Bride of the Gorilla (1951)

User Rating:

4.1/10   

Director:

Curt Siodmak

Writer:

Curt Siodmak (writer)

Release Date:

October 1951 (USA)

Genre:

Horror

Tagline:

Her clothes torn away, screaming in terror!

Plot:

The owner of a plantation in the jungle marries a beautiful woman. Shortly afterward, he is plagued by a strange voodoo curse which transforms him into a gorilla.

Plot Keywords:

Jungle | Gorilla | Curse | Transformation | Voodoo

Cast

Barbara Payton	...	Mrs. Dina Van Gelder
Lon Chaney Jr.	...	Police Commissioner Taro (as Lon Chaney)
Raymond Burr	...	Barney Chavez
Tom Conway	...	Dr. Viet
Paul Cavanagh	...	Klaas Van Gelder
Gisela Werbisek	...	Al-long
Carol Varga	...	Larina
Paul Maxey	...	Van Heusen
Woody Strode	...	Nedo, Policeman
Martin Garralaga	...	Native
Felippa Rock	...	Stella Van Heusen
Moyna MacGill	...	Mme. Van Heusen
rest of cast listed alphabetically:
Steve Calvert	...	Gorilla

Also Known As:

The Face in the Water (USA) (working title)

Runtime:

70 min | USA:66 min (DVD)

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Color:

Black and White

Aspect Ratio:

1.37 : 1

Sound Mix:

Mono (Western Electric Sound System)

Certification:

USA:Unrated (2005 DVD release) | USA:Passed (National Board of Review) | USA:Approved (PCA #15472)

Filming Locations:

Samuel Goldwyn/Warner Hollywood Studios - 1041 N. Formosa Avenue, Hollywood, Los Angeles, California, USA

Company:

Jack Broder Productions Inc.

Trivia:

Edward G. Robinson Jr. was originally cast in the movie but was fired by the producers following his arrest for writing a bad check for $138 to a Laguna Beach garage.

Goofs:

Revealing mistakes: When Dina goes searching for Barney in the jungle for the first time, we see a quick shot of a leopard climbing up into a tree. Although this scene is supposed to be outdoors (the jungle), both the leopard and the leaves around him are casting shadows on the "sky" behind them. The sky is obviously a wall or backdrop.

Quotes:

[first lines]
Police Commissioner Taro: [narration] This is Jungle - lush, green, alive with incredible growth - as young as day, as old as time. I, Taro, Police Commissioner of Itman County, which borders the Amazonas River, know it as well as any man will ever know it. Isn't it beautiful? But I have also learned that beauty can be venomous...

Movie Connections:

Referenced in 1st Annual Mystery Science Theater 3000 Summer Blockbuster Review (1997) (TV)

Lon Chaney dances a mediocre jungle-boogie!

Certainly not a bad little low budget film, this "Bride of the Gorilla", but nothing special, neither, and not memorable enough to be ranked among the meaningful Sci-Fi efforts of its time. Director Curt Siodmak was an eminent scriptwriter during the 1930's and 1940's and delivered stories for some true genre classics ("I walked with a Zombie", "The Wolf Man") but, as a director, he obviously lacked the required competences. "Bride of the Gorilla" is similar to the aforementioned "The Wolf Man" in story and atmosphere, but the film looks a lot more amateurish and pitiful. Both handle about cursed men that turn into large animals at night, but the titular gorilla doesn't look half as threatening as the werewolf, even though the film got released a whole decade later. During a cheesy opening speech, actor Lon Chaney tries to convince us that the jungle is an ominous place and hiding many mysteries, but actually there's no real mystery in the plot. It's just handles about a plantation manager who's jealous at his older colleague for having such a beautiful young wife and he kills him. A native woman witnesses his crime and puts a spell on Barney that causes him to transform into a hideously big gorilla at night... Or maybe she just wants him to believe he's turning into a hideously big gorilla…Lon Chaney himself plays the police commissioner charged with the murder investigation while Raymond Burr (who starred in about a thousand Perry Mason TV-movies) portrays the greedy plantation manager/nightly gorilla. Siodmak attempts to make the film look like a supernatural thriller – is it or is it not all just happening in Barney's head? – fail miserably and it causes way too much talking and too few jungle-action. Several of the jungle-settings are nicely pictured but the rest of the "special" effects are tacky and poorly done. Still the acting is pretty good, Barbara Payton is looking beautiful and – although very predictable – the story is strangely compelling until the very end. Weird movie, it probably voodoo-cursed me…