(1944)
Dir - Edgar Neville
Overall: MEH
Antisemitic undertones aside, The Tower of Seven Hunchbacks, (La Torre de los Siete Jorobados), is an occasionally humorous, occasionally mysterious Spanish production and an adaptation of Emilio Carrere's novel of the same name. While the middle act slags, the opening is fetching where Antonio Casal is visited by a ghoulish figure in a top hat and eye-patch who magically tells him which roulette numbers to bet on in a casino. Also, only Casal can see him. While not necessarily spooky, the supernatural elements are interesting and provide the movie with a less than serious tone where most people, (including himself at times), consider our protagonist to be mad. Once the mystery is solved, it is implied that an underground community of hunchbacked individuals, (hence the title), are descendants from Jewish people who fled the 1492 expulsion in Spain so for a film coming just after the tail end of World War II, this plot twist can be seen as somewhat unsympathetic. Otherwise though and despite some impressive miniature work, it is only moderately entertaining without leaning hard enough into its comedic aspects to justify the half-baked plot.
(1945)
Dir - Serge de Poligny
Overall: GOOD
This adaptation of Gaston Bonheur's 1943 short story "La mort ne reçoit que sur rendez-vous" by director Serge de Poligny is exquisitely photographed by cinematographer Roger Hubert, which goes a long way in maintaining an ethereal mood when no direct supernatural activity is likely present. Timid in its surreal nature to the point of sparely even being noticeable, La fiancée des ténèbres, (The Dark Bride, The Bride of Darkness), concerns a troubled young lady who believes herself cursed after witnessing two of her lovers perish before her eyes and is further haunted by taunts of "witch" from the locals. Considering that said townspeople may or may not have condemned her sight unseen as various other clues are given throughout the film as to Jany Holt's doomed protagonist suffering traumatic delusions, it all plays out as a psychological mystery and one that never offers up any definitive answers. Striving for a happy existence in the arms of Pierre Richard-Willm, (an already married and successful composer, brimful of optimism), Holt is pulled to the nihilistic side by her well-meaning yet troubled guardian who becomes convinced that the secret to the Holy Grail via an ancient, death-loving Christian sect lies beneath their abode. The movie is lovely in its touching heartache as it presents two different worlds through the impressionable, emotional state of its characters and it is also a unique offering into the fantastique genre, (be it slightly so), made near the end of the German occupation of France.
(1949)
Dir - Keisuke Kinoshita
Overall: GOOD
The 1949 adaptation of the "Yotsuya Kaidan" folk tale takes an ambitious approach, breaking the film up into two parts and eliminating the overt supernatural elements altogether. Known under a slew of titles including Ghost of Yotsuya, Shinshaku Yotsuya kaidan: kôhen, The New Version of the Ghost of Yotsuya, The Phantom of Yotsuya, The Yotsuya Ghost Story I & II, the combined length steers shy of the three hour mark, yet director Keisuke Kinoshita maintains an agreeable pace throughout. For those familiar with the frequently filmed source material, the plot follows the same trajectory as most interpretations, laying out the downfall of lemon Tamiya who succumbs to ambition by murdering his feeble wife in order to remarry into a more prestigious family. Typically a vengeful spirit story, here Tamiya's downfall is exclusively the result of a complete mental breakdown where he is overwrought with guilt as he is haunted more by his regrettable deeds than the actual ghosts of his victims. The performances are typically melodramatic for the period, yet they also give a sense of urgency to the tragic events which heighten the tone in lieu of creepy horror motifs. While not the best cinematic undertaking of the story, (that title still belongs to Nobuo Nakagawa's The Ghost of Yotsuya which was released ten years later), this is nevertheless a unique and prestigious one.
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