The Human Monster (1939)
"The Dark Eyes of London" (original title)

Insurance agent-physician collects on policies of men murdered by a disfigured resident of the home for the blind where he acts as doctor-on-call.

Director:

Walter Summers

Writers:

Edgar Wallace (novel), Patrick Kirwan (screenplay),

Stars:

Bela Lugosi, Hugh Williams, Greta Gynt

Cast

Complete credited cast:
Bela Lugosi	...	Dr. Feodor Orloff / Prof. John Dearborn
Hugh Williams	...	Det. Insp. Larry Holt
Greta Gynt	...	Diana Stuart
Edmon Ryan	...	Lieutenant Patrick O'Reilly
Wilfred Walter	...	Jake
Alexander Field	...	Fred Grogan

Storyline

A series of strange deaths takes place in London. All are accidents but the victims are single men with no family and they all have a link to a life insurance company run by the mysterious Dr. Orloff.

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Plot Keywords:

insurance | scotland yard | handcuffs | blindness | disguise | 

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Taglines:

Based on "The Dark Eyes Of London" By Edgar Wallace [Poster under title of The Human Monster]

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Genres:

Crime | Horror | Mystery | Drama

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Details

Country:

UK

Language:

English

Release Date:

24 March 1940 (USA)

Also Known As:

The Human Monster

Filming Locations:

Welwyn Studios, Welwyn Garden City, Hertfordshire, England, UK

Company Credits

Production Co:

John Argyle Productions

Technical Specs

Runtime:

76 min

Sound Mix:

Mono

Color:

Black and White

Aspect Ratio:

1.37 : 1

Did You Know?

Trivia

Holt's statement "As the walrus said to the carpenter, the time has come..." is a reference to the poem, 'The Walrus and the Carpenter', from Lewis Carroll's 'Through the Looking-Glass and What Alice Found There'.

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Quotes

Dr. Feodor Orloff: You have been very foolish, Lou. You are blind, and you cannot speak. But you can hear - and that will never do!

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Connections

Featured in 100 Years of Horror: Mad Doctors (1996)

User Reviews

Chilling!

Instead of repeating all the details others have, I'll just say the film really gave me the creeps the first time I saw it. Sometimes when you see an old movie like this from the 20s or 30s, it's tempting to think nothing in it can shock you, because movies are not as "sophisticated" as the things you see today. I saw it on television many years back, way before home video, and was delighted to find it in a grocery store's previously viewed tape bin. It hasn't lost any of it's punch. To see how cruelly Lugosi dealt with his very helpless victims chilled me to the bone. The Uday of his time. It has a Hitchcock-type of human horror that is more effective than any rubber suited monster. Not too badly paced, and is still one I get out when in the mood for something dark.