IMDb >
The Body Snatcher (1945)
Watch It
Buy it at Amazon
Rent it at blockbuster.com
Discuss in Boards More at IMDb Pro Add to My Movies Update Data
BETA
Discuss in Boards More at IMDb Pro Add to My Movies Update Data
Quicklinks
Top Links
trailers and videosfull cast and crewtriviaofficial sitesmemorable quotesOverview
main detailscombined detailsfull cast and crewcompany creditstv scheduleAwards & Reviews
user commentsexternal reviewsnewsgroup reviewsawardsuser ratingsparents guiderecommendationsmessage boardPlot & Quotes
plot summaryplot synopsisplot keywordsAmazon.com summarymemorable quotesFun Stuff
triviagoofssoundtrack listingcrazy creditsalternate versionsmovie connectionsFAQOther Info
merchandising linksbox office/businessrelease datesfilming locationstechnical specslaserdisc detailsDVD detailsliterature listingsNewsDeskPromotional
taglines trailers and videos posters photo galleryExternal Links
showtimesofficial sitesmiscellaneousphotographssound clipsvideo clipsThe Body Snatcher (1945) More at IMDbPro »
| Photos (see all 13 | slideshow) | Videos |
Overview
User Rating:
Writers:
Robert Louis Stevenson (short story "The Body Snatcher")Philip MacDonald (written by) ...
more
Release Date:
1946 (Turkey) moreTagline:
INVADED!...the sanctuary of the Dead!...by the Hero of Horror!...and the Master of Menace! morePlot:
A ruthless doctor and his young prize student find themselves continually harassed by their murderous supplier of illegal cadavers. full summary | full synopsisAwards:
2 nominations moreNewsDesk:
(7 articles)
Adam Marcus Helming Rko 'I Walked With A Zombie' Remake! (From Icons of Fright. 16 March 2009, 12:53 PM, PDT)
Updated: Exclusive: Director Andy Fickman on Remaking Val Lewton's Horror Classics!
(From FEARnet. 16 March 2009, 7:33 AM, PDT)
User Comments:
Karloff at his very best moreCast
(Complete credited cast)| Boris Karloff | ... | Cabman John Gray | |
| Bela Lugosi | ... | Joseph | |
| Henry Daniell | ... | Dr. Wolfe 'Toddy' MacFarlane | |
| Edith Atwater | ... | Meg Camden | |
| Russell Wade | ... | Donald Fettes | |
| Rita Corday | ... | Mrs. Marsh | |
| Sharyn Moffett | ... | Georgina Marsh | |
| Donna Lee | ... | Street singer |
Additional Details
Parents Guide:
View content advisory for parentsRuntime:
77 minCountry:
USALanguage:
EnglishColor:
Black and WhiteAspect Ratio:
1.37 : 1 moreSound Mix:
Mono (RCA Sound System)Certification:
USA:Approved (certificate #10563) | Australia:PG | Germany:12 (video rating) | Spain:13 | Sweden:(Banned) | UK:A (original rating) | UK:PGFilming Locations:
Edinburgh, Scotland, UKFun Stuff
Goofs:
Continuity: When Gray kills Joseph, the latter's right arm is stretched out from his shoulder at a 90 degree angle and Gray reaches over to shoo away his cat who begins to nuzzle Joseph's right hand. In the next shot, the right arm of the dead Joseph has suddenly moved to a position where it lies parallel to his body. moreQuotes:
Cabman John Gray: I am a small man, a humble man. Being poor I have had to do much that I did not want to do. But so long as the great Dr McFarlane comes to my whistle, that long am I a man. If I have not that then I have nothing. Then I am only a cabman and a grave robber. You'll never get rid of me, Toddy. moreFAQ
This FAQ is empty. Add the first question.more
Message Boards
Discuss this movie with other users on IMDb message board for The Body Snatcher (1945) moreRecommendations
If you enjoyed this title, our database also recommends:
Show more recommendations
|
|
|
|
|
| Carrie | All Quiet on the Western Front | Big Fish | The Living and the Dead | Boy A |
|
IMDb User Rating:
|
IMDb User Rating:
|
IMDb User Rating:
|
IMDb User Rating:
|
IMDb User Rating:
|
Related Links
| Full cast and crew | Company credits | External reviews |
| News articles | IMDb Drama section | IMDb USA section |
| Add this title to MyMovies |













Val Lewton's THE BODY SNATCHER is one of the most "literate" films in the horror genre. Based on a short Robert Louis Stevenson shudder tale, it is the story of a young medical student, Fettes, in 1820s Scotland. Fettes is a promising doctoral candidate who has taken on an apprenticeship of sorts with a Dr. MacFarlane, a prestigious physician who runs a medical college. Todd MacFarlane is a very talented medical scholar of the academic sort, whose own past is tainted by an earlier acquaintance with the grave robbers Burke and Hare, who provided human specimens to his mentor, a Dr. John Knox.
Haunted by his past, MacFarlane is tormented and blackmailed by a "jack of all trades", a cab-man and grave robber John Gray. Gray, a working class man from the most impoverished sections of the urban poor, takes great delight in this power, and lords it over MacFarlane's household, which includes the doctor's wife- also privy to MacFarlane's secret- who poses as MacFarlane's housekeeper, in an awkward attempt to hide the roots of MacFarlane's own social climb. MacFarlane is also in need of Gray's continued "services", which Gray attends to with a sardonic relish. The younger medical student Fettes is pulled into the secrets of the household, which in the end, devour MacFarlane and his efforts to survive in the class structure of Scotland.
With THE BODYSNATCHER, Boris Karloff displayed his true depths as a performer, and outside of his original performance as the Frankenstein's monster and perhaps Columbia's THE BLACK ROOM (1935), there are few other films in his immense resume that really display what he was capable of as an actor. In THE BODYSNATCHER, he is at the top of his form. He is supported by actors Henry Daniell, Russell Wade and Edith Atwater, and the movie also marks his final appearance with Bela Lugosi. All of Val Lewton's technique is brought to bear in this work to offer the audience effective atmosphere, and tight pacing under the direction of Robert Wise. All in all, it is a remarkable work, an impeccable contribution to the genre that calls itself horror.