Murders In The Rue Morgue(1932) - A Study In Hollywood Expressionism

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A Study In Hollywood Expressionism
Murders In The Rue Morgue(1932)
Director: Robert Florey
Cast: Bela Lugosi, Sidney Fox, Leon Ames

Murders in the Rue Morgue was the consolation prize given to Robert Florey and Bela Lugosi, after both were dropped from Frankenstein. In alot of ways, it was a better move for Lugosi, who benefited from a more fitting role as the mad scientist, Doctor Mirakle. For Florey, it was his chance to mimic the German silents that he had adored so much and providing a glimpse into what his Frankenstein would have been like. Murders in the Rue Morgue is a fascinating film, appearing like the direct descendent of The Cabinet of Dr. Caligari with it's rich use of shadows and distorted sets and imagery. However, it is also one of the most controversial and least loved of all the Universal horror classics. From the top billing of Sidney Fox to the poor comic relief and the half hearted conclusion, Murders in the Rue Morgue has always been an easy target for film fans who expected more from Lugosi's follow-up to Dracula. It was based off of the Edgar Allen Poe short story about a detective after a Parisian killer who turns out to be an orangutan with a switchblade! The film followed the story very loosely, though a 1986 version with George C. Scott did capture that narrative for those interested.

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The film begins with a carnival in Paris during the 1830s. We are introduced to two couples that include Pierre Dupin(Leon Ames) and his girlfriend, Camille(Sidney Fox). They are directed by a carnival barker to a tent with a great ape cutout as the entrance! Inside the tent is none other than Dr. Mirakle(Bela Lugosi) who has a fantastic evolutionary chart behind him, years before Darwin even wrote The Origin of the Species and this guy knows all about evolution! He even has an ape named Erik, whom he keeps in a cage and can speak his language, even if it dosen't sound anything like the chirps and coos made by the ape. Mirakle believes that he can prove humanity's kinship with the ape, but is laughed off by the crowd, not willing to comprehend his theory. Pierre and Camille are invited to see Erik and the ape nearly strangles Pierre when he gets to close to the cage and even destroys Camille's bonnet, which Mirakle insists on replacing. The next scene is a foggy night and is the film's most notorious and celebrated sequence. It depicts a foggy bridge and two men fighting over a prostitute(Arlene Francis), who eventually kill each other. Mirakle arrives by carriage and offers his assistance, only to lure her back to his lair for a gruesome experiment where he collects tissue samples and blood to try and mate her with an ape! This was pretty strong stuff for 1932 and even now, is a pretty taboo subject. The victim is tied to a cross like structure as Mirakle sneers and prods her, eliciting ear-piercing screams, until she expires. Distraught and sorrowful, Mirakle falls to his knees, in a strange bit of religious imagery and demands that his henchman, Janos(Noble Johnson in white face!) cut down the corpse, which falls into the river. Mirakle remarks as the camera pans back for a beautiful shot of the laboratory, "Will my search never end?"

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