Customer Reviews

Dead Man's Eyes/Pillow of Death [VHS]

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Lon Chaney Jr. stars in two more eerie Inner Sanctum films. The vhs includes Dead Man's Eyes and Pillow of Death. Both have a short running time but can still be affective.
Dead Man's Eyes includes the story of an artist[Chaney] who's eyes are damaged by acid. Once after being told that only an eye from a doner can help him. Soon after that his future father in law turns up murdered, And Chaney is blamed for the crime. A chilling mystery with Lon Chaney Jr. adding to the suspense. Starring Lon Chaney Jr., Jean Parker, Thomas Gomez and Acqunetta. 64 Minutes.
Pillow of Death tells the story if Lon Chaney did kill his wife So that he might marry his other love interest. This particular film is probably better of the two, Filled with creaking doors, Ghosts and murder. Starring Lon Chaney, Brenda Joyce, J.Edward Bromberg and Rosalind Ivan. 67 minutes.
Two great films, They probably rank second best next to Weird Woman/ The Frozen Ghost. Two other great films from the vault of Inner Sanctum Studios!

Universal didn't make a bad horror movie in the 30's or 40's. They always had enough atmosphere to make even their most tired efforts enjoyable. That said, these are mysteries marketed as horror. So aside from the presence Lon Jr., some vaguely spooky plot elements and authentically musty bric-a-brac, there are only a few scenes that warrant any particular merit to chiller fans.

Lon Jr. gives his usual enjoyable (some might say bad, some might say hammy) performances, and is backed by some great (and not-so-great) character actors, including the alluring Acquanetta.

Dead Man's Eyes deals with a blind artist who may or may not have killed his future father-in-law in order to get his peepers for a corneal transplant. It is the more straightforward of the two, and makes the most sense, but therefore isn't really all that puzzling. Most viewers today will probably see the outcome (sorry) way before the end.

Pillow of Death is more offbeat; I'll have to admit, I did not know what the outcome would be. But I'm not sure the writers really did either. It has that kind of patchwork feel. The plot has to do with whether or not Lon Jr. killed his wife to clear the way for marriage to his lovely assistant. There are all kinds of secret passageways, a stroll through a (suburban) cemetery at night, a relocated corpse, crazy spiritualism obsessed crones, alleged ghosts in the attic and a medium who might really be the killer, if the woman is really dead. See what I mean? Not to mention an unusually wimpy secondary love interest. There are clues, but they have less to do with the mystery and more to do with storytelling conventions of the time. And even those don't all hold true. So pay attention. It isn't really too bad, just weird, even for a B mystery. I became nervous when the back of the box saw fit to mention the gowns by Vera West rather than make an effort to draw me in with the promise of lurid spectral doings; my apprehension was not entirely unwarranted. And the only really likable guy in the movie gets killed in the middle. Boo Hiss.

Super-duper diehard Universal fans may add a star, but once I knew what the solutions were, my desire to see them again was almost completely gone. For better Inner Sanctum samplings with more horror trappings and a greater number of recognizable faces, try Weird Woman/The Frozen Ghost instead.