Mjeteconer Just perfect...

StyleSk8r At first rather annoying in its heavy emphasis on reenactments, this movie ultimately proves fascinating, simply because the complicated, highly dramatic tale it tells still almost defies belief.

Leoni Haney Yes, absolutely, there is fun to be had, as well as many, many things to go boom, all amid an atmospheric urban jungle.

Celia A great movie, one of the best of this year. There was a bit of confusion at one point in the plot, but nothing serious.

Scott LeBrun Horror legend John Carradine remains a delight to watch, as always, in this mostly routine but reasonably atmospheric tale from Monogram and director William Beaudine; he raises the rating by a point. The rest of the cast is adequate at best. The special effects are actually not bad. The script by Michael Jacoby (based on a story by Edmund L. Hartmann and Wilhelm Thiele) is awfully talky, a clear sign of a very low budget. Still, this is the kind of thing people could still easily enjoy watching in those wee hours of the morning.Carradine portrays Dr. Charles Randolph, a fairly typical mad scientist (actually, he's not THAT mad) who wants more than anything to conquer death and bring the dead back to life. Alas, his experiments are not working out. Sometimes they even have weird side effects, such as his wife's rejuvenated dog developing a taste for blood and the ability to walk through things. Yes, this movie features a "vampire dog" 32 years before "Zoltan Hound of Dracula". Adding another wrinkle to the plot is the conniving housekeeper on the premises, Maria (Rosa Rey).Some plot twists are mildly amusing and help to keep the film somewhat entertaining. At least it has the typically short running time (73 minutes all told) for a genre picture from this era. Female cast members Claudia Drake as Elaine (Randolphs' wife) and Maris Wrixon are easy enough on the eyes. Robert Shayne ('Adventures of Superman') has some likability as Randolphs' colleague and Willie Best adds un-p.c. comedy relief as a pop eyed butler. Rey is a hoot in her role.All in all, this is diverting enough while it lasts.Six out of 10.

MartinHafer This is a very unusual low-budget horror film. While it stars perennial horror star John Carradine, he plays a most unusual sort of 'mad' scientist. That's because while the idea of reanimating the dead seems quite crazy, his motivation and demeanor are rather normal. In fact, he even seems kindly and very well-intentioned. His notion is that a recently dead person might be brought back to life using electrical gizmos--and it's really not all that different from using shock to bring heart attack patients back to life today. Unfortunately, the secret formula and the flashing electric gizmos seem to be only partly successful--leading to a deathlike marble appearance on one corpse followed by an almost immediate re-death. Soon, the good doctor tries this formula out on his dog and the animal is revived. But when his wife is murdered by an evil voodoo priestess (seriously, folks), will he dare use the technique on his wife? And, if so, what will her new life be like? While the film isn't as silly as you'd expect, the film does suffer some from a relatively lifeless script. You want to like the film but there are just too many slow patches. A 3 is perhaps a bit overly generous but the movie doesn't quite raise to the appropriate level of awfulness to earn a 2.

Joseph Brando John Carradine appeared in more films than any other actor. Many of them were B-Horrors like this one. But he has such a cool persona, he is able to lift this "been there, done that, return life to the dead" black and white horror film up a notch or two with the help of a largely likable and interesting cast. Carradine plays a doctor whose scientific experiments are bordering on bringing the dead back to life. There is a love triangle mixed into the plot as well as a sinister housekeeper who practices voodoo played to the hilt by wonderful Rosa Rey, who makes a perfectly ominous witch. She is worth the price of admission alone. A great way to spend a little over an hour if you like these kinds of horror movies.

Michael O'Keefe Pretty nice black & white horror film starring the great John Carradine as Professor Charles Randolf, a prominent brain surgeon, who retires to his mansion on a cliff that overlooks the sea. Randolf summons one of his best students, scientist David Cochran(Robert Shayne), to partner with him in an obsessive project. The mad professor wants to revive a dead brain. A drown sailor washes up on the shore becoming a perfect subject. The brain is revived; but the sailor's hair turns white and has a face that looks like it was chiseled out of marble...only to die. The dumped body is found and Inspector Norton(Thomas E. Jackson)comes to the mansion asking questions. There is Randolf's wife Elaine(Claudia Drake), the butler Shadrach(Willie Best) and a house maid Maria(Rosa Rey), who dabbles with voodoo. But this will not stop the experimenting. Apt atmosphere that sustains interest. Also in the cast: Maris Wrixon, Neal Burns and Donald Kerr.