{"id":3745,"date":"2007-08-07T09:03:20","date_gmt":"2007-08-07T16:03:20","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/?p=3745"},"modified":"2021-01-30T22:13:04","modified_gmt":"2021-01-31T05:13:04","slug":"mystery-of-the-wax-museum-1933","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/?p=3745","title":{"rendered":"Mystery of the Wax Museum (1933)"},"content":{"rendered":"<p><strong>&#8220;Before this terrible thing happened to me, I made a very beautiful statue&#8230; And my child, you are that figure, come to life!&#8221;<\/strong><\/p>\n<table>\n<tr>\n<td>\n<p><a href=\"http:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2007\/08\/Mystery-of-the-Wax-Museum-Poster.jpeg\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" src=\"http:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2007\/08\/Mystery-of-the-Wax-Museum-Poster-201x300.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"201\" height=\"300\" class=\"alignleft size-medium wp-image-22560\" srcset=\"https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2007\/08\/Mystery-of-the-Wax-Museum-Poster-201x300.jpg 201w, https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2007\/08\/Mystery-of-the-Wax-Museum-Poster-85x128.jpg 85w, https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2007\/08\/Mystery-of-the-Wax-Museum-Poster.jpeg 475w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 201px) 100vw, 201px\" \/><\/a><\/p>\n<p><strong>Synopsis:<\/strong><br \/>\nA plucky reporter (Glenda Farrell) discovers that a mad artist (Lionel Atwill) has been using corpses as the models for his wax sculptures &#8212; and that his next victim is her beautiful roommate (Fay Wray).\n<\/p>\n<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<tr>\n<td>\n<p>\n<strong>Genres, Themes, Actors, and Directors:<\/strong><\/p>\n<ul>\n<li>Amateur Sleuths<\/li>\n<li>Artists<\/li>\n<li>Disfigured Faces<\/li>\n<li>Fay Wray Films<\/li>\n<li>Horror<\/li>\n<li>Journalists<\/li>\n<li>Lionel Atwill Films<\/li>\n<li>Mad Doctors and Scientists<\/li>\n<li>Michael Curtiz Films<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p><strong>Response to Peary&#8217;s Review: <\/strong><br \/>\nPeary is less than impressed by this once-lost early horror film, lamenting that it has &#8220;several dull stretches, unfunny comedy, and uninteresting subplots&#8221;. While there&#8217;s some truth to this assessment, I think it&#8217;s unduly harsh; and unlike Peary, I find this film to be superior to its 1953 remake, the 3-D extravaganza <em>House of Wax<\/em>. In <em>Mystery<\/em>&#8216;s lead role, Glenda Farrell is infinitely more interesting than <em>House of Wax<\/em>&#8216;s insipid Phyllis Kirk, who doesn&#8217;t have much to do other than look wide-eyed and worried. Farrell, on the other hand, is a go-getting journalist with genuine spunk and, as noted by DVD Savant, &#8220;pre-code attitude&#8221;; her wisecracking banter with editor Frank McHugh is a delight. Atwill is also wonderful &#8212; he approaches his role differently than Vincent Price, but just as effectively. Perhaps most memorable, however, is the use of muted, two-tone Technicolor hues, which (Savant again), &#8220;give the film the look of a faded vintage magazine&#8221;. This, along with the expressionistic sets, make the film a visual treat. <\/p>\n<p><strong>Redeeming Qualities and Moments: <\/strong><\/p>\n<ul>\n<li>Glenda Farrell as the spunky female reporter<br \/>\n<a href=\"http:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2007\/07\/Farrell.JPG\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" src=\"http:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2007\/07\/Farrell.JPG\" alt=\"\" width=\"640\" height=\"480\" class=\"alignnone size-full wp-image-3740\" \/><\/a><\/li>\n<li>Lionel Atwill as the mad sculptor<br \/>\n<a href=\"http:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2007\/07\/Atwill.JPG\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" src=\"http:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2007\/07\/Atwill.JPG\" alt=\"\" width=\"640\" height=\"480\" class=\"alignnone size-full wp-image-3741\" \/><\/a><\/li>\n<li>A striking example of the early two-color Technicolor process<br \/>\n<a href=\"http:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2007\/07\/TwoTone.JPG\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" src=\"http:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2007\/07\/TwoTone.JPG\" alt=\"\" width=\"640\" height=\"480\" class=\"alignnone