The Ghost Walks (1934)

During a stormy night at an old dark mansion, people who claim to see ghosts roaming the halls are later found murdered.

Director:

Frank R. Strayer (as Frank Strayer)

Writer:

Charles Belden (original screenplay) (as Charles S. Belden)

Stars:

John Miljan, June Collyer, Richard Carle

Cast

Cast overview:
John Miljan	...	Prescott Ames
June Collyer	...	Gloria Shaw
Richard Carle	...	Herman Wood
Henry Kolker	...	Dr. Kent
Johnny Arthur	...	Homer Erskine
Spencer Charters	...	Guard
Donald Kirke	...	Terry Shaw aka Terry Gray
Eve Southern	...	Beatrice
Douglas Gerrard	...	Carroway (as Douglas Gerard)
Wilson Benge	...	Jarvis
Jack Shutta	...	Head Guard
Harry Strang	...	Guard

Storyline

On a stormy night, a theatrical producer, his secretary, and playwright Prescott Ames are stranded when their car skids off the road and gets stuck. The three take refuge in the nearby home of Dr. Kent, a friend of Ames. One of Kent's patients, who is staying at the house, is acting strangely, and the others in the house tell the newcomers that she is behaving this way because it is the anniversary of her husband's murder. At dinner, the group begins exchanging accusations about the murder, when suddenly the lights go out, and soon afterwards comes the first in a series of mysterious and fearful events.

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Plot Keywords:

stormy night | murder | escaped lunatic | plastic surgeon | asylum | 

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Genres:

Mystery | Thriller

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Certificate:

Passed

Details

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Release Date:

1 December 1934 (USA)

Filming Locations:

RKO-Pathé Studios - 9336 Washington Blvd., Culver City, California, USA

Company Credits

Production Co:

Invincible Pictures Corp.

Technical Specs

Runtime:

69 min

Sound Mix:

Mono Mono (RCA Victor High Fidelity System)

Color:

Black and White

Aspect Ratio:

1.37 : 1

Did You Know?

Quotes

Herman Wood: Was tha - was that the clock?
Homer Erskine: Ye - yes, I - I - I guess so. I - I - I think so. It must have been. But it's a union clock.
Herman Wood: What do you mean?
Homer Erskine: Well, it strikes any old time.

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Connections

Spoofed in The Ghost Talks (1949)

User Reviews

Another Dark and Stormy Night

On their way to a country house to hear a new play being read a theatrical producer, his secretary, and the playwright end up stuck in the mud. They make their way to a nearby house, only to end up at the home of the playwright's fiance. If you can't guess that murder and mayhem are about to take place then you haven't been paying attention.

This is a a good entry in the old dark house genre. Not only does it have a good mystery, you also have some very funny one liners wandering through it. The cast is across the board excellent and they're more than willing to have a good time with what is good material.

I would love to say that this is one of the best of the genre, it should have been, but for me something happened on the way that made me down grade the rating to only seven out of ten. I can't tell you what it is, not for certain anyway. Perhaps its the sense that I knew where it was going almost from the outset, or perhaps its something else, I'm not sure what, but there was something that I couldn't shake that made me like this film despite wanting to love it. It just missed being great and somehow fell short.

That said I DO SUGGEST YOU SEE IT. It is after all a very witty film, that entertains fully, despite just missing being great.