The Ape (1940)
- Directed by
- William Nigh
- Genre
- horror film, monster film
- Country
- United States
- Runtime
- 1h 02m
- Rated
- NR
- Rating
- 4.8 of 10 from 42 voters
- Elsewhere
- IMDb
The catalogue in 3D
The film shelves have a room of their own that you can walk around in. The cat behind the counter is the AI Catbot, and they pick real films from the same catalogue when you tell them what you feel like watching. Nothing is for sale, here or in there. Go in from here and this film is already out on the counter, with more like it waiting on the shelf next to it.
How it feels
A doctor experiments on people while disguised as a rampaging ape. He needs spinal fluid to cure a paralyzed young woman.
creepymelodramaticold-fashionedgrislytensecampymad scientist vibe
What happens
The Ape is a 1940 American horror film directed by William Nigh. The film is based on Adam Hull Shirk's play The Ape, which was previously adapted by Nigh as The House of Mystery (1934). The film stars Boris Karloff as Dr. Bernard Adrian who is seeking to cure a young woman's polio through experiments involving spinal fluid. Meanwhile, a vicious ape has been terrorizing the towns locals, and ends up breaking into Adrian's lab. A battle ensues between the two, leading to the ape’s death, the destruction of Adrian’s spinal fluid samples, and Adrian deciding to skin the ape and disguise himself as the beast in order to kill people to get more spinal fluid. The Ape was made by Monogram Pictures Corp. after making several Mr. Wong films with both Karloff and Nigh. According to actress Maris Wrixon, it was filmed within a week. The film received mixed reviews from critics on its release, with positive reviews from The Hollywood Reporter, Kinematograph Weekly, and the Los Angeles Times while receiving negative reviews from The New York Times and Variety. Retrospective reviews generally have commented on how ridiculous they had found the film or how a reviewer felt it did not work as a thrilling story. (from Wikipedia, CC BY-SA)
More like this
Dr. Cyclops (1940)
Son of Ingagi (1940)
The Jungle Captive (1945)
The Ape Man (1943)
Frankenstein (1931)
The Wizard (1927)
The Monster and the Ape (1945)
The Tingler (1959)- More like this film, on a shelf you can walk up to.It's the lit case on the top shelf.