they had something to hide? Could there be more to them than meets the eye? What initially fails to make much sense is creatively sorted out in a wonderfully fun B-movie manner.BLACK DRAGONS was made during the Second World War and it shows, quite painfully at times. The use of the term "Japs" will catch some contemporary viewers off guard, but it's really not that bad when you put it into the proper context. The film is clumsily patriotic, and more silly fun than scary or thrilling. Lugosi is an absolute treat, covering up murders and turning on the "Who, me?" act with ease.It's not a classic, but BLACK DRAGONS is a good, tidy black and white B-film with a certain watch-it-late-at-night appeal. Director William Nigh had a knack for turning poverty row pictures into something special. Some of his other efforts include DOOMED TO DIE and THE FATAL HOUR with another horror icon, Boris Karloff.

JoeKarlosi A very strange poverty row production from the period where horror star Bela Lugosi was resigned to taking whatever roles he could get. However, this entry in what we might safely call Bela's "Monogram Nine Series" is really far-out! He plays a strange visitor who first arrives at a reputed doctor's home in the guise of a patient, and then starts to take over the place, holding the doctor prisoner in his own house, and also killing a group of other important men who are associated with him. Lugosi has an old score to settle with these well-to-do types, and it involves his former association with the Nazis and the Japanese. By the time the 61 minutes are over, all will be explained (sort of!). If you're expecting too much sense out of a crazy movie like this, you can forget about watching it. This is not a horror film (though the ending may qualify) but it's a strange one and a rather offbeat curiosity for Bela Lugosi fans. He's also got a few really absurd lines which are a lot of fun. ** out of ****