Supernatural (1933)

Director:

Victor Halperin

Writers:

Garnett Weston (story)
Garnett Weston (adaptation)

Release Date:

12 May 1933 (USA)

Genre:

Horror | Mystery

Tagline:

Leave Your Love Secrets At Home When You See "SUPERNATURAL"

Plot:

In New York city, Ruth Rogan is convicted of killing 3 of her lovers and sentenced to be executed. Meanwhile...

Plot Keywords:

Spiritualist | Heiress | New York City | Seance | Boat

Cast

Carole Lombard	...	Roma Courtney
Alan Dinehart	...	Paul Bavian (as Allan Dinehart)
Vivienne Osborne	...	Ruth Rogen
Randolph Scott	...	Grant Wilson
H.B. Warner	...	Dr. Carl Houston
Beryl Mercer	...	Madame Gourjan, Paul's Landlady
William Farnum	...	Nick 'Nicky' Hammond
Willard Robertson	...	Warden
George Burr Macannan	...	Max Schmitt, Glass Blower (as George Burr Mac Annan)
Lyman Williams	...	Ghost of John Courtney

Runtime:

65 min

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Color:

Black and White

Aspect Ratio:

1.37 : 1

Sound Mix:

Mono (Western Electric Noiseless Recording)

Certification:

USA:Approved (PCA #1409-R, 31 August 1935 for re-release) | USA:Passed

Company:

Paramount Pictures

Trivia:

One of over 700 Paramount Productions, filmed between 1929 and 1949, which were sold to MCA/Universal in 1958 for television distribution, and have been owned and controlled by Universal ever since.

Goofs:

Continuity: When Dr. Houston and the warden discuss the former's experiments in the warden's office, their positions relative to the warden's desk and the window change considerably even though the two are seated throughout.

Horror film not for Lombard fans

Negative reviews of this film should be seen in context. Most Carole Lombard fans are looking for light comedies and romances, certainly not horror pictures. Horror fans, however, must be delighted to find Lombard starring in this movie from the Halperins, who produced the successful Lugosi vehicle "White Zombie" in 1932.

Only a few times in the 1930s' golden age of horror did these films get the star power and production they deserved. Among major studios Paramount led the way with this type of film, even predating Universal with John Barrymore's "Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde" in 1920 when the only horror films were coming out of Germany. In the '30s Paramount, encouraged by Universal's success, cast Charles Laughton in "The Island of Lost Souls" and Frederic March in a remake of "Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde."

In "Supernatural" Lombard is fine in the lead role of a woman possessed by the evil spirit of a murderess. And while this film is not a classic, it is an effective horror film by a major studio. The fact that it rates 5.7 stars is amazing when you consider what types of films Lombard's fans are used to seeing her in.