Release CalendarDVD & Blu-ray ReleasesTop 250 MoviesMost Popular MoviesBrowse Movies by GenreTop Box OfficeShowtimes & TicketsIn TheatersComing SoonMovie NewsIndia Movie Spotlight
    What's on TV & StreamingTop 250 TV ShowsMost Popular TV ShowsBrowse TV Shows by GenreTV NewsIndia TV Spotlight
    What to WatchLatest TrailersIMDb OriginalsIMDb PicksIMDb Podcasts
    OscarsBest Picture WinnersBest Picture WinnersEmmysLGBTQ+ Pride MonthSTARmeter AwardsSan Diego Comic-ConNew York Comic-ConSundance Film FestivalToronto Int'l Film FestivalAwards CentralFestival CentralAll Events
    Born TodayMost Popular CelebsMost Popular CelebsCelebrity News
    Help CenterContributor ZonePolls
For Industry Professionals
  • All
  • Titles
  • TV Episodes
  • Celebs
  • Companies
  • Keywords
  • Advanced Search
Watchlist
Sign In
  • Fully supported
  • English (United States)
    Partially supported
  • Français (Canada)
  • Français (France)
  • Deutsch (Deutschland)
  • हिंदी (भारत)
  • Italiano (Italia)
  • Português (Brasil)
  • Español (España)
  • Español (México)
  • Cast & crew
  • User reviews
  • Trivia
IMDbPro

Bride of the Gorilla

  • 19511951
  • PassedPassed
  • 1h 10m
IMDb RATING
4.4/10
1.3K
YOUR RATING
Barbara Payton in Bride of the Gorilla (1951)
Trailer for Bride of the Gorilla
Play trailer1:57
1 Video
27 Photos
  • Horror
The owner of a plantation in the jungle marries a beautiful woman. Shortly afterward, he is plagued by a strange voodoo curse which transforms him into a gorilla.The owner of a plantation in the jungle marries a beautiful woman. Shortly afterward, he is plagued by a strange voodoo curse which transforms him into a gorilla.The owner of a plantation in the jungle marries a beautiful woman. Shortly afterward, he is plagued by a strange voodoo curse which transforms him into a gorilla.
IMDb RATING
4.4/10
1.3K
YOUR RATING
  • Director
    • Curt Siodmak
  • Writer
    • Curt Siodmak
  • Stars
    • Barbara Payton
    • Lon Chaney Jr.
    • Raymond Burr
Top credits
  • Director
    • Curt Siodmak
  • Writer
    • Curt Siodmak
  • Stars
    • Barbara Payton
    • Lon Chaney Jr.
    • Raymond Burr
  • See production, box office & company info
    • 52User reviews
    • 36Critic reviews
  • See more at IMDbPro
  • Videos1

    Bride of the Gorilla
    Trailer 1:57
    Bride of the Gorilla

    Photos27

    Lon Chaney Jr. and Barbara Payton in Bride of the Gorilla (1951)
    Raymond Burr and Barbara Payton in Bride of the Gorilla (1951)
    Steve Calvert and Carol Varga in Bride of the Gorilla (1951)
    Bride of the Gorilla (1951)
    Bride of the Gorilla (1951)
    Bride of the Gorilla (1951)
    Bride of the Gorilla (1951)
    Barbara Payton in Bride of the Gorilla (1951)
    Barbara Payton in Bride of the Gorilla (1951)
    Barbara Payton in Bride of the Gorilla (1951)
    Raymond Burr in Bride of the Gorilla (1951)
    Raymond Burr in Bride of the Gorilla (1951)

    Top cast

    Edit
    Barbara Payton
    Barbara Payton
    • Dina Van Gelderas Dina Van Gelder
    Lon Chaney Jr.
    Lon Chaney Jr.
    • Police Commissioner Taroas Police Commissioner Taro
    • (as Lon Chaney)
    Raymond Burr
    Raymond Burr
    • Barney Chavezas Barney Chavez
    Tom Conway
    Tom Conway
    • Dr. Vietas Dr. Viet
    Paul Cavanagh
    Paul Cavanagh
    • Klaas Van Gelderas Klaas Van Gelder
    Gisela Werbisek
    Gisela Werbisek
    • Al-Longas Al-Long
    • (as Giselle Werbisek)
    Carol Varga
    Carol Varga
    • Larinaas Larina
    Paul Maxey
    • Van Heusenas Van Heusen
    Woody Strode
    Woody Strode
    • Nedo - Policemanas Nedo - Policeman
    Martin Garralaga
    Martin Garralaga
    • Nativeas Native
    Felippa Rock
    • Stella Van Heusenas Stella Van Heusen
    Moyna MacGill
    Moyna MacGill
    • Mme. Van Heusenas Mme. Van Heusen
    Steve Calvert
    • Gorillaas Gorilla
    • (uncredited)
    Art Felix
    • Nativeas Native
    • (uncredited)
    Augie Gomez
    • Nativeas Native
    • (uncredited)
    Tony Urchel
    • Nativeas Native
    • (uncredited)
    • Director
      • Curt Siodmak
    • Writer
      • Curt Siodmak
    • All cast & crew
    • See more cast details at IMDbPro

    More like this

    The Satanic Rites of Dracula
    5.5
    The Satanic Rites of Dracula
    Mesa of Lost Women
    2.7
    Mesa of Lost Women
    Cry of the City
    7.2
    Cry of the City
    I Bury the Living
    6.3
    I Bury the Living
    Fear No More
    6.3
    Fear No More
    Dementia 13
    5.7
    Dementia 13
    Moon of the Wolf
    5.0
    Moon of the Wolf
    The Bride and the Beast
    3.4
    The Bride and the Beast
    Frankenstein Created Woman
    6.6
    Frankenstein Created Woman
    Bloody Pit of Horror
    4.5
    Bloody Pit of Horror
    Phantom from Space
    4.1
    Phantom from Space
    Jigsaw
    5.6
    Jigsaw

