House of Horrors

Plot synopsis:
Struggling sculptor, Marcel De Lange (Martin Kosleck) is depressed about the events going on in his life, and decides to commit suicide. But just as he's about to kill himself, he spots and saves a madman, named "The Creeper" (Rondo Hatton) from drowning. Shortly afterward, he takes the disfigured man into his care. Marcel also makes the Creeper the subject of his next sculpture and calls it his best creation. But as the reviews begin to break Marcel's last nerve, he has the Creeper start killing the critics. Marcel becomes obsessed with a beautiful female reporter, Joan, who is alone in thinking the deaths are related. When Marcel invites her over, she notices Marcel's sculpture of "The Creeper" and decides that Marcel must know the killer. Later, Marcel decides that she knows too much, but the Creeper is reluctant to kill her when he discovers Marcel's plan to turn the Creeper over to the police. Also this crazy fight happened and Bray tipped a refrigerator over on Randy. Then Bray stole Randy's limo and made an eighteen hour drive to San Jose, California where he then pinned Randy Orton to win the House of Horrors match.

Tags: cult, revenge, murder

Review:
I liked the portrayal of art critics and the art theme, and fun to see the actor who played "Big Jim Champion" on "Circus Boy" in a lead role, along with the monster dude who was an interesting character and had an interesting life story outside of the movie.
In this horror film, the lunacy of artist Martin Koslek directing the killer tendencies of Rondo Hatton to dispatch unfavorable art critics is inspired.
Rondo Hatton did not "intensely dislike" his brief career as a film fright figure, he was indifferent to it, and the prevailing common attitude towards working women in 1940s America was that they eventually would become married, stay-at-home mothers.
The film isn't 'anti-feminist' at a time when the term feminist wasn't used, and when both men and women, not all but most, felt this way of life was appropriate.So to you dunces I say, march onward, great re-writers of history, and make sure you burn Birth of a Nation, and continue to press Disney to never release Song of the South.
She's very good as the spirited reporter trying to get the story.Robert Lowery was a handsome and talented leading man but you could aways tell when he was really into his role or just picking up a paycheck.The dependable Alan Napier has a turn as an egotistical and sarcastic art critic.
In this story he is the real monster, however, creeping around in the shadows and letting Rondo do his dirty work.This is one of Koslecks biggest roles and his weaselly Marcel De Lange is one of his best characterizations Its a shame that Rondo Hatton passed on just as his star was beginning to rise in the horror film Pantheon so to speak.
More than "the creeper" himself ,the real monster is Marcel (a sculptor with a French name meaning "from the angel"!)Martin Kosleck is actually the stand out with his piercing eyes,his banal look and his aspiration for glory ;at the beginning he seems a nice guy feeding his pet cat and coming to a man's rescue.But further acquaintance shows this :he gradually goes nuts and the statue becomes a transparent metaphor for the monster he is creating (a Frankensteinesque relationship,which the ending confirms).This is also a fierce attack on art critics "who judge works but do not know they are judged by them "(Jean Cocteau),a subject which "theatre of blood" will resume in the seventies..
Struggling artist (Martin Kosleck) intends to kill himself but winds up saving the life of serial killer The Creeper (Rondo Hatton) instead.
When another artist (Robert Lowery) is suspected of being the killer, his girlfriend (Virginia Grey) investigates and finds the clues lead to Kosleck and The Creeper.
However, while contemplating just that action, he is anticipated by Rondo Hatton's escaped killer dubbed "The Creeper" and, naturally enough, saves the poor guy's life with the intention of having the latter do all the dirty work for him in gratitude!
Although it is supposedly set in the art circles of New York, all we really see at work is Kosleck and commercial painter Robert Lowery (who keeps painting the same statuesque blonde girl Joan Shawlee over and over in banal poses – how is that for art?) who, conveniently enough, is engaged to a rival art critic (Virginia Grey) of Napier's!
Both Rondo Hatton as the psycho killer and Martin Kosleck as an artist driven to madness by unkind critics are villains, yet both are sympathetic in a way.
