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Information

Year
1934
Runtime
65 min.
Director
Edgar G. Ulmer
Genres
Crime, Romance, Adventure, Thriller, Horror
Rating *
7.1
Votes *
6,754
Checks
2,864
Favs
133
Dislikes
41
Favs/checks
4.6% (1:22)
Favs/dislikes
3:1
* View IMDb information

Top comments

  1. Wise Jake's avatar

    Wise Jake

    I found it to be a masterpiece, personally. Bizarre, sadistic, and original. The chemistry between the actors is miraculous. 12 years 1 month ago
  2. Siskoid's avatar

    Siskoid

    The Black Cat, "suggested by" a story by Edgar Alan Poe, has very little to do with that literary classic. The first pairing of Bela Lugosi and Boris Karloff, it toys with the audience's expectations concerning those actors. Is the true villain Lugosi's intense psychologist who drugs the heroine after a car accident? Or is it Karloff's famous architect who keeps beautiful dead women (a Poe trope, at least) in his basement? The film does try to do new things with Gothic, in particular with a slick, modern house as its setting, but a lot of the ideas on show seem unfinished. Characters might not react normally to seeing something shocking, for example, and the more supernatural elements are never explained. And somehow, it's never not watchable, strange to the point of inviting cult status. The music is sometimes a bit heavy-handed, almost silent film-style, and I could do without the final punchline, but as a creepy struggle between two Universal Monsterverse stars, it has real spark. 6 years 5 months ago
  3. PrinceJax's avatar

    PrinceJax

    Surprisingly really good! The atmosphere steadily builds to a chilling creep factor, the chemistry between karloff and lugosi is perfect and the directing is pretty inspired at times - many of the shots and cuts felt modern and clever. It watches like a short story reads (if that makes sense lol). Worth the watch IMO. 6 years 11 months ago
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In 8 official lists

  1. This movie ranks #63 in TSZDT's The 1,000 Greatest Horror Films
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    TSZDT's The 1,000 Greate…

    63
  2. This movie ranks #85 in 1001 Movies You Must See Before You Die
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    1001 Movies You Must See…

    85
  3. This movie ranks #100 in Time Out's 1000 Films to Change Your Life
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    Time Out's 1000 Films to…

    100
  4. This movie ranks #153 in Jonathan Rosenbaum's Essential Cinema
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    Jonathan Rosenbaum's Ess…

    153
  5. This movie ranks #178 in 366 Weird Movies
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    366 Weird Movies

    178
  6. This movie ranks #257 in Empire's The 500 Greatest Movies of All Time
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    Empire's The 500 Greates…

    257
  7. This movie ranks #328 in Eureka!'s The Masters of Cinema Series
    Eureka!'s The Masters of Cinema Series's icon

    Eureka!'s The Masters of…

    328
  8. This movie ranks #575 in TSPDT's 1,000 Greatest Films: 1001-2500
    TSPDT's 1,000 Greatest Films: 1001-2500's icon

    TSPDT's 1,000 Greatest F…

    575
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