Customer Reviews

The Ghoul (1933)

5 star:		(7)
4 star:		(4)
3 star:		(1)
2 star:		(2)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

"The ghoul" is a pleasant horror movie without being a masterpiece. This British chiller tells the story of a professor of Egyptology (Boris Karloff) who is in possession of a mysterious jewel called "the eternal light". When the professor dies, the jewel is stolen by his servant (Ernest Thesiger). The professor will step out from his grave for revenge. The atmosphere of this film is most of the time enjoyable, but unfortunately it becomes too talky sometimes. Karloff is very impressive as a walking dead. The first minutes just before he dies are particulary thrilling. Foggy London adds to the general impression of mystery. And of course there is Ernest Thesiger who gives a great performance. Two years later he will be the excentric and diabolical Dr. Pretorius in "Brides of Frankenstein"! The direction of T.Hayes Hunter is perhaps too academic and we're missing the touch of Universal studios. It would have been a nice subject for film directors like Tod Browning or James Whale.
The quality of this DVD is very good - don't forget the film was made in 1933. I can only recommand this rarely seen horror movie from Great Britain.

In this 1933 British film--made between Boris Karloff's stints as the monster in 1931's FRANKENSTEIN and THE BRIDE OF FRANKENSTEIN in 1935--Karloff plays a dying Egyptologist who possesses an occult gem, known as The Eternal Light, that he believes will bring him immortality if he is buried with it and is thereby able to present it to Anubis in the afterlife. Of course, his bickering, covetous heirs and avaricious associates would rather keep the gem for themselves. With this in mind, Karloff vows to rise from his grave and seek revenge should anybody meddle in his plans, and he keeps this promise when, just after his death, one of his colleagues steals The Eternal Light.

THE GHOUL is an atmospheric gothic flick that generates a lot of gooseflesh, but modern audiences may find the plot development a bit slow, and gore-hounds weaned on the likes of THE TEXAS CHAIN SAW MASSACRE and similar fare will certainly not think the film is very scary. But film aficionados who love the old Universal monster movies of the 1930s and 1940s will find a lot to enjoy here.

The acting is very good--especially from Ernest Thesiger, who would later go on to play Dr. Pretorious in THE BRIDE OF FRANKENSTEIN--though the excellent Karloff has only a few dramatic scenes early on and, as a risen corpse, is later reduced to staggering around in creepy make-up (reminiscent of his make-up in THE MUMMY the year before). Supporting performances from Cedric Hardwicke and Ralph Richardson help round out the good job delivered by a wonderful cast.

Based on both the novel and the play by Dr. Frank King and Leonard J. Hines, this early British horror film--the first to receive an "H" ("Horrific") rating from the British Board of Film Censors--was once thought to have been forever lost to history. A complete print of THE GHOUL was discovered in Czechoslovakia in the late 1960s, however, and was later restored under the supervision of the Museum of Modern art and Janus Films. The MGM DVD transfer was made from this beautifully restored print, and the VERY reasonable price of said disc definitely makes this a must-have for serious film collectors and students of classic cinema.

Despite what previous reviewers have said, this DVD of The Ghoul is NOT from the print that turned up in Eastern Europe in the late '60's. The person put in charge of making the DVD was told to see what he could do with it. He made a few cursory calls just to cover the bases, including a call to the British Film Institute. Turns out that they were sitting on a copy that had not been screened in decades. It is overuse of a copy of a film that gives it the "beat" look; it we could take a first generation copy print of Frankenstein today, it could in theory look this good without a total overall. The print was so good that a typical transfer looked like it was made yesterday.

The Ghoul dates from a time when the studios had not yet wholeheartedly committed to making supernatural horror. They felt that audiences needed a final logical explanation to buy into it. The Universal films of the 30's turned that tide around, but this movie was still not fully into that realm. So if you go in expecting a super shock, you will be disappointed. However, if you like atmosphere and good acting, and want to see an amazing transfer of a 30's movie that looks like it was filmed yesterday, look no further. The plusses outweigh the minuses in this case.

I've tried watching this movie over the years and found it boring,cold and so confusing that I could never understand what was happening. With this new DVD, I decided to give it another chance. Verdict: it's just as boring, cold and confusing as before. Technically, it looks great. Wonderful shadows and lighting. But this film moves soooooo slow. And poor Boris Karloff. He does what he can in the role of the glaring, stumbling old ghoul but he acts embarassed by the whole stunt. Great Britian simply didn't have the know-how in the early thirties to make a great horror flick like those being turned out by Universal. Don't waste your time on this one. Watch the l932 "The Mummy" instead to see how a real classic looks.