In HOUSE OF HORRORS, a starving sculptor named Marcel De Lange (Martin Kosleck- THE FLESH EATERS) helps a murdering fiend, known as The Creeper (Rondo Hatton- THE BRUTE MAN) recover from a near-drowning.
Indebted to De Lange, The Creeper sets out to use his skills to take care of an arrogant art critic (Alan Napier- THE MOLE PEOPLE) who belittled De Lange's work.
One of many 60-minute B-movie horrors that Universal churned out in the 1940's, House of Horrors remains one of the most fondly remembered due to the hulking presence of Rondo Hatton.
He started getting extra work and bit-parts as faceless thugs until he appeared as 'The Creeper' in the Sherlock Holmes film The Pearl of Death (1944).
Universal planned a series of films starring Hatton as The Creeper, but after this and it's sequel The Brute Man (1946), he sadly died of a heart attack brought on by his disease.
He was far from a good actor - he does little but grunt and talk in child-like speech - but his presence is undeniable, and probably saves House of Horrors from obscurity.Living alone in his rotting studio, sculptor Marcel De Lange (Martin Kosleck) is on the verge of selling his best work to a high-rolling collector.
Fascinating with his appearance, Marcel begins to sculpt the Creeper and exploit his blood-lust by setting him up to murder his enemies.At just 65 minutes, House of Horrors, also known as Murder Mansion and Joan Medford is Missing, doesn't demand much at all.
In 1944, a strange looking actor (apparently as a result of an incident during The Great War in which his face was deformed) called Rondo Hatton made a film called The Pearl of Death (a part of the successful Sherlock Holmes series) where he played a murderer named 'The Creeper'.
Apparently, Universal studios thought this character was too good for just a single outing and so obviously decided to make another film with the same actor playing the same character (and with a bigger role) and what we get is House of Horrors.
He later discovers that this man just happens to be a murderer that the police are calling 'The Creeper', and he soon hatches a plan to have his new found friend murder his critics...The main standout of the film is undoubtedly the presence of Rondo Hatton; although the performance is rather tragic considering the disease he had that made him deformed.
After saving the man's life from drowning, a vengeful sculptor uses a psychotic killer in a ploy to take down the spiteful art critics plaguing his work and forces a journalist to get the police on the trail of the killing spree.Overall this one was a pretty decent if not entirely spectacular entry.
Rondo Hatten plays the Creeper, who in this film is a notorious serial killer of women, breaking their backs with his huge hands and body.
He is found nearly drowned in the river by frustrated artist/sculptor Marcel De Lange(played by Martin Kosleck) who takes him home, and they become friends(of a sort).
Marcel tells the creeper about how much he hates the art critics who have trashed his work in their columns, so he takes this as a hint to murder them, as well as the occasional poor woman walking down the street...
Exploitive of Rondo Hatton's unfortunate condition, film is also quite shallow, since no background or reasons for the murderous behavior is offered at all.
I watched "Pearl of Death" and "The Brute Man", and I was really looking forward to "House of Horrors" because the first two movies were so enjoyable.
There is no way any woman would like this nobody, especially not a gorgeous model!If you have the ability to edit, take this movie and remove any scene without The Creeper or the sculptor.
Until I see some concrete proof that Rondo Hatton felt exploited, I will continue to enjoy the films of this man who brought so much joy into all our lives.
I can't enjoy this one, no matter how many times I see it.Made in 1946, "House of Horrors" came at the tail end of the horror film genre.There is hardly any entertainment value and so boring.Everyone is just going through the motions without making much effort.Rondo Hatton is in one of his last films appearances before his sudden death in 1947..
House of Horrors (1946) ** (out of 4) Silly horror flick from Universal has artist Marcel De Lange (Martin Kosleck) growing tired of the negative reviews from critics so he goes to kill himself but before he can do so he pulls a drowning man out of the river.
This man gives the artist his inspiration for his masterpiece but what he doesn't know is that the man he saved is the notorious serial killer known as The Creeper (Rondo Hatton).
