Rent Island of Lost Souls (1932)

3.8 of 5 from 115 ratings
1h 11min
Rent Island of Lost Souls Online DVD & Blu-ray Rental
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Synopsis:
Shipwrecked and adrift, Edward Parker finds himself a guest on Dr. Moreau's isolated South Seas island, but quickly discovers the horrifying nature of the doctor's work and the origin of the strange forms inhabiting the isle: a colony of wild animals reworked into humanoid form via sadistic surgical experiments. Furthermore, Parker quickly begins to fear his own part in the doctor's plans to take the unholy enterprise to a next level.
Actors:
, , , , , , , , , , , Jack Bardette, Evangelus Berbas, , , , Harry Ekezian, , ,
Directors:
Writers:
Waldemar Young, Philip Wylie
Studio:
Eureka
Genres:
Classics, Sci-Fi & Fantasy
Collections:
10 Films to Watch if You Like Klute, A History of Gay Cinema: According to Hollywood, Drama Films & TV, Films to Watch If You Like..., Introducing the Thesping Olympians, Masters of Cinema, A Brief History of Film..., The Instant Expert's Guide, The Instant Expert's Guide: to Tim Burton, Top Films, What to Watch Next If You Liked Dracula
BBFC:
Release Date:
28/05/2012
Run Time:
71 minutes
Languages:
English DTS-HD Master Audio 1.0 Mono
Subtitles:
English Hard of Hearing
DVD Regions:
Region 2
Formats:
Pal
Aspect Ratio:
Full Screen 1.37:1
Colour:
B & W
Bonus:
  • Exclusive video interview with Charles Laughton biographer Simon Callow
  • Exclusive video interview with film historian Jonathan Rigby
  • Original theatrical trailer
BBFC:
Release Date:
28/05/2012
Run Time:
71 minutes
Languages:
English DTS-HD Master Audio 1.0 Mono
Subtitles:
English Hard of Hearing
DVD Regions:
Region 2
Formats:
Pal
Aspect Ratio:
Full Screen 1.37:1
Colour:
B & W
BLU-RAY Regions:
B
Bonus:
  • Exclusive video interview with Charles Laughton biographer Simon Callow Exclusive video interview with film historian Jonathan Rigby
  • Original theatrical trailer

More like Island of Lost Souls

Reviews (3) of Island of Lost Souls

"Are we not men?" - Island of Lost Souls review by Count Otto Black

Spoiler Alert
22/08/2015

Well, let's see now. This is a fairly low-budget horror film over 80 years old, so you can safely assume that any sex and violence is pretty much non-existent, and the reason it was banned for decades in the UK had more to do with our draconian censorship laws than anything truly offensive about the film. You can also take it as read that the special effects are very crude indeed. H. G. Wells, the author of "The Island Of Dr. Moreau", on which it was closely based, publicly disowned it. And both modern remakes, bizarrely starring Burt Lancaster and Marlon Brando respectively, were unmitigated disasters. So this film has to be terrible, right?

Actually, it's an incredibly atmospheric minor masterpiece. Bela Lugosi has a very small part but he was seldom better, and fans of Devo will enjoy seeing where that "Are we not men?" quote came from. The hero is, inevitably for this era, blandly forgettable, but Charles Laughton is simply fantastic as a mad scientist who for once doesn't overact but is still very mad indeed, in the rôle you'd think Bela would have gotten. And he really sells a horribly crazy character who has no idea there's anything wrong with doing ghastly, pointless things to helpless animals just because he can. He's the best kind of movie villain - you utterly detest him because any sane person would, but you're still fascinated by him. And what ultimately happens to him - the scene that got the film banned in the UK - is implied rather than shown, but it still packs a real punch.

Just about the only thing wrong with it is that they didn't go with the mind-bendingly surreal makeup designs still photos of which are included in the DVD extras. Oh, and this being 1932, Lota the Panther Woman's rampant animal sexuality, supposedly a crucial plot-point, has to be so downplayed that she might as well be a slightly troubled nun. But overall, as vintage horror classics go, it's up there with "The Bride Of Frankenstein", and far better than the Lugosi version of "Dracula". As a bonus, real movie buffs can have fun spotting obscure young actors who weren't famous yet slumming it as Beast Men - Randolph Scott is easy to identify, but good luck finding Alan Ladd!