Crystal clear and astounding film restoration enhance the splendid manner in which Boris Karloff stares, walks and stalks, making this a truly delightful treasure. Karloff, professor of Egyptology, knows he is dying, but his fears are greatly diminished after realizing that he has discovered an ancient gem which provides the key to immortality (thanks of course to the powers of the Egyptian gods). The scholarly one ceases to breath, the gem is stolen, and the now "living corpse" is simply dying to retrieve it! The incomparable Ernest Thesiger is also wonderful (the British actor had previously given the "performance of his life" in another nearly lost film, "Old Dark House", 1932). "The Ghoul" features non stop creepy atmosphere with an occassional smattering of comic relief. The script is fresh (especially for a mummy), and the characters and dialogue are actually quite interesting!

This little seen Karloff obscurity has been given an amazing restoration by MGM. There is literally not a scratch on this 70 year old horror from Gaumont British studios. My only slight quibble is that the contrast varies slightly - sometimes appearing a bit washed out. The sound too is excellent with good clear dialogue and no background hiss that usually accompanies films of this vintage.
The film itself is an incredibly talky affair and only really kicks in during the final half hour or so - but it's worth the wait.

THE GHOUL (MGM) is about a dying profesor (Boris Karloff) who has a gemstone called "The Eternal Light" that was looted from an Egyptian tomb. He believes the god Anubis will grant immortality through the jewel and makes his servant promise to bind the gem in his hand when he dies. "If it's stolen, I'll return from the dead and seek revenge." Naturally, the servant steals the stone. You get the idea. The 1933 UK film features a young Ralph Richardson. Slowly paced with moody cinematography.

For decades the film "Mystery of the Wax Museum" (1933) was considered one of the great, lost Hollywood films. Those who remembered it claimed it was far superior to the 1951 remake "House of Wax" and for many years horror aficionados mourned its loss. When a clean print surfaced in the early 1970's everyone was crestfallen to discover this "lost masterpiece" was really a creaky, old thriller far inferior to it's 50's, 3D offspring. Well, here we go again. The long lost Karloff film finally comes to the faithful intact! As already noted this MGM release is DVD is a technical stunner. What a shame that the movie itself is dull as dishwater and an ideal choice for those with insomnia. Karloff actually has very little to do here and the acting of the rest of the cast is strictly of the summer stock variety. As for the script, it's a castrated rehashing of both "The Old Dark House" and "The Mummy". Yep, it LOOKS just like an entry from Universal's 1930's horror parade, but lacks any kind of punch. Don't misunderstand, as a horror buff I'm overjoyed to have "The Ghoul" in such fantastic shape - but boy, what a let down!

I don't really have much to add to the glowing reviews above. This is simply the finest quality film restoration for a film from this era that I have seen. If you're a fan of Universal horror and/or Karloff you will treasure this film.

I think all us classic horror fans should send MGM a nice "thank you" note for the attention they have given this fairly obscure 70 year old film. And perhaps they will be encouraged to put out more of the same. I suggest "The Vampire Bat", made around the same time.

Look at all those 5 star reviews....go get this DVD!!

Looking at the artwork on the case, you might think this was a newer film, say, one made in the last 20 years, but that is not so. This movie was actually made in the early 30's, and is an excellent companion to the Universal horror movies of the time.

Boris Karloff stars as a professor/Egyptologist who is soon to pass into the great beyond. Through his studies, he believes he's found the key to immortality, in a ancient gem called The Eternal Light. Now, there is a little confusion on my part as to what possesion of this gem is supposed to do, if it makes one immortal or opens a passage to a wonderous paradise in the afterlife, but the gem in question is highly sought after due to its' monetary and supernatural value.

Karloff's character passes on, and guess what? The gem is stolen! This prompts Karloff's corpse to come back to life and seek out the gem. Things get a tad confusing, as Karloff's heirs get involved, along with a butler, an unscrupulous accountant, a couple of Egyptians, a priest, and so on. If you follow closely, you should be able to keep things straight, but if your attention wanders, you will miss something. Karloff's make up was kept minimal, which I thought worked really well, and the quality of the production seemed fairly high, even though I am sure the actual production budget was pretty modest. A great example of making the most of what you have. The atmosphere was thoroughly creepy, and even the comic relief, who I found annoying at first, sort of grew on me. But, in the end, see this movie for Karloff, as he's in his prime. He may not have a lot of dialogue, but his actions and facial expressions speak louder than words. I would say this movie is a combonation of The Mummy and The Old Dark House.

There are no extras, but the print and sound are both excellent, and, from reading other reviews on the rarity of this movie, sounds like this excellent print has been on many peoples wishlist for a long time. I give a lot of credit to MGM, not only for releasing movies from their catalog in a timely manner, but also keeping an eye towards the quailty of the prints of the films they put on DVD.