Both Hatton and Kosleck are good in their roles as is Robert Lowery and Virginia Grey as a artist and critic and then we get a good turn by Bill Goodwin as the cop investigating the crimes.
Just when he was writing a scalding review about paint-brush wielder Steve Morrow, who gets framed when Harmon is found dead, and his girlfriend, critic Joan Medford, goes off to prove his innocence.This B-movie was a spin-off from "The Pearl of Death", a 1944 Universal Sherlock Holmes picture with Basil Rathbone.
Hatton cameod in a series of movies as a typical "ugly guy", like a contender in the ugly contest in "The Hunchback of Notre Dame".Martin Kosleck plays Marcel DeLange, owner of the "House of Horrors", his studio full of strange statues.
HOUSE OF HORRORS (1946) comes at the very tail end of Universal's classic horror film cycle, following on the heels of 1930s box office blockbusters like Dracula, FRANKENSTEIN, THE MUMMY, THE INVISIBLE MAN and THE BLACK CAT.
He is, however, rescued by a suicidal sculptor named Marcel De Lange (wonderfully played by Martin Kosleck) who spots him in the river just as De Lange is about to take his own life.
The so-called house of horrors (shooting title "Murder Mansion") is the dimly lit studio of starving sculptor/artist Marcel De Lange, so poor that he must borrow bread and cheese from a neighbor.
Holmes Harmon (Alan Napier), Marcel decides to end his life at the waterfront, only to rescue a drowning man later identified as The Creeper (the immortal Rondo Hatton), a dull witted fiend notorious for snapping the spines of his victims (usually pretty girls).
The morning after the Creeper stalks out into the night and murders a streetwalker (Virginia Christine), Marcel hardly bats an eye, surreptitiously planting the seeds of vengeance in the killer's mind, against the critics who routinely mock him as the laughingstock of New York art circles, with even the insufferable, smarmy girl newshound (Virginia Grey) referring to Marcel as a 'harmless little screwball.' This fairly decent buildup pretty much falls to the wayside a third of the way in, as the film shifts its focus from the 'villains' to the 'heroes,' about as thoroughly nasty a bunch of detestables as any viewer is likely to find.
The credits 'introduce' Hatton as The Creeper (September 1945), but the character had made one prior appearance in the 1944 Sherlock Holmes feature "The Pearl of Death," and would make a third in "The Brute Man," Hatton's final film, a prequel to "House of Horrors," completed in November 1945 (the actor died February 2 1946, before either saw release).
Martin Kolseck fondly recalled his work on the picture (and his happy times at Universal), never once crossing the line that would lose the audience's sympathy, and the touching opening between man and pet sets the proper tone for the duration of the film.
The other is Rondo Hatton, a simple man of hideous looks and brutal strength who is quickly revealed to be "the creeper", and a tool of the vindictive Kosleck.One of the best later B Universal horror films, this is extremely well plotted, suspenseful and features a way above average script.
Robert Lowery and Virginia Grey are feisty as an artist and model who are suspects in the critic's murder; Alan Napier, aka " Alfred the Butler" in the "Batman" series is the nasty critic who finds his snappy words the key to his separated spine, with Virginia Christine, the "Folger's" lady, as Hatton's first on screen victim.There's also a bit of comic relief with Bill Goodwin as the wise-cracking detective.
Struggling sculptor Marcel De Lange (Martin Kosleck) is the victim of scathing reviews by the New York art critics.
The distraught artist goes to the river to drown himself...that is where he discovers the half-drowned notorious serial killer, the Creeper (Hatton).
***SPOILERS*** After being humiliated by #1 art critic the snotty and full of himself Holmes Harman,Alan Napler, struggling sepulcher & artist Marcel De Lange, Martin Kosleck, decides to end it all by jumping into the East River and drowning himself.
Take care of all those art critics like Holmes Harman who've been making his life a living hell by putting down his great, in his mind, works.At first Marcel doesn't realize what the "Creeper" was doing but as he read the newspaper reports of his exploits, murdering art critics who disgrace him and his art, he encouraged him to keep up the "Good Work".
