Showing posts with label classic movies. Show all posts
Showing posts with label classic movies. Show all posts

Saturday, June 13, 2009

Mad Doctors: Dr. Jack Griffin

The Invisible Man
What would you do if you were invisible? ;)

Claude Rains, Griffin in "The Invisible Man" (1933), is the best example of a mad scientist. When we first meet Jack Griffin, he is already the victim of his own experiments: invisible and wanting an antidote. Unlike the H.G. Wells book upon which the movie is based,his descent into megalomania is an overlooked side effect of monocaine,the drug he has used to make himself unseen.

There is a rather nice continuity error for those collectors of trivia out there. Although the Invisible Man is naked so he can be completely invisible,the footprints left by him in the snow at the end of the film show the shape of a pair of shoes.
Another trivia: Dr Griffin has no first name in the HG Wells' novel.

Extra points to who guess what that diagram in the illo is for ;)

Well, the week is over but, as mentioned, I might do another Mad Doctor week sometime soon. Hope you all enjoyed it as much as I did :)

Cheers,
Francesco

All images © 2009 Francesco Francavilla.
Mad Doctors & Pulp Sunday created by, ™ and © 2009 Francesco Francavilla

Friday, June 12, 2009

Mad Doctors: Dr. Moreau

The Island of Lost Souls
Hello Pulp friends :)

Mad scientist? How about those who like to play GOD? ;)

Created by the pen of Herbert George Wells, the mad Dr Moreau tries to mix humans with animals in a lost island in the middle of the ocean. The novel has been adapted 4 times for the big screen, but the best version is still the original one, "The Island of Lost Souls", 1933, directed by Erle C. Kenton and starring Charles Laughton as the mad doctor. The movie was so filled with excesses and sadism that was censored... a lot!

Filmed in an expressionistic style by director Erle C.Kenton, with dramatic shadows running up walls as if darkness itself is evil, Island of Lost Souls is a marvel of storytelling, pulling back layer upon layer from the mystery to reveal the horrific truth of Dr.Moreau ’s experiments and providing plenty of suspense along the way.

Little trivia: Bela Lugosi was one of Dr.Moreau ’s “manimals.”

Cheers,
Francesco

All images © 2009 Francesco Francavilla.
Mad Doctors & Pulp Sunday created by, ™ and © 2009 Francesco Francavilla

Thursday, June 11, 2009

Mad Doctors: Dr. Alex Zorka

The Phantom Creeps
Hello Pulp friends :)

As mentioned, there are too many mad doctors and crazy scientist to fit in one week, but I couldn't pass on the kindly requested Dr Zorka, also because I couldn't let this first Mad Doctor Week go without a Bela Lugosi tribute :)

So here he is, in all his intense and signature look, while working on his 8 foot tall robot he created to distroy the mankind. Yeah, becuase Dr Zorka is that kind of mad scientist, aiming to the world domination!

The tagline for the 12 episode serial that aired in the early '40s:
"12 SPINE-SHIVERING ACTION THUNDERBOLTS!
Sinister scientists... foreign spies...
federal agents... and a pretty girl...
crashing through amazing adventures!"

It reads like a truckload of FUN to me :D

Note: I know that he eventually shaves his beard during the serial, but I couldn't resist to draw a bearded Lugosi. ;)

See you tomorrow with another crazy Doc!

Cheers,
Francesco

All images © 2009 Francesco Francavilla.
Mad Doctors & Pulp Sunday created by, ™ and © 2009 Francesco Francavilla

Wednesday, June 10, 2009

Mad Doctors: Dr. Caligari

Das Kabinett Des Dr. Caligari
Hello Pulp friends :)

Today we continue our "MAD DOCTORS" gallery with maybe the oldest evil, mad doctor on the big screen: Dr Caligari!

From the classic - and German expressionism masterpiece - "Das Kabinett Des Dr. Caligari", 1919, directed by Robert Wiene and starring Werner Krauss as Caligari and Conrad Veidt as the sleepwalker- some sort of zombie ante-litteram.

Plot: An Asylum director discovers an old manuscript of the '700s about a certain Caligari who, using hypnosis, pushes a medium to kill several people. Undercover, the asylum director tries to emulate the experiment and pushes a sleepwalker, who is one of his patients, to murder several people. When the experiment is discovered, the director joins his patients behind the walls of the asylum.

Ommy, there are so many "Mad Doctors" out there that I am tempted to do another full week in July (or sooner).
Meanwhile ,see you tomorrow with another Mad Doctor!

