The Old Dark House
| The Old Dark House | |
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theatrical poster
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| Directed by | James Whale |
| Produced by | Carl Laemmle, Jr. |
| Written by |
J. B. Priestley (novel) R. C. Sherriff Benn W. Levy |
| Starring |
Boris Karloff Melvyn Douglas Charles Laughton Gloria Stuart |
| Music by | Bernhard Kaun |
| Cinematography | Arthur Edeson |
| Edited by | Clarence Kolster |
| Distributed by | Universal Pictures |
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Release date
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Running time
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71 minutes |
| Country | United States |
| Language | English |
| Budget | $250,000 (est) |
The Old Dark House is a 1932 American Pre-Code horror comedy film directed by James Whale and starring Boris Karloff. The film is based on the novel Benighted (1927) by J. B. Priestley. The supporting cast includes Melvyn Douglas, Gloria Stuart, Charles Laughton and Ernest Thesiger.
Seeking shelter from a pounding rainstorm in a remote area of Wales, several travellers are admitted to a gloomy, foreboding mansion belonging to the strange Femm family. Trying to make the best of it, the guests must deal with their sepulchral host, Horace Femm, who claims to be on the run from the police, and his religious, obsessive, malevolent sister, Rebecca. Things get worse as the brutish mute butler, Morgan, gets drunk, runs amok, threatens Margaret Waverton and releases the long imprisoned and pent-up brother, Saul, a psychotic fantasist and pyromaniac who gleefully tries to destroy the residence by setting it on fire.
The film is based on the 1927 novel Benighted by J. B. Priestley, published in the United States under the same title as the film, and was adapted for the screen by R. C. Sherriff and Benn Levy.
The movie also stars Melvyn Douglas and features Charles Laughton (in his first Hollywood film), Ernest Thesiger, Raymond Massey, Gloria Stuart and Lilian Bond. According to the Penguin Encyclopaedia of Horror and the Supernatural, the Femm family's ancient patriarch was played by an actress, Elspeth Dudgeon, (billed as "John Dudgeon") because Whale could not find a male actor who looked old enough for the role. The Old Dark House was largely ignored at the American box office, although it was a huge hit in Whale's native England.
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