Boris Karloff plays a man who comes to believe that a serial killer from 20 years previously was innocent of the murders for which he was hanged. The case starts to consume him, literally...Based on the story "Stranglehold" written by Jan Read, pic unfolds as a creepy take of the Jekyll and Hyde kind. It's never overtly scary, but the atmospherics are palpable and the period flavours superb. This never resorts to cheap thrills, and unusually for the era of film making it doesn't rely on effects work for the transformation sequences - it is just Karloff acting!Plenty of horror movie staples are adhered to, such as a hanging, a coffin opening, an awful prison and an asylum, whilst that even though there's a little filler that could have been cut from the running time, Karloff and the intriguing mystery part of the narrative marry up to the atmosphere to round out a good old classic horror yarn. 7/10

Last night I checked out the terrific The Haunted Strangler, in which Boris Karloff plays a novelist (!) and social reformer who believes a man was wrongly executed for a series of strangulations twenty years prior. James Rankin connects the murders instead to a doctor who performed the autopsy on the condemned man and who was present at the burial. Naturally, his investigation takes him down a twisted path in which he more or less becomes the strangler himself.At first, this seems like a typical low-budget Karloff horror movie, but in addition to his talents it has a couple of things going for it – one is the transformation from normal Mr. Rankin into the Strangler, and another is the major plot twist about three-fourths of the way into the movie. Seriously, did not see that coming. I clearly underestimated the depth of this plot.Karloff doesn't ham it up, slowly evolving from a calm, thoughtful chap into an unhinged obsessive, and he's surrounded by capable actors (Elizabeth Allen, Anthony Dawson, Tim Turner). And there's truly an old-school horror feel to the movie. It both looks and feels fearful.

I am still kicking myself in the buttocks repeatedly for having missed the double feature of Boris Karloff's "The Haunted Strangler" (1958) and "Targets" (1968) at NYC's Film Forum a little while back. Thus, seeing a nice, crisp-looking DVD version of "Strangler" the other day came as a very nice consolation prize for me. In this one, Karloff plays a writer and social reformer living in London in 1880. He is investigating what he believes to be the wrongful execution of a man 20 years earlier; a man who had been accused of being the notorious Haymarket Strangler. Unfortunately, as Boris proceeds with this Victorian "cold case," all leads come back to...himself, and before long, he begins to act just a wee bit homicidal. As his Hyde-like nature emerges, Boris bites his underlip, sticks his teeth out, closes one eye and sweats a lot; still, it's a fairly impressive-looking transformation. Karloff was 71 when he essayed this role, but he still manages to exude a great deal of energy and enthusiasm (just watch him try to rip himself out of that straitjacket!). Perhaps being back in England again to make a film was somewhat responsible for this boost. And speaking of energy boosts, I must say that a neat surprise concerning Boris' character comes halfway through that really does shake things up. "The Haunted Strangler" also offers some interesting supporting characters, including cancan dancer Vera Day (who, with her bullet bra, made such a double impression on me in the following year's "Womaneater") and Scotland Yard agent Anthony Dawson (who, come to think of it, attempted a bit of strangulation himself in 1954's "Dial M For Murder"). Bottom line: This Karloff pic really ain't half bad!

Grip of the Strangler starts in Victorian London at 'Newgate Prison 1860' where a notorious murderer named Edward Styles (Michael Atkinson) dubbed the 'Haymarket Strangler' is sent to the gallows & hanged in front of a cheering cockney public... Jump forward 20 years & novelist James Rankin (Boris Karloff) also happens to be a social reformer & is taking a great deal of interest in the conviction & hanging of Styles, he believes that had Styles had the money to pay for a decent legal defence in court he would never had been convicted & in an attempt to get good legal aid for everyone Rankin decides to prove that Styles was innocent. Along with his assistant Dr. Kenneth McColl (Tim Turner) Rankin collects overwhelming evidence that a doctor named Tennant was responsible for the brutal killings, unfortunately his investigation's take a sinister & unexpected turn as the murders start up once more...This English production was directed by Robert Day & was better than I had expected. The script by John Croydon & Jan Read, who also wrote the story 'Stranglehold' upon which Grip of the Strangler is based, main asset is a couple of neat twists & turns that caught me by surprise & it seems a fair amount of thought went into it. The mystery elements are minimal as it's made clear from the start Styles is innocent & Tennant was responsible but even with this basic framework of a murder mystery about half way through Grip of the Strangler suddenly turns into a 50's slasher film with a neat plot twist. At less than 80 minutes long it never becomes boring, the story engages, the character's are alright & is more than watchable.Director Day does an OK job but you have to take into consideration that Grip of the Strangler is the best part of half a century old, I would have thought it was quite risqué at the time with a knife wielding maniac running around strangling & slashing young women to death & it bar in which scantily clad (for the 50's) women perform on stage for men. There's a nice period atmosphere to the film & there's some effective scenes.Technically the film is fine with nice black and white cinematography & good solid production design. The acting was better than expected, Karloff pulls a strange face at the end as he is meant to be paralysed down one side & looks pretty ugly if nothing else.Grip of the Strangler is a good solid British horror film that is well worth watching for fans of the genre or fans of Karloff. Worth tracking down.