Voodoo Man (1944)

Thanks for the memories!

I'll tell you why so serious

All of these films share one commonality, that being a kind of emotional center that humanizes a cast of monsters.

This is one of the best movies I’ve seen in a very long time. You have to go and see this on the big screen.

VOODOO MAN is one of many horror B-flicks that Bela Lugosi shot for Monogram Pictures in the early 1940s. It has William "One Shot" Beaudine directing, no less, and it features a hodge podge plot about some evil voodoo practitioners kidnapping beautiful young women and holding them captive in an isolated house for their own sinister rituals. Lugosi is at his sinister yet urbane best, as ever, and there are some of those eye close-ups that were a staple for the actor ever since WHITE ZOMBIE. Horror fans get their money's worth with the presence of John Carradine as a simpleton servant and George Zucco as the evil voodoo priest. It's cheap, repetitive, and cheerful, and at just an hour it doesn't outstay its welcome.

Monogram cheapie (shot in seven days!) starring Bela Lugosi as a doctor who is kidnapping young women to use in voodoo rituals to cure his zombified wife. The things we do for love! Of the many Poverty Row movies Bela made during the 1940s, this is one of the most fun. It helps that in this one Bela has support from fellow horror legends George Zucco and John Carradine. All three contribute greatly to the unintended comedy that makes this such a silly entertaining picture. The hero of the piece is a writer played by Tod Andrews, an actor who played a lot of roles in film and television but who I best remember from an episode of the Andy Griffith Show where he played a jerk. He's kind of a jerk in this, too. There's also some fun character actors playing rubes that add to the humor. Anyway, this is worth a look for fans of Bela or those who like old mad scientist movies. It's nothing that's going to change your life but it might entertain you for an hour. Love that ending.

The last of nine films that horror icon Bela Lugosi made for the ultra-cheap Monogram studio. It's certainly one of the more intriguing in this series, thanks to a twisted story and a cast of vintage old reliable scare men.Sneaky gas station owner Nicholas (George Zucco) steers young women down the wrong road whenever they get lost in their automobiles and require directions at his place. After sending them off on their gullible way, he hot tails it to the telephone to alert Dr. Marlowe (Lugosi) that another victim will soon arrive. The doc utilizes his dimwitted henchman Toby (John Carradine) to help kidnap the girls and take them to his basement, so Bela can place them into a trance and use them to restore life to his lovely but brain dead wife. The method is for Lugosi and Zucco to don voodoo garb and chant bizarre rites while Carradine bangs maniacally on a drum, in an effort to transfer the life spirit out of the hypnotized victims and into the doc's unresponsive spouse.Sounds like a hoot, does it not? This film got an extra boost around the time of this writing due to a wonderful newly restored Blu-ray release from Olive Films. Looking way better than ever before or than it probably deserves, this is a slight hour of absurd fun. Lugosi is restrained and has some emotional moments when caring for his wife's well being, and it is such a laugh to see Shakespearean veteran Carradine making an utter buffoon out of himself. How did he do it? Lord knows they couldn't afford to pay him enough. **1/2 out of ****.

Sam Katzman and William Beaudine are two of the immortals of Poverty Row,and Voodoo Man is the literal definition the of the movie that is sooo bad that it's a great picture.Katzman's Banner Productions filmed Voodoo Man in 7 days in October of 1943 for Monogram Studios.What sets this apart is the appearance of Bela Lugosi, George Zucco, and John Carradine in the lead roles and all three are at their rip roarin', hammiest, and over the top best in this little horror opus.Beaudine was the acknowledged master of turning out "Economical" but extremely watchable B movies.Lugosi is the sinister doctor who is channeling Snidely Whiplash. He would twirl his mustache if he had one and yell"curses, foiled again" at every setback. Zucco is a gas station manager and voodoo high priest who scouts out young ladies and potential victims for the doctor and chants an unrecognizable gibberish in the background much of the time. during the transference ceremony. Carradine portrays Lugosi's dimwitted gofer and bongo drum player. In a lesser actors hands the role would be a total embarrassment but Carridine is able to sell it.The scene where Carridine gets a closeup playing the bongo is so over the top that it is classical. His character really believes in the magic of the ceremony. Micheal Ames AKA Tod Andrews, Wanda McKay,and Louise Currie do a commendable job with their roles, particularly Currie whose character is forced through the voodoo ceremony then wanders the countryside in a zombie like state while wearing flimsy and very sexy nightgown. McKay was a Paramount contract actress who did a lot of screen work for Monogram during the 1940's.Currie was another talented actress who did a lot of work at the B studios in the 1940's. She had worked with Lugosi before in the Ape Man for Monogram.The plot of Voodoo Man is less important then getting to watch Lugosi, Zucco, and Carridine go through their paces. They could make reading the ingredients to a can of soup sinister fun!Sam Katzman would would have probably made a feature film of them doing it if he had thought of it. With Beaudine directing of course!