Oh, by the way, the photo at the top of this page is of Frederick March in the 1931 version of "Dr. Jekyll And Mr. Hyde", and has no connection whatsoever with this film.

4 out of 4 members found this review helpful.

Spoilers follow ... - Island of Lost Souls review by NP

Spoiler Alert
07/07/2017

After Universal scored such hits with ‘Dracula’ and ‘Frankenstein’ in 1931, it was clear that horrifying audiences was big business. Amongst the steady stream of cinematic terrors that followed, a year later Paramount brought us swathes of monstrosities courtesy of HG Wells and his insane Doctor Moreau.

The make-up for the ‘lost souls’ is very impressive on the more subtle mutations, but less so on the more ‘advanced’ experiments. Which brings us to the most vocal, The Sayer of the Law, played by Bela ‘Dracula’ Lugosi (as he is billed, just above ‘The Panther Woman’). Covered in fur, this is the actor that, a year earlier, had supposedly turned down the Frankenstein Monster for fear the make-up would obscure his matinee looks (which is given as one of a number of reasons he didn’t end up playing the role despite being touted for it). The Sayer of the Law would seem to debunk that particular theory.

Lota, the Panther Woman herself, is played very appealingly by Kathleen Burke in an outfit that exposes a lot of flesh for the time. Her growing relationship with Richard Arlen as Parker – a hero not quite as overshadowed by the other characters as is usual in horror films from this era – is interesting, but causes problems when his girl Ruth (Leila Hyams) travels all the way to the remote island to look for him.

Finally, what an actor Charles Laughton was. Whilst time has rendered the performances of some of the actors around him dated and theatrical, Laughton’s Moreau is every bit as convincing and villainous in 2017 as he was 85 years ago. Superbly spoken but dripping with malice, or uncontrolled and snarling like one of his own animalistic experiments, he is compelling at all times. Moreau’s ultimate fate is one of the most unpleasant you could imagine, but horribly satisfying too.

This is a mighty slice of grim and effective cinema. We could smile at some of the quaint make-up effects of course, but Director Erle C Kenton is at his creative peak here. He would go on to direct future Universal horrors, but never does he imbue them with the sense of unease and danger as is on show here. Strange, leering faces loom of out the jungle, misshapen shapes move in the shadows, revealing deformed limbs – or in one case, a solitary hoof – although we are fairly sure that their animalistic fury is directed only at those responsible for their current predicaments.

After all, ‘are we not men?’

1 out of 1 members found this review helpful.

Early Horror Talkie. - Island of Lost Souls review by Steve

Spoiler Alert
Updated 24/08/2021

Kenton mainly worked on Universal monster sequels, but he has his name on one masterpiece. Edward Parker (Richard Arlen) is a two fisted American man of action, shipwrecked on the remote jungle island of the sinister Dr. Moreau, whose ambition is to evolve animals into humans through genetic experimentation and vivisection. Maybe Parker could be persuaded to mate with his panther-woman (Kathleen Burke)?

This version of HG Wells' The Island of Dr. Moreau was photographed by Karl Struss, and its world of shadows and fog gives the film such an expressive look. The white tropical suits of the cast contrast attractively with the deep pools of darkness. It creates an imaginative portrait of the south seas, full of loners in transit, drunk sea captains, discredited medics, way off the map of normal human behaviour.

At the centre of the film is Charles Laughton's superb portrayal of the mad scientist, his untethered and megalomaniacal moral sickness, of course, hidden behind a cherubic mask of utter reasonableness. He wears the goatee of evil with distinction and cracks his whip with conviction.

The half-human beasts are artistically brought to life by makeup and costuming. It would be great to see more of them. But we do get to witness their famous ceremony of laws imposed by Moreau: 'Are we not men?'. We see the mutations and failed experiments either exhibited or doing the backbreaking tasks. Naturally, it was banned around the world for decades. This is a transgressive, febrile classic of early cinema whose interesting themes never impede the fabulous spectacle.

0 out of 0 members found this review helpful.

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