In 1957, at age 70, the legendary Boris Karloff had already lived the best years of his artistic career as a film actor, in classics such as Edgar G. Ulmer's "The Black Cat", James Whale's "Bride of Frankenstein" and Mark Robson's "Bedlam". However, Karloff would continue acting until 1969, the year of his death, often in projects unworthy of his talent and resume, but also in very good films, such as "The Raven", "The Three Faces of Fear", "The Sorcerers "and" Targets ", directed by Roger Corman, Mario Bava, Michael Reeves and Peter Bogdanovich, respectively.
In 1957 he appeared in "Grip of the Strangler", a psychological drama, a tale of mystery and death (based on the story "Stranglehold" by Jan Read) in which the writer James Rankin (Karloff) investigates the execution of a man, unfairly accused of having strangled and stabbed a chorus girl and other women. Rankin ends up following the trail to a doctor declared crazy and then disappeared, who, by all accounts, is the real culprit. The problem begins when Rankin rescues the murder weapon, falls in trances in which his face is disfigured and continues the crime wave.
Made with limited resources, the drama solves many situations with wit, although director Robert Day or editor Peter Mayhew dilute the tension in long sequences of can-can. So Karloff sustains the drama development with a passionate performance that gradually shows the emotional imbalance that the research had caused on him.
It has been noted how, to find a solution to the absence of money for special make-up and effects, Karloff proposed to remove his dentures in the scenes in which his face appears deformed. It is interesting how his proposal was in line with the drama, because Rankin is not "possessed" by any spirit, but the grimace on his face is an evidence of his imbalance.
Also in 1958, the year of the premiere of "Grip of the Strangler", Karloff and the same technical team finished the superior "Corridors of Blood", which was not released until 1962, due to problems with the British censorship. But this one is definitely worth a look.
In 1957 he appeared in "Grip of the Strangler", a psychological drama, a tale of mystery and death (based on the story "Stranglehold" by Jan Read) in which the writer James Rankin (Karloff) investigates the execution of a man, unfairly accused of having strangled and stabbed a chorus girl and other women. Rankin ends up following the trail to a doctor declared crazy and then disappeared, who, by all accounts, is the real culprit. The problem begins when Rankin rescues the murder weapon, falls in trances in which his face is disfigured and continues the crime wave.
Made with limited resources, the drama solves many situations with wit, although director Robert Day or editor Peter Mayhew dilute the tension in long sequences of can-can. So Karloff sustains the drama development with a passionate performance that gradually shows the emotional imbalance that the research had caused on him.
It has been noted how, to find a solution to the absence of money for special make-up and effects, Karloff proposed to remove his dentures in the scenes in which his face appears deformed. It is interesting how his proposal was in line with the drama, because Rankin is not "possessed" by any spirit, but the grimace on his face is an evidence of his imbalance.
Also in 1958, the year of the premiere of "Grip of the Strangler", Karloff and the same technical team finished the superior "Corridors of Blood", which was not released until 1962, due to problems with the British censorship. But this one is definitely worth a look.