PIC of the Week – The Mystery of the Wax Museum
Article series by Ray Schillaci
Warner Archive unveils a truly gothic creeper with the Blu of The Mystery of the Wax Museum starring Fay Wray of King Kong fame and Lionel Atwill best known for his recurring role in Universal’s Frankenstein franchise. The man responsible for a string of classic hits (Casablanca, The Adventures of Robin Hood, Mildred Pierce, Captain Blood to name just a few), Michael Curtiz, directs with his recognizable flair. The production is a first class act not to be missed.
Now, many of you may not recognize Mr. Atwill’s name, but this is the man who had a number of significant roles in horror films, particularly Doctor X, The Vampire Bat, Murders in the Zoo and most famously for Son of Frankenstein. His was the role parodied by Kenneth Mars as Inspector Kemp in Young Frankenstein. This would be Fay Wray’s 33rd feature role before going onto do Kong. Ms. Wray also was well known for a number of thriller/horror films including Doctor X, The Most Dangerous Game, The Vampire Bat, just as well known for romantic dramas as high adventure.
The great cinematic achievement in this film is all the implied horrific scenes due to director Curtiz’s craftsmanship, which are still impactful to this day. Atwill plays Ivan Igor, the sculptor in the wax museum with a perverse and twisted depravity. Some may find this surprising for such an old movie, but The Mystery of the Wax Museum was made before the enforcement of the Motion Picture Production Code. There have been countless remakes (most famous – Vincent Price in House of Wax in 3D) and films inspired by Curtiz’s film (Chamber of Horrors, Nightmare in Wax, Terror in the Wax Museum, Tourist Trap, Waxwork, ’05’s House of Wax with Paris Hilton getting killed), but none match the power of the original.
Ivan Igor is a stone sculptor that does wax modeling as a hobby. But, he ends up preferring wax because for him it replicates “the warmth, flesh, and blood of life far better,” and his gallery becomes a wax museum whose business is waning. Igor’s partner entertains the notion of committing arson to collect on the insurance. The two struggle and Igor is left for dead in the burning building.
Twelve years later, Igor returns, opening a new wax museum. With his hands and legs badly burned, Igor creates new sculptures with the assistance of a couple of unsavory characters, a drug addicted professor and a deaf mute. The big question, how is Igor able to recreate such lifelike figures…by murder, body snatching and a good wax job, and I’m not talking hair removal.
Cinephiles rejoice! For many years, The Mystery of the Wax Museum was considered to be a lost film up until about fifty years ago. It was filmed in the early Two-Color Technicolor process, and Warner Archive has been blessed with a brand new restoration by UCLA Film and Television Archive and The Film Foundation in association with Warner Brothers Entertainment. Funding provided by the George Lucas Family Foundation. This is the best this film will probably look. If you were to compare it to House of Wax, it’s like comparing apples to oranges. Yes, the Vincent Price movie looks far better, but the mood set in the original is far grimmer.
Of course, the sound is nothing to get your speakers to be prepared for. Come on, it’s 1933. A mono soundtrack that’s been boosted to an English, DTS-Master Audio 2.0. Can’t ask for much more. But, surround was not a big deal back then.
I think anything Warner Archive provides us as far as a bonus feature is very special. So, I’m thankful for the following:
• Remembering Fay Wray – documentary
• Audio commentary by author and film historian Alan K. Rode
• Audio commentary by Scott MacQueen, head of preservation at the UCLA Film and Television Archive
• A featurette on the restoration of the film
• Optional English SDH subtitles for the main feature
For any lover of film, horror movies, and classics, this is one to add to the collection. It’s been a long time coming. Kinda surprised that Criterion did not pick this up. Who knows, maybe a double dip in the far future.
Lowest Price – $21.99 – WBSHOP.COM
