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if their story seems completely bonkers, almost like a feverish work of fiction, you ain't heard nothing yet.

The movie's neither hopeful in contrived ways, nor hopeless in different contrived ways. Somehow it manages to be wonderful

One of the most extraordinary films you will see this year. Take that as you want.

An old-fashioned movie made with new-fashioned finesse.

Bluebeard (1944) ** (out of 4) Paris is attacked with fear as a serial killer begins bumping off women and throwing their bodies into the river. It turns out that the killer is actually Gaston Morrell (John Carradine), a supposed kind puppeteer who has many secrets including an issue with women that leads to all the killings. He eventually falls for a dancer (Jean Parker) and it doesn't take too long for her to realize that something isn't right with the guy. I'll admit that I'm rather confused at some of the positive reviews this film has gotten over the years. That's not to say that this is a bad movie because it isn't but at the same time it's not a good one either. I guess the best thing that could be said about the film is that it's a decent time-killer but as to why some call it a classic is beyond me. There's no doubt that the greatest thing the movie has going for it is the performance of Carradine who is pitch-perfect in the role of the killer. Carradine does a wonderful job at playing this crazed man and you can just feel his dark side coming out in the scenes where we actually get to see him kill. Carradine starts off perfectly showing off his charm but slowly that evil comes over him and I found the transition to be perfectly handled. Parker is also quite good in her role, although it's certainly clear that the screenplay doesn't do her too many favors. In Tom Weaver's book on John Carradine he goes over many trims that had to be made due to the Production Code and perhaps the original screenplay would have made for a better movie but as it stands I think there are just way too many problems with the film. The first is the screenplay, which seems to go back and forth in terms of what type of story it wants to tell. We're shown right at the start that Carradine is the killer so any type of mystery is pretty much out the window. What we're basically doing is waiting for the woman to find out before she gets killed and we also have a subplot with a detective trying to locate the killer but this guy seems like he wouldn't be able to find his own house let alone a killer. Another major problem I had with the film is the incredibly annoying soundtrack, which appears to be playing during every second of the 70-minute running time. The bad thing is that it's a rather weak score but the bigger problem is that it plays the entire film and there are many times when the scenes don't need any score at all. Ulmer handles the material fairly well but then again, I'm not at the point where I see all the praise he's been getting over the past several years. Yes, he made "Z" productions look like "B" or "C" films but that doesn't always make them good movies to watch. BLUEBEARD is still worth watching for Carradine's performance but I'm still quite cold on the film itself.

The French legend of Bluebeard the famed wife killer serves as the background for this film about an artist who paints strikingly realistic female portraits only to kill the models he uses for them. A man with some serious issues. John Carradine is the artist/strangler who has now turned to puppets in an effort to cure himself of this nasty habit. 19th century Paris is as frightened of Bluebeard as London of the same period is frightened of Jack the Ripper.Bluebeard is an independently made film from the small poverty row picture company Producers Releasing Corporation. The film does not have any great production values, but probably the lack of them helps with the murky and moody atmosphere of the film. It certainly contributes to Carradine's portrayal.The film borrows liberally from the Jack the Ripper story and the final chase when the French Gendarmes are closing in on Carradine is taken right from Phantom Of The Opera. John Carradine who did not get to star in too many good films creates a great Gothic character. If your taste runs to that kind of cinema, Bluebeard is the film for you.

I'm working my way through the Horror Classics 50 Movie Pack Collection and BLUEBEARD is one of the movies in the set.The two leads are really the only redeeming qualities about this film, as the print is awful, the sound unbearable; and, the score heavy-handed. John Carradine, as Gaston Morrell (the puppet master) is fantastic. His performance as the tortured painter/perpetrator is great. While not outright evil, nor with guile, he manages to stir up sympathy; and, hope for restoration.With a bit of schizophrenia surrounding his relationship with his models; and, his one great love, Carradine displays his considerable talent. Jean Parker, as Lucille (the seamstress) is charming as well. By the way, she was an absolute delightful in ONE BODY TOO MANY, so you might want to check that one out as well.Teala Loring played her sister; and, is cast as some sort of "tough" called in by the Police Inspector. However, since the film is set in Paris, her brash New York accent throws off what would have been otherwise a very good performance; it strains credulity. The rest of the cast is abysmal.The plot is rather thin; but, there are elements of interest to hold your attention through the whole 70 minutes.

A PRC poverty row production that makes the most of its limited budget. A lot of credit should go to production designers Eugene Shufftan and Edgar Ulmer who collaborated on the movie's sumptuous look. Even when the middle part drags, the visuals remain arresting. Note too how the meagre exterior sets are stylized to make up for the limitations. Of course, cult director Ulmer was no stranger to transforming army surplus material into artistic effects. The overall result is an atmospheric recreation of 19th century Paris. Making Carradine's Bluebeard a puppeteer is a novel and interesting wrinkle. Then too, I can't help thinking there is more plot potential in continuing with Bluebeard the puppet master than in shifting the story line over to Bluebeard the painter, as the screenplay does. Nonetheless, those early scenes in the park are good ones. However, the cadaverous actor who can be as florid and intense as anyone seems a little too understated here. While physically he looks the part of the grim reaper, Carradine is simply no good as a simpering lover, while too many of his scenes lack the menace the role calls for. Unfortunately, the result compares unfavorably, for example, with Laird Cregar's riveting Jack the Ripper in that Gothic thriller The Lodger of the same year. It appears Ulmer is much more the visual artist than the thespic coach.Nonetheless, the movie remains an interesting curiosity. Consider the sheer wackiness of presenting Iris Adrian whose cheap Brooklyn accent can barely be disguised as a Parisian. Still, it does amount to an amusing turn. Also, note the off-angle camera staging of Carradine's flashback sequence, which is both effective in identifying the sequence and artfully composed. Such camera effects were hardly a Hollywood staple at a time when producers generally felt they would confuse the audience.Of course, there's the question that always arises for fans of Ulmer. What would he have done with an A-budget and A-material in a career spent in the lower depths of Hollywood production. Hard to say-- perhaps he needed the challenge of PRC-type constraints. However, I think it's fair to say that none of his poverty row productions are without genuine points of interest and entertainment, and-- as is the case with Bluebeard-- may even rise at times to artistic levels.