kapelusznik18 ****SPOILERS****Broderick Crawford is the unlikely hero in this haunted house like movie as the klutzy real estate agent Herbert A. Gilmore "Gil" Smith who can't seem to put one foot in front the other without tripping over on it. It's when Henrietta Winslow, Cecilia Loftus, is mysteriously murdered that Gil goes into action trying to uncover her killer among those gathered to hear her will read and who gets all the goodies that she's to leave over to them: It turns out that Mrs. Winslow's cats get the lion shear of her money! This leads to a number of those gathered getting killed by someone who wants to eliminate them in order to get their share of Mrs. Winslow's money as well as her entire mansion.It turns out that the house gardener Eduardo Vigos, Bela Lugosi,knows the person involved in all the murders going on among the invited guests but he's soon eliminated when he's about to expose who did them by the killer. Through the entire movie Gil ends up putting his foot in his mouth at every turn and apologizing to everyone, even the killer, until the final minutes of the movie when he finally sees the light, in the crematory oven, in who's behind them. By then the killer made his or her appearance known and planned to have Gil's girlfriend Elaine, Anna Gwynne, who figured out who the killer was cremated together with the late Mrs. Winslow's cats in order to keep the truth of his actions from seeing the light of day!***SPOILERS*** It was in fact the sinister looking back cat who seems to have supernatural powers who both saves the day as well as Gil & Eline's lives by coming out of the shadows and putting an end to the killers plans. That by it tripping over a lighted candle and setting the killer on fire before he can do any more damage. There's also in the cast Gale Sondergaad as the house maid Abigail Doone who later was to make it big in the in the film "Weird Woman" in which in being the weirdo that she is was the part she was born to star in. We also had Basil Rathborn as Montague Hartley in between his Sherlock Holmes movies roles which was an in joke in the film's dialogue. And finally the future contract killer and cat lover in his break out film "This Gun for Hire" David Ladd who despite playing tough guy and big hero parts in his future movie roles was the smallest or shortest person in the film's entire cast.

mark.waltz Bela Lugosi returns to the world of Edgar Allan Poe in this non- remake of "The Black Cat", just like Boris Karloff would do over twenty years later with "The Raven". While Karloff had a late career triumph with that comic version of Poe's sonnet, Lugosi got to do little here, pretty much going around, picking up cats and calling, "Here kitty kitty", in one of his most embarrassing non-Ed Wood screen moments. Even so, the veteran actor gets billing above the credits with Basil Rathbone, Broderick Crawford, and woo-hoo, get this, Hugh Herbert.The last name alone is an indication that this "Old Dark House" rip- off is a comedy, or at least a spoof, and a mildly funny one at that. It's another variation of "Kill the old relative so we can get their loot" plot, and in this case, the poor old thing is Cecilia Loftus, a feisty old bat who has made room for all of her greedy relatives and spooky servants in her will, with strict guidelines that concern her dozens of cats. Of all the cats she has, she refuses to keep any black ones, having made strict orders that the one black kitten born in a litter years ago be destroyed. She also has a creepy crematorium where a statue of a black cat guards all the urns of the ashes of her dead felines.Acting honors, or at least camp acting honors, go to Gale Sondergaard as the strikingly beautiful but severe and mysterious housekeeper who has been taking care of Loftus for years and is assigned the responsibility of doing the same with her cats. "What did you say?", she inquires dramatically through a slot in the front door towards Herbert whom she has just slammed the door on, only to hear an insult made at her expense. Every time she is on screen, she commands all the attention, while Hugh Herbert makes you want to turn your head in aggravation at some of his antics. He was very amusing doing his shtick in all those Warner Brothers musicals and comedies of the 1930's, but here, it just seems a bit too much and after a while is more annoying than funny.It is surprising to see a young Broderick Crawford in a romantic lead role, with that booming voice that later dominated "All the King's Men" and "Born Yesterday" in bully roles. Here, he's an old friend of the family who has been hired to try to find a buyer for the spooky house against Loftus's will. Herbert is his client who does nothing but walk around and wreck the furniture. Among the greedy relatives are Gladys Cooper as a niece who has been "little trouble", Basil Rathbone as her philandering husband, a very young Alan Ladd as his son from a first marriage who calls Loftus "grandmother", and among others, Anne Gwynne and Claire Dodd. Sliding panels, a love-seat with a foot switch that moves it 180 degrees, and other various nooks and crannies are among the tricks of this Poe's trade.Entertaining, yet somehow totally unbelievable, this is acceptable but easily forgettable, although I must admit that I have an affection for it. The killer is shown carrying a body that is obviously beyond their weight, yet they get a great come-uppance at the conclusion. Some of the frights are real, taking this beyond the farcial moments that Herbert provides a bit too much to the point of annoyance. Basil Rathbone has a great line concerning one of his most popular screen characters that will leave you in stitches.

