Signor Vitelli and I were having a discussion over in another thread and the subject of horror movies came up, so rather than hijack the other topic, I thought that I would start a topic on favorite pre-1970 Horror Movies.




I remember that movie Signor. Do you remember another movie with Karloff, which originally came out as an Italian movie titled Tre volti della paura, I and later when released in the USA re-titled Black Sabbath?



It's a compilation of 3 short stories and in one of them Karloff plays a Vampire. Very dark and chilling.

George A. Romero's Night of the Living Dead is way up there on the list, for me. Critics panned it back in '68 for it's unusually graphic nature (at the time).

Pre 1970?

Frankenstein 1931

Oh, a true CLASSIC!

That whole series of Universal Horror films from back then was just fantastic.




Definitley up there on my list too XDCX. A true cult classic.

There is anothe Cult Classic that Signor Vitelli and I share a passion for titled "The Last Man On Earth" with Vincent Price. It was later re-made with Charlton Heston as "The Omega Man" and while I liked the remake and thought that it was pretty good, the original with Vincent Price is still my favorite version.


I believe that they've just wrapped up filming a third version, with Will Smith reprising the role that Vincent Price and Charlton Heston played, based on the original book called I AM LEGEND.

"Bride of Frankenstein" is the class act of horror movies. Karloff's greatest performance, brilliant sets, great score, wonderful supporting performances--and a rich vein of dry humor throughout. Nothing else comes close.

Another that I watch often is "The Black Cat,"first and best of the Karloff/Lugosi collaborations. Ingenious and compressed story that avoids in-your-face horror, but creates a steadily increasing mood of decadence and corruption. Outstanding use of sets and makeup. A real chiller.

Dunno if you'd include some of the more sci-fi movies in this genre but the 1950's had a bunch of them. Among the better ones:

"The Thing" (1951) - its fast paced dialogue (possibly the best in any sci-fi/monster flick), fine acting and awesome score (by Dmitri Tiomkin) absolutely rock! It always makes me shiver.

"The Day the Earth Stood Still" (1951) - an absolutely awesome "message film" showcasing absolute power (that power given to the robot). An anti-war flick way ahead of its time.

"Them" (1954) - giant mutant ants take over the tunnels of L.A. in this well acted and well told thriller. The early buildup of the story is chilling.

"The Beast from 20,000 Fathoms" (1953) - a much better than average monster flick. Ends up in New York's Coney Island and look for Lee Van Cleef in an early role (as the Army sharpshooter).

"Godzilla" (1954) - the Americanized version, starring Raymond Burr, is OK, but the full Japanese original ("Gojira") is better. Made only nine years after Japan was subjected to atomic warfare this anti-nuclear flick is damned good.

"The Invasion of the Body Snatchers" (1956) - a pure thriller about paranoia. A wonderful ending!!

The scene when they are unveiling The Monster's Bride for the first time is magnificent. The look on Elsa Lancaster's face, those fixated eyes combined with the musical score makes for a truly memorable scene.

The Black Cat is definitely another good one. An excellent Edgar Allen Poe Tale. I also liked some of the other movies based on Poe stories like The Raven, The Oblong Box, etc. Vincent Price was outstanding in those movies.

And while on the subject of master of horror actors Karloff and Vincent Price, how about "The Comedy Of Terrors" which starrred the two of them as well as another master of horror, Peter Lorre? (which by the way, Signor V. was written by Richard Matheson, the writer of I am Legend).

The best horror film is pre-1970.

Nosferatu: A Symphony of Horror

Most definitely would include these kinds of Sci-fi movies. (I edited the title, good point SC).

And all those that you mentioned in your post are true classics. However I must add one more to your list.

The Fly.

Untie the boat!! Untie the boat!!

I saw what I saw when I saw it!

That ("A&C Meet Frankenstein") was their last great movie.

What about the Cult B movie Carnival Of Souls? Anyone remember that one? Pretty scary stuff. Strange, dark and dreary , but a good one.

You're right--I should have added it to my list. Absolutely the best Drac film ever. Incredibly eerie and chilling.

Top 4 in no particular order:

-NOSFERATU (1922)
-FRANKENSTEIN (1931)
-PSYCHO (1960)
-JIGOKU (1960)

No question about it. My favorite A & C movie.


Wilbur Grey: Well that's gonna cost you overtime because I'm a union man and I work only sixteen hours a day.
McDougal: A union man only works eight hours a day.
Wilbur Grey: I belong to two unions.

Absolutely right! Historical note on the anti-nuke content of "Gojira":
The movie was started soon after the US tested "Castle Bravo," at 15 megatons the largest H-bomb ever detonated by America in the atmosphere. A Japanese fishing boat strayed into the Pacific test area undetected. The crew was showered with radioactive debris. When it returned to Japan, all the crewmen were sick, and one died. The situation wasn't helped when Lewis Strauss, chairman of the Atomic Energy Commission, held a press conference and said the boat was "a Soviet spy trawler--they got what they deserved." Huge riots ensued in Japan--and the movie was made.

