The director’s walk-on part. Not as good as Hitchcock’s.
Scared To Death (1947) is a throw it all at the wall and hope it sticks kind of movie. Comedic elements? Sure! Doctor and his sanatorium, into which a victim is supposedly locked? OK. Mysterious stranger at the door? Yeah. Floating mask at the window? Oh boy. Dead woman still moving around. Uh huh. Hidden doors and secret passageways? Yawn. Journalist and side-kick/fiancee? Wait, stop! Dead victim serves as the narrator? Oh, please, release the hounds!
Then turn on the ol’ plot mixer and see what comes plopping out!
Yet, for all that, it did keep my interest. Just where was this Bela Lugosi vehicle, in its original color, really going to end up? Could they make that dumb cop thing work, and why do film makers of the era keep using that damn trope, anyways?
Too static and random, this film ultimately fails. At one point, it sounds like the actors can’t even believe the dialog they’re delivering. All I can think is that the budget was really too thin.
But if you’re a Bela Lugosi completist, he chews the scenery nicely.
