Monday, August 17, 2020

THE MAN THEY COULD NOT HANG / Weird! Horrifying! Fascinating! - 1939

When Dr. Savaard's experiment in cryonics is interrupted by short-sighted authorities, his young volunteer dies, and he is condemned to death. He vows vengeance on those people, if he can survive his own hanging... Man, that's one nice insert poster from Columbia Pictures.

It stars Boris (FRANKENSTEIN 1970) Karloff, Lorna (VALLEY OF THE ZOMBIES - Lived to be 99 years old!) Gray, Robert (MYSTERIOUS DOCTOR SATAN) Wilcox, Roger (SCARED STIFF) Pryor, Don (BEWARE SPOOKS) Beddoe and Ann (THE GREEN HORNET - Ended her career with 379 acting credits!) Doran... What in the heck is VALLEY OF THE ZOMBIES?!

Here's Dr. Savaard in his lab, preparing his volunteer patient for his experiment to bring the dead back to life. His assistant has brought him the final machine to complete his list of needed equipment. His nurse, Betty, is against the experiment, that's her boy friend there on the table. She gets locked out of the room so she goes to the police.

Is this a cool shot or what?!

Betty is frantic at the police station, saying that the doctor has committed a murder! Newsman 'Scoop' Foley is there on other business, but thinks he's got another scoop here!

Police Lt. Shane has his boys break into the doctor's lab. The experiment has been interrupted and the patient cannot be brought back from the dead now, as the doctor is taken away...

The doctor tries to persuade the jury to understand how important his work is for humanity. He even tells them about how the authorities are responsible for the man's death because of the interruption. But, the doctor is asked one simple question... Did you kill your patient? And he answers, yes. That's enough for the jury to come up with a guilty verdict, so, it's off to the gallows with him...

The doctor's assistant claims the body, and so, it's off to the lab! Doc's brought back and is filled with hate and revenge for the ones that are now his enemies. I don't know why but the first still reminds me of SON OF FRANKENSTEIN. Boy, that's one I loved when they showed it on late night chiller theater TV in the fifties!

The doctor sent out invitations using the DA's name to get them there. No one knew the doc was alive and the group wants to know if he had anything to do with six of the jurors that were found hanged... Savaard tells them, I'm legally dead, how could a dead man hang anyone?

Then the fun begins, he informs the crowd that they are all going to die tonight, and the DA will be first, exactly at 7, others will die every 15 minutes after that... And, there is no escaping from his house.

The DA starts to flip out and tries to leave. The doctor tells him.. DO NOT TRY TO LEAVE! A little reverse psychology can go a long way!

Then it's this guy's turn, he's tricked into answering the phone only to get a spike into his brain!

Then Betty's up to bat. The doctor turns off the lights and Betty becomes the target. She tries to hide but the doctor fires a rifle at her, but misses.

Savaard is hiding in a special room where he taunts the group over a loud speaker.

Wouldn't you know it, his daughter shows up, she didn't ever know he was alive again. He tells her to leave but she goes around to the front gate and threatens him saying she's going to open the gate, and he'd better turn the electricity off if he cares for her. He tries to flip the switch, but it's too late! Also, the doctor takes a bullet.

Daughter is rushed to the lab where her father brings her back to the land of the living.

After everyone leaves the room, the doctor takes his rifle and shoots up his lab, leaving the machine destroyed. A physician comes back into the room and asks Savaard why he destroyed his machine, and, the doctor keels over dead before he can respond...

So like, check in again on Wednesday when Eegah!! will try and satisfy your horror tooth again, here at The Dungeon!!..

2 comments:

KD said...

Looks pretty cool! Another one I've never before seen!

Grant said...

I barely know it, but "Scoop" Foley sounds like one of those "Lee Tracy" type reporters that people find really annoying (like the one in DR. X). I'm surprised he didn't end up on that list of victims.

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