    Storyline

    Edit

    Did you know

    Edit
    • Trivia
      During filming, Barbara Payton's husband, Franchot Tone, had a private detective spy on her to try to catch her cheating on him. He managed to take a picture of her and Woody Strode in bed together.
    • Goofs
      When Dina goes searching for Barney in the jungle for the first time, we see a quick shot of a leopard climbing up into a tree. Although this scene is supposed to be outdoors (the jungle), both the leopard and the leaves around him are casting shadows on the "sky" behind them. The sky is obviously a wall or backdrop.
    • Quotes

      Dr. Viet: White people shouldn't live too long in the jungle. Brings out their bad side, their jealousies and impatience.

    • Connections
      Edited into The Bride and the Beast (1958)

    User reviews52

    Review
    Top review
    4/10
    BRIDE OF THE GORILLA (Curt Siodmak, 1951) {Edited Version} **
    The cast and crew of this cheap horror potboiler are more interesting than anything that occurs throughout the movie itself; we have Barbara Payton, Raymond Burr, Lon Chaney Jr., Tom Conway, Paul Cavanaugh and Woody Strode in front of the camera and writer-director Curt Siodmak, cinematographer Charles Van Enger, editorial supervisor Francis D. Lyon and production assistant Herman Cohen behind it. The ill-fated Payton turns the head of virtually every male she comes in contact with deep in the African jungle where she lives on husband Cavanaugh's plantation: doctor Conway secretly desires her while hot-headed foreman Burr's approach is, quite literally, more hands-on. On the other hand, Chaney is (surprisingly enough) the laid-back but knowing authoritarian figure and Strode is a native police official. The plot is very simple but, frankly, does not make a whole lot of sense: after a particularly agitated dinner complete with thunderstorm, Burr and Cavanaugh (art imitating life – more on that later) come to blows in the garden over their affection for Payton and, conveniently for Burr, a large snake just happens to be crawling near where Cavanaugh hits the ground! Witnessing the event from behind the bushes, Payton's enigmatic maid (a native witch, no less), for some inexplicable reason, puts a curse on Burr (who has in the meantime married Payton) that periodically turns him into a gorilla...starting from his very wedding day (when his hand briefly turns hirsute)! Consequently, Burr takes to losing himself in the jungle for days on end – even if the ape creature itself is barely glimpsed throughout the film. It must be said, however, that the version that I watched ran for just 56 minutes when the 'official' length is elsewhere given as either 66, 70 or 76!! Therefore, the film feels understandably rushed and disjointed if never less than campily enjoyable as it culminates in the gorilla's subjectively-shot chasing of Payton in the jungle, with the former being itself pursued by the gun-toting Chaney and Conway. To get back to the film's tragic blonde leading lady for a minute: after a promising start in movies next to such Hollywood legends as James Cagney and Gary Cooper – in, respectively, KISS TOMORROW GOODBYE and DALLAS (both 1950) – her career soon nose-dived into B (and lesser) grade territory thanks to her own 'colorful' off-screen antics: her most notorious misdemeanor was being the cause of a much-publicized bar-room brawl between suave husband Franchot Tone and brutish former lover Tom Neal which ended with the former in a coma and Payton actually deserting him for the latter shortly thereafter!! But that was not all: nymphomaniac Payton also boasted that Woody Strode was among her conquests (a controversial issue at the time); short-lived husband Tone, having caught Payton's infidelities on camera, spread the damning photographic evidence around Hollywood and this virtually served to end her days as a starlet – her last film appearance being Edgar G. Ulmer's MURDER IS MY BEAT (1955) which I happen to have in my "Unwatched Movies" pile. The last 12 years of her tumultuous life were spent on Skid Row in the throes of booze, drugs, prostitution, beatings, arrests and even a stabbing – before, eventually, dying in 1967 in her parents' home at the young age of 39!
    helpful•6
    3
    • Bunuel1976
    • Jan 23, 2010

    FAQ3

    • Does Raymond Burr really become a gorilla?
    • Is this available on DVD?
    • Can I watch this film online?

    Details

    Edit
    • Release date
      • October 1951 (United States)
    • Country of origin
      • United States
    • Language
      • English
    • Also known as
      • The Face in the Water
    • Filming locations
      • The Lot - 1041 N. Formosa Avenue, West Hollywood, California, USA
    • Production company
      • Jack Broder Productions
    • See more company credits at IMDbPro

    Technical specs

    Edit
    • Runtime
      1 hour 10 minutes
    • Color
      • Black and White
    • Aspect ratio
      • 1.37 : 1

    Related news

    Contribute to this page

    Suggest an edit or add missing content
    Barbara Payton in Bride of the Gorilla (1951)
    Top Gap
    By what name was Bride of the Gorilla (1951) officially released in India in English?
    Answer
    • See more gaps
    • Learn more about contributing
    Edit page

    More to explore

    View list
    List
    The Best Movies and Shows to Watch in July
    See the full list
    View list
    List
    The Best Movies Coming This Summer
    See the full list

    Recently viewed

    Please enable browser cookies to use this feature. Learn more.
    Get the IMDb App
    • Get the IMDb App
    • Help
    • Site Index
    • IMDbPro
    • Box Office Mojo
    • IMDb Developer
    • Press Room
    • Advertising
    • Jobs
    • Conditions of Use
    • Privacy Policy
    • Interest-Based Ads
    IMDb, an Amazon company

    © 1990-2022 by IMDb.com, Inc.