Cheers,
Francesco

All images © 2009 Francesco Francavilla.
Mad Doctors & Pulp Sunday created by, ™ and © 2009 Francesco Francavilla

Tuesday, June 9, 2009

Mad Doctors: Baron Victor Frankenstein

The Curse of Frankenstein
Maybe the most famous mad scientist of all.

In the original classic trilogy with Karloff (as the creature) and Clive (as the Doctor), the focus of the stories was the monster who gets out of control and overpowers his creator. Things change in the '50s thanks to the famous Hammer Films. Movies like "The Curse of Frankenstein" (1957) and "The Revenge of Frankenstein" (1958) - both directed by Terence Fisher - swap the roles between the two main characters. Now the focus is on the mad doctor Victor Frankenstein instead of the creature. He is the real monster, the cold and evil dandy with no scruples. The Creature he created is the victim escaping the lab and the morbose screenings of the so called "science".
Peter Cushing played the mad doctor Frankenstein in these 2 movies and in 3 more movies, 2 directed again by Terence Fisher (1967 and 1969) and one by Freddie Francis (1964), so I thought it would be perfect for this gallery, even more than Colin CLive (who will appear later in another week dedicated to Mad Doctor).

I am glad you guys are enjoying this themed week so far :) It is fun, isn't it? ;)
As for the mad doctors you guys suggested, Dr House is pretty crazy but I don't think it fits the topic ;) Gene "Young Frankenstein" Wilder (huge fan of that movie as well) is on my list but not for this week since we already had a Frankenstein.
Definitely a mad doctor Lugosi is gonna show up this week, as it is another mad doctor from the Frankenstein franchise ;)

Stay tuned for more Mad Doctors!

Cheers,
Francesco

All images © 2009 Francesco Francavilla.
Mad Doctors & Pulp Sunday created by, ™ and © 2009 Francesco Francavilla

Monday, June 8, 2009

Mad Doctors: Dr Paul Rigas

Man Made Monster
Hello Pulp friends :)

Today we start a new feature called "MAD DOCTORS"! All week long I will be portraying famous mad doctors and insane scientists, brilliant minds which have gone completely wrong in the name of Science. Of course, mine will be all tributes to fictional characters as introduced in many classic horror and sci-fi movies.

So let's get it started with Dr Paul Rigas (starred by Lionell Atwill) in "Man Made Monster" (1941) directed by George Waggner.

The Plot: A mad scientist transforms a man in some sort of robot, to use him as personal slave.
The title was translated in "The Electric Man" for the European distribution. This movie also represents the first of a long series of collaboration between Lon Chaney Jr and the Universal Pictures.

Hope you guys will enjoy the feature and feel free tod rop feedback or suggestions: I am planning to have a Mad Doctors week every now and then so anything that doesn't make it in this week will be saved for later.
See you tomorrow with another Mad Doctor!

Cheers,
Francesco

All images © 2009 Francesco Francavilla.
Mad Doctors & Pulp Sunday created by, ™ and © 2009 Francesco Francavilla

Thursday, November 20, 2008

Classic Portraits: Errol Flynn in "Captain Blood" (1935)

Classic Portraits
Hello Pulp Friends,

I hope you are enjoying this series because I got a new one to throw into it before starting to work ;)

Today's portrait is dedicated to Errol Flynn in the swashbuckling fun of "Captain Blood", where he starred with Olivia de Havilland.
This is definitely not the last time we see him: a few other famous movies with Flynn call for being tributed ;)

Cheers,
Francesco

Errol Flynn in Captain Blood

Wednesday, November 19, 2008

Classic Portraits: Tracy in "Riffraff" (1936) & Lorre in "Think Fast Mr Moto" (1936)

Classic Portraits
Hello Pulp Friends,

That's right, it's a new features week I guess ;)

Classic Portraits will see famous movie faces from the '30s, '40s, and '50s (I think that should do it for now) portraited like movie posters. Hope you guys dig the idea and enjoy the art, and as usual feel free to consider this as a starting point of discussions and chats on our favorite movies :)

Let's start with a couple of classics: Spencer Tracy in "Riffraff" (1936) and Peter Lorre in "Think Fast, Mr Moto" (from the same year). Speaking of Mr Moto, the '30s saw lots of "Great Detectives from East" (mostly starred by not-Eastern actors) so expect to see more of them in here too ;)

Finally a little trivia (if we can call it that way): the style of these portraits is inspired by the original movie poster of Riffraff featuring a beautiful portrait of the gorgeous Jean Harlow.

Cheers,
Francesco

Spencer Tracy in Riffraff

Peter Lorre in Think Fast, Mr Moto