The Ape Man!

What happens when a scientist and his amigo concoct an experiment which changes said scientist into a bizarre Human-Ape hybrid creature who must kill to preserve his diminishing human traits? The Ape Man starring the legendary Bela Lugosi is the afflicted scientist and what he does to cling to humanity is well and truly inhuman. This is a zany movie with one mysterious character who dabbles in fourth-wall busting off and on throughout. William "One-Shot" Beaudine directed this programmer, a diverting entertainment I think, but hardly great.

Low-budget horror flicks have to be taken on their own merits and even with some fine actors like Lugosi and Wallace Ford and Louise Curry, a reporter and his photographer respectively who stumble across the weird scheme, the whole doesn't really add up to queer sum of the parts. We've got them, plus Lugosi's sister who is a medium and his partner in crime who balks eventually at helping him. The biggest attraction though is Emil Van Horn as a "real" ape who serves as henchman for Lugosi as he goes about his devious business.

This is a ride, albeit a cheap one and a short one and at times a bit of a slow one, and you pays for the ticket and takes your chances. I for one like it.

Rip Off