IMDb > Mystery of the Wax Museum (1933)
Mystery of the Wax Museum
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Mystery of the Wax Museum (1933) More at IMDbPro »

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Overview

User Rating:
6.9/10   1,517 votes
MOVIEmeter: ?

Down 65% in popularity this week. See why on IMDbPro.

Director:

Michael Curtiz

Writers:

Charles Belden (play)
Don Mullaly (writer) ...
more

Contact:

View company contact information for Mystery of the Wax Museum on IMDbPro.

Release Date:

17 February 1933 (USA) more

Tagline:

IS SHE WOMAN OR WAX??? Solve it -- if you dare! more

Plot:

In London, sculptor Ivan Igor struggles in vain to prevent his partner Worth from burning his wax museum... more | add synopsis

Plot Keywords:

more

NewsDesk:
(3 articles)

Top Five Movie Screamers
 (From Alternative Film Guide. 30 October 2009, 7:09 PM, PDT)

Greatest Scream Queens
 (From SoundOnSight. 1 September 2009, 12:00 PM, PDT)

User Comments:

Thirties Art Deco Masterpiece! more (61 total)


Cast

  (Complete credited cast)
Lionel Atwill ... Ivan Igor
Fay Wray ... Charlotte Duncan
Glenda Farrell ... Florence Dempsey
Frank McHugh ... Jim
Allen Vincent ... Ralph Burton
Gavin Gordon ... George Winton

Edwin Maxwell ... Joe Worth
Holmes Herbert ... Dr. Rasmussen
Claude King ... Mr. Galatalin
Arthur Edmund Carewe ... Sparrow (Prof. Darcy)
Thomas E. Jackson ... Detective (as Thomas Jackson)
DeWitt Jennings ... Police captain
Matthew Betz ... Hugo (the deaf-mute)
Monica Bannister ... Joan Gale
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Additional Details

Also Known As:

The Mystery of the Wax Museum (USA) (poster title)
Wax Museum
more

Runtime:

77 min

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Color:

Color (2-strip Technicolor)

Aspect Ratio:

1.37 : 1 more

Sound Mix:

Mono (Vitaphone)


Fun Stuff

Trivia:

This film was produced before the Production Code. When it was re-made only 20 years later, as House of Wax (1953), all references to drug use were removed and a character was changed from a junkie to an alcoholic. more

Goofs:

Continuity: When Florence is studying the wax figure of Joan of Arc she glances down and sees a tag laying in a crate, when she picks it up she's not wearing gloves but is wearing them when she puts the tag in her pocket. more

Quotes:

Florence: OK, brother, then you can go to some nice warm place, and I don't mean California. more

Movie Connections:

References Frankenstein (1931) more

Soundtrack:

Agitato more


FAQ

Can I watch this film online?
more
20 out of 21 people found the following comment useful.
Thirties Art Deco Masterpiece!, 16 February 2001
10/10
Author: (csdietrich@hotmail.com) from West Hollywood, CA USA

The beauty of two-strip Technicolor rendering sensual pastel tones and settings in London (1921) and New York (1933), art direction by legendary Anton Grot, Orry-Kelly gowns, Lionel Atwill at his maddest and Fay Wray in all her splendor, make this one of the finest horror films of not only the 30s but of all time. The pace of this film is fast, the comedy relief enjoyable but not detracting from its story. Atwill imbues his character of Ivan Igor with all the menace and evil he could muster (and that was calibrated in tons!) So far superior to its remake (HOUSE OF WAX with Vincent Price) that it leaves its competitor in the dust. Easily my favorite film to look at after New Year's Eve parties. Fantastic fun and candy for the eyes with all that streamlined Art Deco grandeur!

Was the above comment useful to you?
more (61 total)

Message Boards

Discuss this movie with other users on IMDb message board for Mystery of the Wax Museum (1933)
Recent Posts (updated daily)User
The ending (spoiler) FlamRatamacues
DID ANYBODY ELSE NOTICE THIS? tdnh_2000
Glenda Farrell mkeller-8
As Good as 1953 version? mmpabbott
Eye-gore? LCShackley
(I know I know LOL) another list :) mrsramthun
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