size-full wp-image-3742\" \/><\/a><\/li>\n<li>The creepy museum fire<br \/>\n<a href=\"http:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2007\/07\/Fire3.JPG\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" src=\"http:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2007\/07\/Fire3.JPG\" alt=\"\" width=\"640\" height=\"480\" class=\"alignnone size-full wp-image-3743\" \/><\/a><\/li>\n<li>Igor&#8217;s expressionistic laboratory<br \/>\n<a href=\"http:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2007\/07\/Lab.JPG\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" src=\"http:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2007\/07\/Lab.JPG\" alt=\"\" width=\"640\" height=\"480\" class=\"alignnone size-full wp-image-3744\" \/><\/a><\/li>\n<li>Fay Wray screaming her famous line: &#8220;You fiend!&#8221;<br \/>\n<a href=\"http:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2007\/07\/FayWray.JPG\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" src=\"http:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2007\/07\/FayWray.JPG\" alt=\"\" width=\"640\" height=\"480\" class=\"alignnone size-full wp-image-3746\" \/><\/a><\/li>\n<li>Plenty of snazzy throwaway dialogue:<br \/>\n<blockquote><p>&#8220;OK, then you can go to some nice, warm place &#8212; and I don&#8217;t mean California!&#8221;<\/p><\/blockquote>\n<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p><strong>Must See? <\/strong><br \/>\nYes, simply for its historical notoriety.<\/p>\n<p><strong>Categories<\/strong><\/p>\n<ul>\n<li>Historically Relevant<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p><strong>Links: <\/strong><\/p>\n<ul>\n<li><a href=\"http:\/\/imdb.com\/title\/tt0024368\/\">IMDb entry<\/a><\/li>\n<li><a href=\"http:\/\/www.dvdtalk.com\/dvdsavant\/s915wax.html\">DVD Savant Review (scroll down)<\/a><\/li>\n<li><a href=\"http:\/\/www.moria.co.nz\/horror\/waxmuseum.htm\">SF, Fantasy, and Horror Review<\/a><\/li>\n<li><a href=\"https:\/\/www.tcm.com\/tcmdb\/title\/84482\/mystery-of-the-wax-museum#articles-reviews?articleId=76262\">TCM Article<\/a><\/li>\n<li><a href=\"https:\/\/www.timeout.com\/movies\/mystery-of-the-wax-museum\">Time Out Capsule Review<\/a><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<\/table>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>&#8220;Before this terrible thing happened to me, I made a very beautiful statue&#8230; And my child, you are that figure, come to life!&#8221; Synopsis: A plucky reporter (Glenda Farrell) discovers that a mad artist (Lionel Atwill) has been using corpses as the models for his wax sculptures &#8212; and that his next victim is her beautiful roommate (Fay Wray). Genres, Themes, Actors, and Directors: Amateur Sleuths Artists Disfigured Faces Fay Wray Films Horror Journalists Lionel Atwill Films Mad Doctors and&#8230;<\/p>\n<p class=\"read-more\"><a class=\"btn btn-default\" href=\"https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/?p=3745\"> Read More<span class=\"screen-reader-text\">  Read More<\/span><\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"jetpack_post_was_ever_published":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_access":"","_jetpack_dont_email_post_to_subs":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_tier_id":0,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paywalled_content":false,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[3],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-3745","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-responses-to-peary"],"aioseo_notices":[],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"","jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/3745","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=3745"}],"version-history":[{"count":6,"href":"https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/3745\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":67246,"href":"https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/3745\/revisions\/67246"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=3745"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=3745"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=3745"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}