Mystery of the Wax Museum (1933)

February 18, 1933 (US) • Horror, Mystery, Thriller • 78m

Overview

A wax sculptor opens a new museum years after he is severely injured during a fire that destroyed his original collection. The disappearance of both people and corpses coincides with this grand reopening and leads a reporter to start investigating.

Director

Michael Curtiz

Writers

Don Mullaly, Carl Erickson, Charles S. Belden

Top Billed

Lionel Atwill

Keywords

museum wax museum pre-code

Where to watch

Check streaming options on TMDB

Top Billed Cast

Lionel Atwill

Ivan Igor

Glenda Farrell

Florence Dempsey

Allen Vincent

Ralph Burton

Fay Wray

Charlotte Duncan

Frank McHugh

Jim

Edwin Maxwell

Worth

Arthur Edmund Carewe

Professor Darcy

Gavin Gordon

George Winton

Matthew Betz

Hugo

Bull Anderson

Otto

Holmes Herbert

Dr. Rasmussen

Claude King

Mr. Galatalin

William B. Davidson

Detective (Uncredited)

Guy Usher

Detective (Uncredited)

DeWitt Jennings

Police Captain, 12th Precinct

Robert Homans

Desk Sergeant, 12th Precinct

James Donlan

Morgue Attendant (Uncredited)

Thomas E. Jackson

Detective at Morgue

Frank Darien

Autopsy Surgeon (Uncredited)

Wallis Clark

Autopsy Surgeon's Assistant (Uncredited)

Monica Bannister

Joan Gale

Robert Emmett O'Connor

Police Sergeant by Christmas Tre

Lon Poff

Tall Thin Henchman (Uncredited)

Max Barwyn

Museum Visitor (Uncredited)

Wade Boteler

Ambrose (Uncredited)

Otto Hoffman

Igor's Assistant (Uncredited)

Perry Ivins

Copy Editor (Uncredited)

Margaret Mann

Wax Figure of Queen Victoria (Uncredited)

Pat O'Malley

Plainclothesman (Uncredited)

Milton Kibbee

Reporter (Uncredited)

Harry C. Bradley

Reporter (Uncredited)

Charles McMurphy

Policeman in Prison (Uncredited)

Frank Fanning

Policeman (Uncredited)

Dick Rush

Policeman (Uncredited)

Lee Shumway

Policeman (Uncredited)

William Wagner

Morgue Attendant's Assistant (Uncredited)

Frank Austin

Winton's Valet (Uncredited)

Walter Percival

Winton's Attorney (Uncredited)

Crew

Michael Curtiz

Director

Don Mullaly

Screenplay

Carl Erickson

Screenplay

Orry-Kelly

Costume Design

Ray Rennahan

Director of Photography

Ray Romero

Makeup Artist

Perc Westmore

Makeup Artist

George Amy

Editor

Henry Blanke

Producer

Frank Shaw

Assistant Director

Rex Wimpy

Special Effects

Charles S. Belden

Story

William Koenig

Production Manager

Everett Alton Brown

Sound

Hal B. Wallis

Producer

Anton Grot

Art Direction

Lee Katz

Assistant Director

Herbert Plews

Property Master

Claude Hutchinson

Gaffer

Frank B. Good

Additional Camera

Chuck Davis

Grip

Bernhard Kaun

Original Music Composer

Leo F. Forbstein

Conductor

Floyd Lee

Additional Camera

Richard Towers

Additional Camera

Scotty Welbourne

Still Photographer

Cliff Hess

Additional Music

Fred Applegate

Continuity

Thad Brooks Jr.

Assistant Camera

Arthur Pierson

Additional Camera

Bob Bonner

Additional Camera

W. Howard Greene

Additional Camera

Roy Musgrave

Camera Operator

Reviews

John Chard

⭐ 8/10

January 9, 2017

My dear, why are you so pitifully afraid?

London 1921, and brilliant sculptor Ivan Igor struggles to keep his museum open due to lack of interest in his beautiful historical characters. His partner Joe Worth feels it's time to call it quits, a row over finances ensues and a fire breaks out and burns the museum to the ground, almost killing Igor in the process. On to 1933 and New York, where the wheelchair bound Igor has a new museum open, the figures sculpted by others under his guidance due to his horribly disfigured hands preventing him from crafting himself. When a female socialite dies and her body is stolen from the morgue, ballsy reporter Florence Dempsey starts to investigate. Could it be that the stealing of the body is linked to the opening of Igor's new museum?

Mystery of the Wax Museum was long thought to have had it's elements lost in a (ironically) fire, so with no Technicolor negative or prints available, it was a cinematic godsend that a used print was discovered in Jack Warner's private vault. The UCLA Film and Television Archive restored the film, and now the film can be seen in all its former glory. Riding in on a high reputation, the restored film was met with less than favourable results by the critics, possibly due in some part to the rightful regard that the remake, House Of Wax 1953, was held. What it is safe to say is that the film is more of a mystery (the clue is in the title!) than an outright horror. Something I don't think many were prepared for.

The critics derision back then is now on reflection, stupid. For it's a truly fine film from an interesting era in film making. The sets from Anton Grot are brilliant, Gothic pieces of work. While the performance of Lionel Atwill as Igor is superb, and arguably his best work. The actress' do well enough, Fay Wray (reuniting with Atwill again after their work in Dr X in 1932) as Charlotte Duncan hones her scream queen method, and Glenda Farrell is ebullient and sharp tongued as Dempsey. There's also daring themes involved in the story, necrophilia, drug addiction, insanity and bootlegging. With the horror elements of the piece born out by the grizzly secrets of Igor's museum. It's also not just an important film in the pantheon of colour pictures, but also in that it has a modern city setting. Helping to bring horror to the streets instead of some ye olde village or faraway castle. It's a smashing mystery/horror film that is now thankfully widely available on various DVDs, so see it if you can. 8/10

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Mystery of the Wax Museum (1933)

Don Mullaly, Carl Erickson, Charles S. Belden

Where to watch

Top Billed Cast

Crew

Reviews

John Chard

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