It was that , Jean's column about his latest work, which in the end broke up a beautiful friendship, Marcel and the "Creeper", and thus finally putting and end to their reign of terror .P.S Rondo Hatton who's signature role as "The Creeper" was to make him famous in the world of horror movies died almost two months before the film "House of Horroes" was released at the age of 51..
What makes it work is the strange chemistry between Kosleck and Rondo Hatton as the Creeper.
Universal Studios wasn't making that many horror films by the mid 1940's and that's due to the fact that audiences tastes were starting to change but they were always keeping their eye open on the next popular character and they thought they could make some money from "The Creeper" but it just wasn't meant to be.
Story starts with the starving sculptor Marcel De Lange (Martin Kosleck) who after receiving nothing but scathing attacks by art critics decides to attempt suicide but while at the river he finds a disfigured man near death and takes him back to his studio.*****SPOILER ALERT***** Marcel nurses and befriends this brutish man (Rondo Hatton) in exchange that he sits for a sculpture to be made of his head but it doesn't take long for Marcel to discover that his model is actually "The Creeper" who's hobby is snapping the spines of women.
Lt. Larry Brooks (Bill Goodwin) at first thinks the murders might have been committed by painter Steven Morrow (Robert Lowery) but his girlfriend (and another art critic) Joan Medford (Virginia Grey) knows this isn't true but her snooping leads to Marcel and the realization that he's harboring a murderer.This film is directed by Jean Yarbrough who was a good and active director and while this won't exactly go down in the books as a huge success he did make a film that has become a cult favorite.
The film ends with The Creeper getting shot but his death is not announced and Goodwin shouts "Let's get this man to a hospital".
House Of Horrors is one of those films that people forgot about and it god buried in time, but it is a very good film, the acting its great, the cinematography its great too.The film deals with subjects such as art criticism and more, the critics are pretentious assholes who are there just to be unlikeable, not too far from real critics, it shows just how useless and horrible critics could be, caged within their own narrow boundaries, the talks about how they push artists to the extremes by bashing them, so much that the artist in this film has to resort to murder in order to have a decent meal, I guess they didn't deserved to die, but they are assholes.The film uses Rondo Hattons appearance to its benefit, hes a brute, actually this film reminded me of Buñuels film "El Bruto", I think he used some of this films elements.Overall, very enjoyable, quite good actually, definitely recommended..
Okay Universal chiller starring Rondo Hatton, returning as the Creeper, still snapping spines, this time at the motivation of a sculptor slowly driven mad by pretentious, nasty art critics who love to tear apart New York artists using their type writer as a means to diminish and destroy anyone they consider poor or devoid of talent (while also writing vitriol towards artists they simply don't like).
At first French sculptor, Marcel De Lange (Martin Kosleck) is presented as a rather sympathetic figure, an impoverished artist in dire need of critical support so that he can sell some of his works just to buy food and pay rent for home and studio.
After getting his work trashed by Harmon, convincing a potential buyer to not purchase a sculpture, De Lange considers suicide, seeing an injured Creeper appearing from a river in bad need of care.
Lowery has "the wrong man" character, a "person of interest" to Lt. Brooks, due to his negative feelings for Harmon, who has to come to the rescue of his girl when she is in danger of being yet another victim of the Creeper.
Martin Kosleck who was most famous for playing Joseph Goebbels in several films stars here as a struggling artist who gets a bad review once to often.
Instead though he finds the half drowned body of Rondo Hatton known as the Creeper.
He's even got an ultimate masterpiece going, a sculpture of Hatton.Poor Rondo Hatton, a man whose very ugliness gave him a career in films.
But it was interesting to see female cabdrivers and female reporters in a film from that era.So the plot is a failed artist rescues "The Creeper" from the river (Supposedly the same character from the film 'The Brute Man", and then manipulates him into killing art critics who don't like his work.A special shout-out to Alan Napier, who played Alfred on the batman series..
Sculptor on the outs with critics rescues a drowning man (hatton) who just happens to be a mad killer.
He sends the killer off to kill the critics, but suspicion falls on another artist.Its a lousy movie that seems more like a parody of itself.