House of Wax (1953) - film review

In New York, circa 1910, Professor Henry Jarrod is a talented wax sculptor who has devoted his life to creating perfect copies of historical figures.  His business partner, Matthew Burke, is only interested in making money, so when Jarrod refuses to include more sensational exhibits in his museum, Burke decides to indulge in a spot of arson, so that he can claim on the insurance money.  Jarrod is caught in the conflagration and is left for dead as the museum burns to the ground.  Some months later, Burke is counting his ill-gotten money one night when a cloaked figure with a hideously disfigured face attacks and murders him.  His fiancée, Cathy Gray, is also killed, but her body mysteriously disappears from the city morgue.  Cathy’s friend, Sue Allen, is chased across town by the sinister man in black, but manages to evade his foul clutches.  Not long after this, Sue is surprised to see a perfect replica of Cathy in a new waxworks museum owned by Professor Jarrod.  Although he is crippled and can no longer use his hands, Jarrod has built up a new collection of exhibits, assisted by a talented protégé and his mute assistant Igor.  The museum proves to be a great success, but no one yet knows the diabolical process by which Jarrod creates his exhibits, which involves coating dead bodies in wax.  When the professor sees Sue Allen he realises that she will make a perfect facsimile of Marie Antoinette.  Such a pity that Sue will not live to appreciate Jarrod’s greatest achievement...

More of a museum piece than a masterpiece.  House of Wax was one of the first films to cash in on the 3-D craze that flared up and then quickly fizzled out in the mid-1950s.  Impressed by the independently produced Bwana Devil (1952), the first film to exploit stereoscopic 3-D, director André De Toth persuaded producer Jack Warner to allow him to direct Hollywood’s first 3-D movie, even though he himself had the use of only one eye and therefore would not be able to appreciate any of the 3-D effects.  Still, being deaf didn’t do Beethoven’s career much harm...

The film is an expensive remake of Warner Brothers’ earlier Mystery of the Wax Museum (1933), which was directed by Michael Curtiz and featured Lionel Atwill and Fay Wray.  Despite its generous budget and a genuinely grisly concept, House of Wax fails to live up to its promise.  The production team did not make the best use of the 3-D technology, and indeed few of the effects (cancan dancers, a barker repeatedly hitting a ball with a bat, etc.) have anything whatever to do with the story.  As it is virtually impossible to see the film today in its 3-D format, its visual impact is greatly diminished.  Still, the film is far more watchable than Jaume Collet-Serra’s one-dimensional 2005 remake.

The original House of Wax is most memorable for Vincent Price’s deliciously sinister portrayal of the villain of the piece, a likeable fiend who spends his days coating dead bodies in wax and his evenings doing a pretty convincing impression of the Phantom of the Opera.  This was Price’s first substantial horror role (he had previously provided the voice of the Invisible Man in Abbott and Costello Meet Frankenstein (1948)) and is so good in the part that he looks (and sounds) destined to become the Master of the Macabre.  The only other actor of note in the generally undistinguished cast is Charles Bronson (credited as Charles Buchinsky), in an early screen role as Price’s creepy mute henchman, Igor.

Few would cite House of Wax as one of the all time horror classics, but it does offer a few genuine thrills and was an immense box office hit when it was first seen (in its revolutionary 3-D format).  Whilst many horror films are criticised for their cheapness, it is ironic that this one suffers from being too glossy.  Worse, it barely survives being parodied to death by the popular horror spoof Carry On Screaming! (1965), which is actually a good deal more frightening than the original.  The only real shocker is the bit where Vincent Price’s face is ripped off to reveal something that will put you off eating raspberry ripple ice cream for the rest of your life.

© Alex Sullivan 2010

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