Nosferatu: A Symphony of Horror




Have either of you ever seen Stephen Kings Salem's Lot?



The vampire in that movie was probably the closest to ever look like the original Nosferatu.

GOJIRRAA!!!!!

Anyone remember this :

Two others in the old Universal catalog are The Wolfman and The Werewolf of London...both real classics.

Nosferatu, the silent movie was indeed one of the greatest as was Dracula with Lugosi.

In a completely different vein, I think one of the most horriffic films pre 1970 was Rosemary's Baby.

A few random thoughts on one of my favorite subjects:

The Fly (1958): Though some folks think it's tame by today's standards (and when compared to the nauseatingly graphic remake with Jeff Goldblum - who looks like a fly without makeup), this one still scared the crap out of me when I first saw it on TV nearly forty years ago. There is one amusing story I remember reading: Newspaper ads announcing the film's premiere had to be hastily changed when people opened their local tabloids and saw ads like "The Fly Opens Thursday!" or something similar. Seems that back in 1958, nobody's fly opened for any reason - especially not in a newspaper!

White Zombie (1932): Very low budget, but a gem, nevertheless. Memorable Lugosi line: "For you, my friend, they are the Angels of Death!"

Doctor X (1932): Two-color Technicolor. Lionel Atwill. Fay Wray. "Synthetic Flesh!" Need I say more?

Dark Intruder (1965): An odd one - it used to turn up all the time on late-night TV in the late '60s and early '70s, but it hasn't been shown is years, and it's impossible to find on VHS or DVD (it's one of the few I don't have). It dealt with a series of murders in 1890s San Francisco that may or may not have a supernatural connection. Running less than an hour, it was an unsold television pilot that ended up being released to theatres instead. Starring Leslie Nielsen, it features Werner (Colonel Klink) Klemperer totally unrecognizable under a wonderfully horrific makeup. I wish they'd show this one again!

Curse of Dracula (1958): AKA The Return of Dracula, another low-budget film that was (IMO) quite effective - especially the ending! Francis Lederer wasn't bad at all in the title role. "It is only this casing, this clumsy flesh that stands between us. Eternity awaits you now!"

I'll probably write more later.

Time to feed.

Signor V.

A great film that did justice to a great novel.

To go along with that:
Chick Young: I don't get it. Out of all the guys around here that classy dish has to pick out a guy like you.
Wilbur Grey: What's wrong with that?
Chick Young: Go look at yourself in the mirror sometime.
Wilbur Grey: Why should I hurt my own feelings?

Probably the greatest horror film of the 1930s, due in no small part to the hand of the director, James Whale. Whale knew how to balance the scary moments with the lighter moments. Whale's The Old Dark House (1932) and - particularly - The Invisible Man (1933) are both required viewing. (Though the print of The Old Dark House shown on TCM is sadly inferior to the pristine copy I saw back in 1970 at the Museum of Modern Art in NYC.)

Interestingly, Boris Karloff hated having The Monster speak in Bride of Frankenstein. In a 1960s interview, he referred to the dialogue as "stupid". Obviously, the powers-that-be at Universal Pictures felt the same way, because in the next film in the series (Son of Frankenstein) the Monster was mute again.

As you say, another thing that made Bride of Frankenstein so memorable was the magnificent score by Franz Waxman. To this day, I cannot hear "Ave Maria" played on the violin without thinking of this film (and yes, I know, Waxman didn't write that). Bride, and the original King Kong (score by Max Steiner) had, IMHO, the best scores of any genre films of that time.



Though I agree with your assessment of The Black Cat, I have to say that The Raven (1935) is also one of my favorite Karloff/Lugosi vehicles. Perhaps because it's so over-the-top with ripe dialogue and Lugosi's scenery-chewing. ("Poe, you are avenged!")

Signor V.

That is a classic.

I'm a big fan of THE DAY THE EARTH STOOD STILL, from the great Robert Wise. I would love to riff that scene where the alien words Lincoln's words at the Memorial and remark that he wants to meet a human* like that.

*=Of course, this was in 1951, when Lincoln was practically an American God. I do miss that sentimentality of sorts, even if its more myth than reality.

Invasion of the Saucermen.

The only movie that ever gave me nightmares.

The 50's had great B horror movies, too, that attained some sort of cult status. While they weren't very good, they were entertaining. Four that come to mind right away are:

"The Creature From the Black Lagoon" - a laugher about a "gill man" in the Everglades.

"The Crawling Eye" - an omelette type monster with long tentacles in the Alps. Forrestt Tucker starred.

"The Blob" - starred Steven McQueen in this campy story of a big ball of jelly running amok.

"The Attack of the 50 Foot Woman" - really silly movie but had this awesome lookin' babe blown up to giant proportions!

I actually was thinking about the movie "The Blob" when I saw this thread. I remember seeing it as a little girl. I can only assume they made a remake. This would have been in the 1970's, or perhaps they just showed the old movie. Don't know as I can't remember who was in the movie I saw.