Man-Made Monster (1941)

How sad is this?

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

Unshakable, witty and deeply felt, the film will be paying emotional dividends for a long, long time.

The joyful confection is coated in a sparkly gloss, bright enough to gleam from the darkest, most cynical corners.

This is written from an English perspective, not an American one. This film in the main deals with capital punishment, and at the end, shows the equivalent of it. To most English sensibilities this is nauseating. In 1941 when this film was released we had the death penalty in the UK, but since the 1960's mercifully we have not inflicted this on anyone. In 1941 this film was given an 'A' certificate which meant a child could see it with an adult. It would have been more appropriate for it to have had an 'H' (horror) certificate for Adults Only, but during the Second World War 'H' certificates were not given, the logic being that what was happening in the UK with bombings etc was tame in comparison to what was happening on the screen. To my knowledge it has not been released in the UK on DVD and I am glad of it. The normality of executions is prevalent throughout this film and without questioning or irony. It is available to see on You Tube which again is unfortunate. The film in its way is well acted and Anne Nagel is excellent. But for those of us who abhor Capital Punishment this is a flippant and nasty film. I do not believe in banning films, but I would make an exception for this one. This is not 'I Want to Live' or 'Yield to the Night' which were given 'X' certificates here, but which showed the true mental agony of 'eye for an eye' reasoning among uncivilized people.

If you're the kind of horror buff who likes the kind with graphic violence, then Man Made Monster is not for you. It brought Lon Chaney Jr.-namesake son of his famous father-to the Universal horror fold where his dad had previously made his most successful films. He plays Dan, a man who survives a bus accident that got tangled in electrical wires. I'll stop there and just say this was quite an atmospheric good time with Lionel Atwill as Dr. Rigas-a mad scientist (Is there any other kind in these movies?), leading lady Anne Nagel, and-since I like to cite when players from my favorite movie, It's a Wonderful Life, are in other films-Frank Albertson as Anne's reporter boyfriend with Samuel S. Hinds as Anne's scientist uncle. Also, a dog named Corky! I'll just now say if you like these classic Golden Age thrillers, Man Made Monster should be right up your alley!

Lon Chaney Junior has an odd distinction in the Universal Horror Canon. He was the only actor to portray the Wolf Man. he was the only actor to play all the major monsters- Frankenstein, the Mummy, the Wolf Man and Dracula. But this little film is often overlooked.He plays "Dynamo Dan", a carnival performer who works with electricity who inexplicably survives an electrical accident that kills many others. He goes to work for mad scientist Lional Atwill who proceeds to turn him into an electric powered zombie.Sentenced to die in the electric chair, he rampages across the countryside after a botched execution and gets his revenge.it contains all the flavor of a Universal Horror film with none of the substance.

Lon Chaney, Jr., delivers one of his better career performances as a former sideshow attraction who acquires immunity to electricity in writer & director George Waggner's compelling but tragic horror movie "Man-Made Monster." Ill-fated protagonist 'Dynamo' Dan McCormick survives multiple attempts by the state to fry him in the electric chair for the murder of one of America's foremost scientists. Subsequently, McCormick escapes from the death chamber and sets out to find the devious dastard who turned him into a homicidal maniac. This atmospheric Universal Pictures' release qualifies as an above-average chiller with Lionel Atwill surpassing himself as the mad scientist who conducts unethical experiments on our unsuspecting hero. He is prepared to sacrifice the life of one man for the sake of medical science. Waggner himself acquired a reputation as a maestro of horror movies. Indeed, later that year in 1941, Waggner collaborated later with Chaney on their most memorable project "The Wolf Man," another saga about a considerate man whose life is destroyed by tragedy. What sets "Man-Made Monster" apart from the typical, run-of-the-mill, B-horror chiller is that Waggner conjures up a sympathetic hero, and Chaney, Jr., makes the guy into a charismatic figure. No, the hero isn't very swift, but he is a cheerful sort who intends nobody harm. Waggner gets a lot of mileage out of the relationship between Chaney, Jr., and a pet dog. "Man-Made Monster" marked the first time that Chaney, Jr., appeared in a horror movie as the monster. On the other hand, the mad scientist that Lionel Atwill plays is so incredibly despicable that you enjoy it when he suffers his comeuppance at Chaney, Jr.'s hands. At this point, the hero is so charged up that his arms and head glow with electricity. Eventually, he learns to don a rubber suit to conserve his electricity. Samuel S. Hinds is terrific, too, as the well-meaning doctor who persuades Chaney, Jr.'s character to serve as a guinea pig for their experiences. Of course, the benevolent Dr. Lawrence (Samuel S. Hinds) doesn't want to take advantage of our likable hero, but mad scientist Dr. Rigas (Lionel Atwill) displays no such qualms. Waggner paces this economical, 59-minute saga so that the suspense gradually builds after Dr. Rigas takes over the experiments with Chaney, Jr.'s' character. A peripheral romance smolders in the background between a newspaper reporter and Dr. Lawrence's secretary. Not only did Waggner helm this entertaining horror film, but he also penned the screenplay under a nom de plume. Waggner derived the film from a story H.J. Essex, Sid Schwartz, and Len Golas. Later, Waggner went on to helm the better-than-average "Horror Island" with Dick Foran.