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From my favorite movies..

The film creates a perfect balance between action and depth of basic needs, in the midst of an infertile atmosphere.

It’s sentimental, ridiculously long and only occasionally funny

A great movie, one of the best of this year. There was a bit of confusion at one point in the plot, but nothing serious.

A very entertaining and spooky murder mystery. Peter Lorre is at his best as moony-eyed, nutjob astrologer secretary to the cadaverous Victor Francen's Ingram. The mansion, with all its medieval flourishes, exudes character. A fine supporting cast; although I found Andrea King's Julie a bit wooden. Playing opposite so many guys, she adds little, except perhaps in her last scene with Lorre. As many have pointed out, after a long lead-up, the pace picks up steam after Ingram's death. His severed hand becomes a character, as a sort of ghost/delusion.We are left with a fairly logical explanation of the apparent supernatural stuff: Lorre, not quite all there initially, goes over the verge of sanity. Cleverly, his delusion of the hand's 'revenge' is an outgrowth of his own plot to scare off and eliminate those who would toss him and his books aside. Robert Alda's Conrad is an interesting character too. He's sympathetic, yet hardly above-board. He has even less claim on Ingram's estate than Lorre/Hilary, but also much to lose. Of course marrying Julie represents his trump card. His outsider quality gives us a window, so to speak, to the goings-on at the mansion. Like the Commassario, he functions as both a witness and a participant.I'd like to have seen more exposition of Lorre's relationship to Francen. It might've been more interesting if Francen/Ingram shared Lorre's fascination with the New-Agey stuff. That could've enhanced the supernatural explanation of subsequent events. At a more basic level, it's hard to see why the hand goes after Lorre, whether it's appearing of its own volition or not. When he was alive Ingram tried to kill Hilary; if anything, it should then be Hilary who goes after him. Hilary does try to 'kill' the hand, but only after it has gone on a 'murder' rampage. Maybe there's too many supporting characters to allow for fleshing out the principals with more scenes.I usually don't like campy stuff tacked onto a dark atmosphere, but it works here. The Commassario seems to go out of his way to drop a hint, with his final enigmatic laugh at the audience, that there's yet more to the story. His dropped glove surely is just a tease, but how is it that Ingram's ring is on his finger now?Even with a few false steps, The Beast With Five Fingers is an engaging experience.

Anchored by the great Peter Lorre, "The Beast with Five Fingers" is an excellent horror-tinged melodrama, in which a disparate group of people is stuck in a creepy old home with what may be a vengeful and murderous spirit. The titular 'beast' is a disembodied, animated hand, which may or may not be corporal, and, as the story involves a disputed inheritance, everyone is both a potential suspect and a potential victim. Central to the story is Victor Francen's crippled musician character and the outstanding score, which is designed to be played by a one-handed pianist, provides both the film's music as well as serves as a plot point. The story, characters (esp. Lorre), sets, and music contribute to an excellent 'gothic' feel (marred somewhat by an unnecessary brief 'comic' epilogue) and, for a pre-CGI film, the special effects are convincing and effective. Good, old-school spooky fun.

It's the summer of 1900 in Italy where crippled and retired concert pianist Victor Francen has a villa. Taking care of him is nurse Andrea King and hanging around is American tourist type Robert Alda, a guy who lives by his wits and is no better than he ought to be. Police inspector J. Carrol Naish bemusedly indulges Alda's penchant for fleecing tourists.Francen dies and his will causes consternation as everything is left to King. That's not good enough for Charles Dingle who married Francen's sister and Francen's closest blood relative John Alvin. But the guy who really goes off the deep end is Francen's secretary and companion Peter Lorre. There's a bit of a hint here that these two might have been an item. It would explain why Lorre is more than upset with being put out. There sure is a nice gay subtext to this plot.Soon afterward there's some one handed piano playing going on which Lorre hears and at least one murder. Francen's fingerprints are found in all kinds of interesting places after he died.The story could have used a bit of tightening up, but Lorre really carries the day playing his usual madman. This was Lorre's last Warner Brothers film and it certainly is his show.Could have been better though.

"The Beast With Five Fingers" is set in one of those cinematic Italian villages where everybody speaks English (except for the occasional "Signorina"), and for the first hour or so not much happens. But although the story is very slow-moving, it does keep the viewer wondering if this is a supernatural thriller or a psycho thriller. Other assets include Max Steiner's rich music score, great special effects (not just of the disembodied hand, but in one hallucinogenic sequence much earlier), and Peter Lorre's full-tilt performance. There are also two funny gags at the very end. **1/2 out of 4.