The Body Snatcher Review

 

        We’re in the 1940s now. This is where the horror genre would see a big shift. Now, with what was happening around the world, the things that were scary were nothing compared to the atrocities that were transpiring. Monsters and mythological figures couldn’t possibly beat the idea that an army could simply wipe out a specific group of people. This is where the type of horror where humans can be scarier than monsters. 

1. Story

        Based on the story of the same name by Robert Louis Stevenson, which was based on an actual event that happened in England and Scotland. The Body Snatcher focuses on Dr. MacFarlane helping a young girl with damaged legs. He has an assistant named Donald who makes the girl comfortable by his manners. Meanwhile, he hears a cabdriver named John Gray who delivers a cadaver for his class. Not knowing of the cabdriver’s secret. 

        It was tough trying to find a movie about the 40s. Mind you, there was some Universal Monsters that I wanted to look in. This one has the main stars of Dracula and Frankenstein, so you know it’ll be good. Given the time, Boris Karloff was well known and it’s interesting seeing him in his monster debut and give a great performance. This was the last film to feature the two actors together. Sometime later I’ll talk about the two Edgar Allen Poe adaptations that have them. 

        Now, what makes this film one of the best from its time is that it seems to be focusing on this idea of class and criminals. Both John and MacFarlane are much alike, since they know a lot about the human anatomy. The difference is obvious with how they’re put together, with MacFarlane more dignified and John being well just scraggly. There’s a level of beef that is also seen since John pesters his student by threatening to share a secret. 

        Another thing I noticed that highlights the difference between a servant and monster is MacFarlane and Donald. When they’re treating the young girl, he’s more friendly to her and not one to rush her to be recovered. MacFarlane is full of pride in his work, while Donald is the more idealistic assistant who wants to do good. It makes his relation to Gray more tragic since he claims to be a better man, but can't see that himself and John are almost the same. 

        Alright so with all that explained to the best of my ability, how’s the horror. It’s more psychological with John going out of his way to demean MacFarlane by making him feel worthless. More so that, John makes Donald feel responsible since he needs the cadavers that were people he saw earlier. Aside from that, it’s got that creepy vibe which helps when we hear the horse walk on the cobblestone streets. Hell, the horse is white which isn’t subtle in the least bit.

        One last thing I wanted to talk about is the scene involving both Karloff and Bela Lugosi. These two built Universal’s Classic Monster franchise. It’s evident that Karloff was way more famous than Lugosi since he got more exposure as an actor. I feel that this scene involving the two practically symbolizes the actors in a meta sense. For instance, the janitor Joseph confronts John about his actions. The two fight and ultimately Joseph is killed. It’s sad reading that Lugosi was in poor health when the shooting happened. And this scene cemented the fact that he was just relegated to supporting cast. 

2. Overall

        I haven’t seen that much horror movies from the 40s, but this is by far the best one that I’ve watched. Parts of it is slow, but the psychological angle makes up for it.