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It's entirely possible that sending the audience out feeling lousy was intentional

A movie that not only functions as a solid scarefest but a razor-sharp satire.

It’s sentimental, ridiculously long and only occasionally funny

It is an exhilarating, distressing, funny and profound film, with one of the more memorable film scores in years,

This classic film had been listed in the television schedules a number of times, but I kept either missing it, but I finally got the opportunity to watch it, based on the book by Robert Louis Stevenson (Treasure Island, Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde), directed by Robert Wise (The Day the Earth Stood Still, West Side Story, The Sound of Music). Basically set in the year 1831, in Edinburgh, Scotland, renowned surgeon and now teacher Dr. Wolfe "Toddy" MacFarlane (Henry Daniell) runs a medical school. MacFarlane's prize student is Donald Fettes (Russell Wade), he is interested in helping young girl Georgina (Sharyn Moffett), she has lost the use of her legs, Fettes is certain that MacFarlane's surgical skills could help her, but MacFarlane is reluctant to do so. MacFarlane is hiding a dark secret, that is slowly becoming obvious to Fettes; he is paying a local cab driver, John Gray (Boris Karloff), to supply him with dead bodies for anatomical research and classroom demonstration purposes. Gray constantly harasses MacFarlane, but graverobbing from cemeteries is difficult with them being increasingly guarded, Gray turns to murder to provide MacFarlane with fresh bodies. Fettes realises how Gray is obtaining the corpses, he discovers his involvement during the infamous Burke & Hare crimes, he is covering the fact that it was in fact MacFarlane that was the real perpetrator. MacFarland's other assistant Joseph (Bela Lugosi) overhears many of their secret discussions, he attempts to blackmail Gray to keep quiet about the body snatching operation, but he chokes Joseph to death. Later, MacFarlane tries to bribe Gray, to stop his tormenting, he refuses to take it, and vows that the doctor will never be rid of him, MacFarlane is enraged, and beats Gray to death. Following an operation on Georgina earlier, Fettes rushes to tell MacFarlane that it was successful, she is able to stand up, but his housekeeper and secret wife Meg Camden (Edith Atwater) tells him the doctor has gone. Fettes finds MacFarlane at a tavern, and they travel in Gray's horse and carriage through a storm, MacFarlane is haunted by the taunting voice of Gray, Fettes checks the corpse in the back of the carriage. MacFarlane sees Gray's the vision of corpse, the horse is spooked, and the carriage breaks loose and falls over a cliff with MacFarlane and the corpse, Fettes looks down at the wreckage and sees MacFarlane's corpse, next to that of a woman. Also starring Rita Corday as Mrs. Marsh and Donna Lee as Street Singer. Karloff is magnificent being the evil cab driver supplying the cadavers, Daniell is good as the desperate anatomist, and Lugosi does well in his moment of support. It does have an overall feeling of creepiness and macabre throughout, it is admittedly a bit slow in places, but when you know that things like this actually happened in the 19th century, it is an atmospheric shocker, an interesting classic horror. Good!

It is one of the strangest Hollywood cases, the way that Boris Karloff became most famous for a role that relied basically more on prosthetics and giant shoes than the actor that wore them. If "Frankenstein" were made today, the monster would probably be played by a stunt man. Hell, they'd probably just use CGI and film the actors talking to a tennis ball.This is strange, you see, because Karloff was an amazing actor. This is probably better witnessed nowhere other than "The Body Snatcher", one of the low-budget horror films produced by Val Lewton for RKO. Watching this, it is hard to believe that anyone ever thought it would be a good idea to restrict Karloff so completely to stilted movement and barely any speech. Some of Lewton's productions, such as "The Leopard Man" and "The Ghost Ship", were hamstrung by the apparent necessary to sell their thriller titles as straight-forward horror films, though there is little of the supernatural in either movie. With "The Body Snatcher", Lewton had a tale of Stevenson's to work with, and the horror is wholly natural.Stevenson was apparently inspired by the true story of Burke and Hare, Scottish graverobbers who graduated to murder and were paid, by doctors, for their handiwork. This story doesn't take a real life case as its inspiration, and then carry on as if that reality never existed. Instead, the real-life case of Burke and Hare hangs over the characters of "The Body Snatcher" like a pall. And what a pall."The Body Snatcher" has to be one of the most atmospheric of all movies. It's black and white... but really more black. Characters seem to disappear into the murk. Some scenes of violent action are not shown, but merely hinted at, and this is one movie where this doesn't seem like a tribute to the censors: it works better unseen, and you are glad it is that way. One moment in particular is both harrowing and heartbreaking.You may have noticed that I have not mentioned the other titan of classic horror films who appears in "The Body Snatcher". If "The Body Snatcher" has an undeniable flaw, it's that Bela Lugosi is pretty much wasted. Apparently there was some acrimony behind the scenes that made Karloff insist he be sidelined for much of this production. He does, however, have one great scene alone with Karloff.And if the chance to see both Dracula and Frankenstein's monster together on screen isn't enough to make you want to watch this classic, nothing will.