Spikeopath The Black Cat is directed by Albert S. Rogell and written by Robert Lees and Robert Neville. It stars Basil Rathbone, Hugh Herbert, Broderick Crawford, Bela Lugosi and Gale Sondergaard. Music is by Hans J. Salter and cinematography by Stanley Cortez.Henrietta Winslow, a cat-loving old dear, is coming to the end of her days. Tonight her parasitic family have gathered at the Winslow mansion to rub their hands with glee as Henrietta's will is read out. But............Henrietta knew that whom the black cat follows – dies!"That house is doubly blest. Which to the feline friends gives rest"It's hardly a classic from the old dark house murder mystery treadmill, but The Black Cat is enormous fun and gets the sub-genre staples spot on. It's a big old fashioned mansion that is host to the creepy shenanigans, complete with secret passageways, revolving booths, suits of armour and roaring fires. There's even a creepy cat crematorium annex in the grounds as well! Naturally it's a stormy night, and naturally the collection of weasels and deviants start getting bumped off one by one. Cue much shrieking, blaming, dodging and the odd red herring. The mystery element is strong, with a good reveal preceding a fiery finale, and there's some high energy antics thrown in for good measure; the latter concerns Crawford's character who jumps through armour, leaps off a balcony and constantly falls down on the floor. Cast are working on a par with the material, with the highlights being Crawford, Sondergaard (who is deliciously spooky) and Herbert (who is the Lou Costello type comedy relief).More comedy than creeper, but a comfortable recommendation for fans of similar movies. 6.5/10

MartinHafer Before I discuss the film in depth, I want to point out that this film wasted two talented actors. In the case of Alan Ladd, I can't blame the studio too much--after all, he was still a bit player and it wouldn't be for another year or two until he achieved notoriety. But for Universal Pictures to cast Bela Lugosi and place him in such a small and insignificant role in an old house-type movie is crazy and a real shame. It's really a shame they didn't give obnoxious Hugh Herbert one of these smaller roles, as he really, really hams it up and just doesn't fit into the overall tone of the film (likewise, he was horrible and out of place in SH!THE OCTOPUS). As for the rest of the class, with such wonderful stars as Basil Rathbone and Gladys Cooper among others, the film has some exceptional performances for such a "small" film.Despite the title, this film has nothing to do with the earlier Lugosi film of the same title nor does it compare in almost any way to the Poe short story (except for the cat stuck behind something concept). Instead, it's a murder mystery with a hint of comedy. An old lady is beset with greedy relatives who can't wait to take her fortune after she dies. She's apparently dying and one of the family even called in some people (Hugh Herbert and Broderick Crawford) to buy the contents of the old home. However, unexpectedly the lady recovers--prompting someone to kill her so they no longer need to wait! However, inexplicably, no one seems to notice when Crawford insists the lady was murdered--everyone seems very eager to accept that it was an accident--even though shortly before the lady died, there was an attempt to poison her!! This is a bit of a plot hole, as no sane people (even greedy ones) would be so quick to dismiss the possibility of murder. So, it's up to Crawford to stick around, solve the mystery and avoid a "cat-astrophe".Overall, it's a fun but relatively unremarkable Universal picture that perhaps the other reviewers have been a bit too kind to. However, it did give Crawford one of his first starring roles and is a decent time-passer. PS--Towards the end, get a load of how strong Gladys Cooper is supposed to be! Considering her age and frail look, having her exerting herself in the hidden passages is really silly. Also, had this been made just a year or so later, it probably would have been an Abbott and Costello film and probably would have worked a bit better with them in Crawford's and Herbert's roles.