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Post by cheesecake on May 26, 2020 16:26:20 GMT
Undisputed icon of horror — but does anyone else feel like outside of the likes of Frankenstein and The Mummy, Karloff doesn’t get discussed much? He’s so mesmerizing to watch, from his scene-stealing turn in Lured, to his incredible dual roles in The Black Room. I’m a huge fan of Black Sabbath and Targets, and he’s quintessential Grinch for me. Even under layers of makeup, he always brought it and is such a dependable performer. On a side note, during Watchmen I was struck by how much Irons reminded me of him. They both do empathetic (ish) mad scientist really well, and it there was a Universal Monsters/Ed Wood type biopic, I think he’d be perfect.
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Post by Martin Stett on May 26, 2020 16:34:46 GMT
I think the problem is that nobody has heard of his non-monster roles. I know I haven't. He never got the chance to really hit it big outside of that niche.
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Post by stephen on May 26, 2020 16:39:57 GMT
The Lost Patrol is a must-see for any Karloff fans. He's my supporting actor win for it, and he sort of created the template for what has become a stock war movie trope.
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Post by Mattsby on May 26, 2020 17:17:32 GMT
Kinda love him. He can have a really great presence/physicality - not just the monster roles, but like just his look in The Old Dark House I love, and especially something like The Black Cat where his movement is like a creepy ghostly glide. Black Cat is the one where at angles I was like "Jeremy....Irons...?" and so now I'm also always thinking about Irons playing him or something. I love Black Sabbath, and even more, The Comedy of Terrors - a smaller comic role but he's in the same room as Price and Lorre so it's an absolute must see and the movie is a smoothly made delight. Targets prob my fav movie and a perfect hat-tip not just to him but any horror star. Fav perf maybe The Sorcerers (available on Youtube!) where he stalks the Swinging London streets to pick a cad to live vicariously thru - his perf is creepy and he gets across the aging out and feeling wronged. Also major shout out to his show Thriller - he's by far my favorite horror host ever, so witty and disarming.
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Post by cheesecake on May 26, 2020 18:13:36 GMT
Kinda love him. He can have a really great presence/physicality - not just the monster roles, but like just his look in The Old Dark House I love, and especially something like The Black Cat where his movement is like a creepy ghostly glide. Black Cat is the one where at angles I was like "Jeremy....Irons...?" and so now I'm also always thinking about Irons playing him or something. I love Black Sabbath, and even more, The Comedy of Terrors - a smaller comic role but he's in the same room as Price and Lorre so it's an absolute must see and the movie is a smoothly made delight. Targets prob my fav movie and a perfect hat-tip not just to him but any horror star. Fav perf maybe The Sorcerers (available on Youtube!) where he stalks the Swinging London streets to pick a cad to live vicariously thru - his perf is creepy and he gets across the aging out and feeling wronged. Also major shout out to his show Thriller - he's by far my favorite horror host ever, so witty and disarming. Well said! The Comedy of Terrors is such fun.
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Post by pacinoyes on May 26, 2020 18:25:56 GMT
A side story on him - when I was little pacinoyes - cute, opinionated, bratty - I saw a movie with him in it or at least the end of it on TV and in the credits his name came up.........with only "KARLOFF"It's probably when I fell in love with movies in some way - as a little kid that was a very big deal - I would mention it to everyone and wonder why do other actors need both of their names listed like some LOSERS ....Targets has such a lovely turn from him - gently humorous ........a little sad even or melancholy.
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Post by DeepArcher on May 26, 2020 18:50:26 GMT
I watched Targets last week (leaving Criterion Channel at the end of the month!) and that's a really great meta performance -- Byron Orloff, now that's a character name -- where he has a lot of funny, charming scenes, like when he and Bogdanovich get drunk and pass out in the same bed for example.
Targets is a great film too for anyone who wants a shorter/simpler version of OUATIH ... and a social statement film that has aged disturbingly well.
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Post by Mattsby on Oct 9, 2020 2:28:17 GMT
Undisputed icon of horror — but does anyone else feel like outside of the likes of Frankenstein and The Mummy, Karloff doesn’t get discussed much? He’s so mesmerizing to watch, from his scene-stealing turn in Lured, to his incredible dual roles in The Black Room.I just watched The Black Room and really liked it. Lotta horrors deal with 'the double' though not many are about actual twins (at least where it isn't just the twist) and this interestingly questions views of violence - how the community seeks to expel the murderous Baron but accepts the wicked family tradition (one twin must kill the other). It's that ironic difference, and how nearly everyone can't tell the twins apart, that makes the metaphor stick. Having said that, I wouldn't necessarily call this a horror though it fits enough with this month - as Graham Greene who reviewed it said, this has "the genuine Gothic note." He also says in this film that "a whole literary period comes to life" and that "Karloff has been allowed to act at last." Bringing us to Karloff, it's a pretty great perf - as the Baron he is a blast of ego, hanging his leg over chairs like O'Toole later would in The Lion in Winter, eating pears with perverse description, shrugging away his turned-over rule. As the gimp-armed brother he is much gentler - and allows his natural lisp to play into that - and then as the Baron-as-the-brother he is sort of wickedly amused at himself pulling off "the part" - he keeps looking back into mirrors at himself and his portrayal. Should we keep baiting the Irons comparison and call this Karloff's Dead Ringers? (the endings sort of match!)
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