Are we not men?

 ISLAND OF LOST SOULS (1932)
Reviewed by Jerry Saravia

When you watch the creepy, far too effectively haunting "Island of Lost Souls," you are watching a film that could've been made by a madman. By all accounts, director Erle C. Kenton ("House of Frankenstein") was no madman but he did make a maddening masterpiece of horror that went beyond anything else in theaters at the time. All masterpieces tend to have minor flaws (no film is really ever perfect though they may be perfectly realized) yet "Island of Lost Souls" is practically flawless in its unsavory atmosphere, restrained performances and execution of disturbing subject matter. It is a horror film yet I must say that in retrospect with all the released horror pictures of the 1930's including "Frankenstein" and "Dracula," it is quite horrific.

From the start, something is afoot. A shipwrecked, unshaven survivor, Edward Parker (Richard Arlen) awakens as if he has seen something horrific. The following day, he's ready to embark on a voyage to meet his fiancee yet the captain doesn't want him on board and throws him out. Parker didn't like the way the captain treated M'ling (Tetsu Komai), a servant to a certain Dr. Moreau, yet notices a distinctive feature in M'Ling, a furry ear! So Parker ends up on Dr. Moreau's boat and they are off to Moreau's island. Big mistake because it turns out that the white-suited Dr. Moreau (Charles Laughton, a devilishly undercooked performance) is a scientist who has an island full of half-men, half-animal hybrid creatures. They all speak and they know the Law (the laws include repeated phrases like "Are we not men?" and "Do not eat meat" and "Do not spill blood"), obeying their master as if he was some deity. There is much here that may remind some of the famous Joseph Conrad novel, "Heart of Darkness," which of course was later adapted into "Apocalypse Now."

There is also a timid woman on this island, Lota (Kathleen Burke), a former panther creature who is practically wholly human female. Moreau wants to do further experiments (changing animals through vivisection into humans) and hopes that Parker will impregnate Lota! And if that doesn't work, well, there is Parker's fiancee, Ruth (Leila Hyams), who locates Parker in this island and is more than dismayed by these hybrids. If Parker won't impregnate Lota, then perhaps one of the bulkier half-ape creatures will do their due diligence with Ruth!

As you can imagine, this movie's story (based on H.G. Wells late 1890's novel) was too much for 1930's audiences and certain scenes and lines of dialogue were censored for American audiences. "Island of Lost Souls" was also banned in nine different countries, including Great Britain. Though most of it might seem diluted compared to many other horror films of the last 80 years, few have the verve and outright manic tension of "Island of Lost Souls." Every scene, every nightmarish shot is maximized by a foggy atmosphere (par the course in those days) and an undercurrent of complete discomfort. The introduction of Lota by Dr. Moreau is underscored by tension, that somehow her very presence smacks of something unclean and perverse (which of course it is). Those are the quiet scenes, and then we have the House of Pain which is the lab where the nasty experiments occur. Noises, screams of agony are heard everywhere in the soundtrack, not just in the House of Pain. 

Everything is heightened in this movie except for the performances. Charles Laughton, one of the finest actors of the 20th century, exudes a great deal of reserve in his Dr. Moreau and no wonder - had the character been too colorful or too over-the-top, it would dilute the horror. Same with Richard Arlen, the straight man who is repulsed by what is happening on this island. Kathleen Burke is a stunningly agile actress, and her very movements sometimes seem panther-like (Burke actually retired from acting at the age of 25!) Only Leila Hyams as Ruth is generally wasted - I suppose the role of a blonde fiancee was needed amidst all the creatures since her role was invented and is not to be found in H.G. Wells' original novel. Let's not forget Bela Lugosi as one of the hybrids, the actual Sayer of the Law who famously repeats the phrase, "Are we not men?" He's got one horrifying close-up that has become part of the iconography of this film.

A few thoughts occurred to me while watching "Island of Lost Souls." If these animals become men, are they still animals? If they are men, do they have souls? The one true animal in "Island of Lost Souls" is Dr. Moreau, a sadist with no soul. Frightening thought, frightening and vital piece of horror cinema.