Undescribable Perfection

I cannot think of one single thing that I would change about this film. The acting is incomparable, the directing deft, and the writing poignantly brilliant.

Fun premise, good actors, bad writing. This film seemed to have potential at the beginning but it quickly devolves into a trite action film. Ultimately it's very boring.

Each character in this movie — down to the smallest one — is an individual rather than a type, prone to spontaneous changes of mood and sometimes amusing outbursts of pettiness or ill humor.

You can't go wrong with Charles Laughton playing the heavy. Here is is cast as Dr. Moreau, the evil vivisectionist from the famous H. G. Wells novel. He has created an island filled with animal-men who walk on two legs but maintain the features of their various animal counterparts. A man finds himself washed ashore on this island and he becomes privy to Laughton's experiments. He is helpless to do anything. He involves himself with one of Laughton's "people" for a while. This is mostly about the sickness of the island itself and Moreau's obsessions. One thing he doesn't count on is that wild animals have a sense of self preservation and potential violence. I love that cry in the jungle: "What is the Law? Are we not men?" An excellent retelling of a terrific story.

A true classic in the genre from a long forgotten era, ISLAND OF LOST SOULS surprisingly still holds up today as a fast-moving, intriguing ride through H. G. Wells' horrifying tale of vivisection and animal cruelty. Although two further versions of the novel have been made, neither of them come close to achieving the sheer power and force of this original classic. Surprisingly horrific for the time in scenes of cruelty and torture, the film was banned for years by the squeamish British film censors before they finally came round. Indeed, not many other films from the '30s can be considered so shocking; Moreau's screams as he is picked apart by knives are truly disturbing.The acting in the film is typically good all round, but it is Charles Laughton as the sweating, sadistic villain who stands out from the rest. Whether he's whipping the primitives or gleefully hurting his captives, he is the true embodiment of the dedicated scientist, and I daresay ISLAND OF LOST SOULS is at least partly responsible for the creations-rise-up-and-attack-creator theme we're used to seeing from many, many horror films. An oppressive drum beat on the soundtrack keeps things moving along nicely, and the jungle setting is also put to good use. With Bela Lugosi (Dracula himself) as a native with a big bushy beard and lots of ape-men running through the trees, ISLAND OF LOST SOULS is a marvellous film to watch and a film which others must try and equal themselves with. One of the rightful classics.

Sailor Edward Parker (a solid and likable performance by Richard Arlen) finds himself stranded on a remote island in the tropics. He discovers that ruthless and unscrupulous mad scientist Dr. Moreau (splendidly played with suavely slimy menace by Charles Laughton) has been conducting horrible and unethical experiments that transform animals into pitiful subhuman beasts.Director Erle C. Kenton keeps the twisted and absorbing story moving along at a brisk pace, does an expert job of crafting a spooky and unsettling atmosphere, and stages the thrilling climax with gusto. The fine acting by the excellent cast holds this picture together: Bela Lugosi excels in his small, yet memorable role as the Sayer of the Law, Kathleen Burke projects both a sweet naivete and smoldering animal sensuality as alluring panther woman Lota, Arthur Hohl lends sterling support as Moreau's disgraced, yet conscience-stricken assistant Montgomery, Tetsu Komai elicits sympathy as timid and loyal servant M'ling, and Hans Steinke cuts an imposing and frightening figure as the hulking Ouran. The gutsy script by Philip Wylie and Waldemar Young tackles such bold themes as bestiality, vivisection, miscegenation (Moreau encourages Lota to seduce Parker), and the intrinsic evil and cruelty of man playing at being God head on. Moreover, the marked emphasis on pain (the anguished shrieks and screams made by the beastmen are positively bloodcurdling), torture, and sadism give this film an extra unnerving edge, with the haughty and merciless Moreau in particular rating as a truly fearsome piece of nasty work. Kudos are also in order for Wally Westmore's imaginatively grotesque make-up and the sumptuous black and white cinematography by Karl Struss. Highly recommended.

This is a pre-code production and it shows. Even today this movie would get some serious push-back.There is no nudity or explicit sexual behavior. The physical violence is not extraordinary. What permeates through the whole film is a sense of primal wrongness. Not just that Dr Moreau has crossed the boundaries of nature but that he's done it with prurient cruelty and indifference. He's accomplished something truly extraordinary but he's done it in the wrong way and for the wrong reasons and knows it - he simply does not care.In a way, this is like an obscene version of Pygmalion or Frankenstein. Instead of the creator loving or at least respecting his creations, he finds even the most successful versions as curious abominations that exist only for his perverse pleasure and twisted curiosity.It's hard to watch the Charles Laughton's lascivious, leering portrayal of Dr Moreau and not feel truly repulsed. Much as if one were watching Dr Mengele perform his monstrous experiments or Genghis Khan optimizing his torture techniques. I'm not sure I can recall a character so coldly repugnant.The fear, suffering and resentment of his experimental subjects is palpable and unsettling. Dr Moreau walks in their midst with a sneer of absolute superiority and fearlessness, lording over them what he's done and what he can do again. Their animalistic impulses are only barely contained and they project a cold, primitive rage balanced and checked by Dr Moreau's cold, calculating omnipotence.This isn't a slasher flick where pretty young girls are savaged by a sociopath. This is evil portrayed in it's most stark and fundamental form - the human without a soul.