"The Body Snatcher" is a wonderful example of what Val Lewton (and Robert Wise) could do when allowed to make the kind of movie they wanted to make. Every aspect of the film simply works, but without calling attention to itself. And here Karloff shows why he deserved all the accolades he received over the years. His character gets 3 long monologues that would have sunk a lesser actor - pleasant and polite and even deferential at first impression, but loaded with subterranean hints of bitterness and rage that are all the more effective for the way he underplays them. The only complaint I have about the movie is that the ending seems tacked on somehow, not quite true to the chilling but entirely non- supernatural feel of the film up to this point. It's well done and well staged, but I would have been happier if the movie had just ended when the little girl in the wheelchair got back on her feet. But that's really my only complaint, and it may have been required by the adaptation of the original story. Great old time horror classic. I would gladly watch it again if I ever get the opportunity.

*Spoiler/plot- The Body Snatcher, 1945. In 19th century Edinburgh Scotland, a reputable medical doctor and his prize pupil need cadavers for their student's medical studies and a local poor horse-drawn cab driver is willing to provide all of them for money by murder. The cab driver plagues them in their illegal scheme.*Special Stars- Boris Karloff, Henry Daniel, Russell Wade, Edith Atwater, Bela Lugosi. Dir- Robert Wise.*Theme- Guilty conscious can have a huge affect on the guilty.*Trivia/location/goofs- American, RKO studios. The 'exterior' scenes were filmed on sets constructed for RKO's The Hunchback of Notre Dame (1939) in their 'ranch' (Now subdivided into homes) near the Sepulveda Recreation Basin Park. Although based on a fictional short story by Robert Louis Stevenson, the author came up with the idea from actual events occurring in 19th century England and Scotland, particularly those of grave robbers Burke and Hare. This film featured the 8th and last on-screen teaming of Boris Karloff and Bela Lugosi. Filming took place October 25-November 17 1944, delaying the completion of Karloff's Isle of the Dead (1945). The film incorporates the story of Greyfriars Bobby (called Robby in the movie) but makes a muddle of the facts. In reality, Bobby was a Skye terrier that refused to leave the graveside of his master, an elderly, indigent shepherd, in the graveyard at Greyfriars Church in Edinburgh. Bobby stayed faithfully at his post for years and became a tremendous sentimental favorite of the city folk, before dying of old age. Today a statue near the church commemorates this dog's memory. A year after the events in the movie, the Anatomy Act of 1832 made it legal for the bodies of those dying friendless in poorhouses and hospitals to be given to local medical facilities for study and dissection. Goofs-At the very beginning, they show a castle during the credits, then "In Edinburgh In 1831-" then show a closer up of the same castle and a horse and carriage, and you can clearly see two or three automobiles parked next to the castle. *Emotion- An extremely well cast, performed and rich film production with a moral theme. Karloff really eats up the scenery in many scenes with Daniel and Lugosi. The fear driven plot has many colorful characters and fun dialog. The film's good ending is something to see with the imagined switch of the corpses being carried in the doctor's coach.*Based On- Robert Louis Stevenson short story.