Grip of the Strangler (1958)

Director:

Robert Day

Writers:

John Croydon (writer)
Jan Read (screenplay)

Genre:

Crime | Mystery | Horror

Tagline:

Their wild beauty marked them for death by . . . The Haunted Strangler

Plot:

A writer investigating the execution of a serial killer known as "The Haymarket Strangler" 20 years...

Plot Keywords:

Serial Killer | Murder | Escaped Lunatic | Knife | Grave

Cast

Boris Karloff	...	James Rankin
Jean Kent	...	Cora Seth
Elizabeth Allan	...	Barbara Rankin
Anthony Dawson	...	Supt. Burk
Vera Day	...	Pearl
Tim Turner	...	Dr. Kenneth McColl
Diane Aubrey	...	Lily Rankin
Max Brimmell	...	Newgate Prison Turnkey
Leslie Perrins	...	Newgate Prison Governor
Jessica Cairns	...	Asylum Maid
Dorothy Gordon	...	Hannah
Desmond Roberts	...	Dr. Johnson
Roy Russell	...	Medical Superintendent
Derek Birch	...	Guyse Hospital Superintendent
Peggy Ann Clifford	...	Kate

Also Known As:

Strangle Hold (UK) (original script title)
The Haunted Strangler (USA)

Runtime:

USA:78 min

Country:

UK

Language:

English

Color:

Black and White

Aspect Ratio:

1.66 : 1

Sound Mix:

Mono

Certification:

Iceland:12 | Australia:M | UK:12 | Finland:(Banned) (1958) | USA:Unrated

Filming Locations:

Walton Studios, Walton-on-Thames, Surrey, England, UK

Company:

Amalgamated Productions

Trivia:

Last feature of Leslie Perrins.

Movie Connections:

Featured in "Son of Svengoolie: The Haunted Strangler (1958) (#1.41)" (1980)

Hardly A Gripping Thriller

When you see a film title like GRIP OF THE STRANGLER that stars Boris Karloff you're not expecting a romantic musical . Bizarrely there's long segments in this film where the film does indeed resemble a romantic musical . We're introduced to Karloff's character James Rankin whose daughter has fallen in love with a young gentleman and he wants to marry her . Cut to the inside of a theater where can can girls kicking their legs out over their heads . If someone wanted to make a film that would appeal to dirty old men then fine but GRIP OF THE STRANGLER isn't a title that's easy to market to depraved reprobates . Goodness me I thought we'd be watching a film involving people getting strangled every ten minutes and within ten minutes you'll be wanting to strangle the producer

Some people have commentated that this is a film that doesn't know what it's trying to be and while this is patently obvious there's a feeling at the back of my mind that it's trying to copy the style of a couple of films directed by Mark Robson that also starred Karloff namely ISLE OF THE DEAD and BEDLAM . Unfortunately the production team have neither the style or skill to pull it off and instead we have a very unfocused B movie at the very best