Mother Riley Meets the Vampire (1952)

You won't be disappointed!

Absolutely Brilliant!

Simple and well acted, it has tension enough to knot the stomach.

An old-fashioned movie made with new-fashioned finesse.

This is my first Old Mother Riley movie and I'm sure my last. I only watched it for Bela Lugosi, which probably puts me in the same boat as 99% of people still living who've seen this. For those who don't know, Old Mother Riley was a character played by English comic actor Arthur Lucan. This was the final movie in the series. I've never really thought men in drag was particularly funny but there's obviously a market for it, then and now.For his part, Bela does fine playing a parody of...well, himself. He plays up his Dracula as well as the various mad scientist roles he and others played in the 1930s & 40s. Of the later Bela movies, this is one of the better ones in that I didn't feel embarrassed for him. I don't like this but at least it's a proper movie not the glorified home movies Ed Wood shot. He gets lots of lines and seems to be having fun, similar to the way he was in Abbott & Costello Meet Frankenstein. One last (and perhaps unkind) thing I'll say about Lugosi is that, looking at the state of his dental affairs in close-ups here, I'm very grateful this wasn't shot in color.

'Vampire Over London' is a horrible film with one redeeming quality which is of course Bela Lugosi and yet even the legendary Bela is really not enough to give this a view. 'Vampire Over London' is worse than any collaboration Lugosi made with Ed Wood. In fact I would even go so far as to say that Ed Wood is dignified and deep in the title drag role in 'Glen or Glenda' in comparison to Arthur Lucan's Old Mother Riley. Lucan's Old Mother Riley is the kind of character that is like torture to watch. He is Jar Jar Binks/Steve Urkel caliber annoying. I'd rather watch someone scratch a chalk board for an hour than to sit through this film again. The fact that this type of character was never funny to begin with doesn't stop Lucan from indulging in every tired cliché. The film assumes it's audience is incredibly stupid but I don't think even stupid people would find Lucan funny. Lugosi is good but he is given a horrendous script and is not in the film all that much. Lugosi wants to explore new territory here and he kind of plays the character more for laughs but none of the material is very funny. And since this is Lucan's film, Lugosi is never given a chance to do anything except set up Lucan's horrible humor. In a career full of highs and lows this might be rock bottom for this talented man. He didn't deserve this.

I couldn't believe it when I heard the above saying from Lucan's lips as he thanked a woman. Though the film hardly operates on the same level as Abbott and Costello meet Frankenstein, it passes an hour or two quite amiably. Bela is clearly happy to be back in front of a film camera for the first time in years - even a low budget British one - and he effortlessly conveys his old authority and a sense of fun - he comes across as an enjoyably hammy British version of a Batman TV Series supervillain. Lucan is relatively restrained in this outing compared to past ones. The splendid book VAMPIRE OVER London; BELA LUGOSI IN Britain indicates his personal troubles over his estranged partner Kitty Mcshane, and one can only wonder if this is the reason why. The duo's stage act usually climaxed in plate throwing and this is compensated for by a madcap crockery-crashing slapstick sequence with Bela's henchmen. Dora Bryan is a more than adequate foil for Lucan.Editing necessary for MY SON THE VAMPIRE means we lose Lucan's one musical number early on in the film. Also, the romance between the kidnapped Loretti and her Naval officer is underplayed to say the least - he keeps getting bonked on the head by various characters. Graham Moffat is also missing from the print. The ending is curious in that we contrast Riley's madcap race to stop the Vampire enduring various crashes and appropriated forms of transport on the way while Von Houson is actually seen gunning down two constables - a bit strong for a juvenile comedy.The immediate postwar period was a time of apprenticeship for celebrated British comedy stars like the Goons and Tony Hancock who were learning and honing their trade upon being demobbed from the army. By 1951, they were ready to take on the entertainment establishment and sweep aside the old stars like Lucan - in much the same way the Beatles and their ilk were ready in 1963 to change the face of the British music industry. The brief resurgence of popularity Lucan and Mcshane enjoyed prior to this film proved to be a last fling at glory. A whole new wave of innovative British comedy was ready to sweep them aside. Lucan was more truthful than he knew when - at the climax of this film - he sputters "This is the end!" Both Lucan and Lugosi were enjoying a last stab at greatness in an age where they were already anachronisms.

I've never heard of or seen a "Mother Riley Adventure" and didn't realize it was a whole series of films, but I had Turner Classic Movies on and saw that Bela Lugosi was in this one so I figured I'd give it a shot. I'm glad I did, as this is one of the wackier movies I've seen in a long time. It's a slapstick horror featuring an old lady who gets abducted by a robot (?) sent to her by a vampire (played by Bela, of course, who endearingly and comfortably hams it up in his few scenes.) Oh yeah, did I mention old Mother Riley is played by an old man? What a strange vehicle this is, but I found it impossible to dislike. There's even a completely random goofy song and dance sequence. The slapstick goes over-the-top in some scenes (notably the ones that are sped up), but it's all in good fun. The best thing the movie has going for it is its distinctly British humor. I loved Dora Byran as Tilly the chambermaid, especially when she starts cavorting with Mother Riley. The woman has such fantastic comedic timing! Overall, its an amusing and quick movie. If you catch it on TV give it a go. I don't think it's as rotten as its reputation.