Get a load of the 'Maniac'. Nothing there that a good face wash and a painful dental visit wouldn't fix, if, that is, 5-years were spent on it. On the whole, it looks like the movie throws a bit of everything into the pot. Trouble is the drop-in ingredients-- horror, whodunit, romance, news-hound-- don't blend well. Anyway, the plot's main question amounts to who's killing the Rineharts. It should be the Maniac, but we know it's not, though he does prey on necking couples; that is, when he's not hiding out in the bushes ready for his next close-up. An even bigger question is just what Lugosi's sinister Degar is supposed to be. That's a big a mystery too. Is he a house attendant from heck or maybe a dark agent from late night TV. What with his graveyard manner and sepulcher voice, at least he would keep unwanted guests away. Too bad the writers weren't sure what to do with their headliner, but it does get Lugosi's name on the marquee. Then there's the comedy relief. Probably the movie was never a front rank choice on TCM, since it's a black man doing the embarrassing 'feets-don't-fail-me-now' brand of racial humor. And, for his humiliation, the actor's not even included in the credit list (IMDB). On the whole, however, the supporting cast performs ably, especially the women and the Rineharts. All in all, the flick's a different kind of fright effort that unfortunately scatters impact. At least that's so until the finale, which is unexpected and cleverly thought out. There's also the completely novel "breaking of the fourth wall" by the Maniac, a real rarity, I would think, for its time. Too bad that the programmer's not good enough to really register, and not bad enough to make it as laughable camp. So where's Ed Wood when I could use a good chuckle.

NIGHT OF TERROR (Columbia, 1933), directed by Benjamin Stoloff, being one of many contributions to the horror film mysteries attributed to Universal's cycle that all began with Dracula (1931) starring Bela Lugosi, stars that legendary Hungarian actor in an interesting horror/ murder mystery commonly produced at that time. Though not the best nor worst of this type, NIGHT OF TERROR has become one of the most neglected and least known of the forgotten thrillers due to lack of availability, even with the Lugosi name above the title.As the credits roll through the caption of a crystal ball with performers credited solely by their character names rather than the traditional actors and their roles billing, the story opens during the midnight hours with full moon in background view as a crazed bearded lunatic in dark suit and hat known as The Maniac (Edwin Maxwell) commits his latest killing on a young couple inside a car, leaving a note behind, the twelfth murder to occur which has both police and reporters baffled. The Maniac soon prowls onto the Rinehart estate where he hides himself about the home until it's time to resume with his uncontrollable urge to kill and kill again. At the estate are: Richard Rinehart (Tully Marshall), whose nephew, Arthur Hornsby (George Meeker), a scientist experimenting on a fluid injection he intends on using while buried alive inside a coffin for eight solid hours with the intent on using to help save lives on those trapped in cave-ins or submarines. Although Hornsby is engaged to marry Mary Rinehart (Sally Blane), she's become the sole attention of Tom Hardy (Wallace Ford), a newspaper reporter; Richard's brother, John (Bryant Washburn), and his wife, Sarah (Gertrude Michael, surname billed as Michaels). There's also Degar (Bela Lugosi), a Hindu and 15 year servant for the Rineharts; Sika (Mary Frey), a housekeeper/psychic who performs séances; Martin (Oscar Smith), a Negro chauffeur who claims he would be "the first man to fly without wings" when approached by The Maniac. Upon Richard's murder, and the last will and testament having him leaving his entire fortune to his servants rather than his immediate family, it soon becomes "death among the heirs" while, at the same time, Hornsby going on with his experiment from beyond the grave, much to the dismay of a harassed Detective Bailey (Matt McHugh) called upon to investigate with his partner, Detective Dooley (Richard Powell).During its slow-pacing and bit confusing 64 minutes, NIGHT OF TERROR is actually two separate stories rolled into one. The phantom killer resembling that to Fredric March's evil half from DR. JEKYLL AND MR. HYDE (Paramount, 1931) acquires more of interest than to a dull scientist's experiment being buried alive to prove his theory and invented serum effective. Although Bela Lugosi could have played either one of those character roles more favorably, his Hindu servant with turban and earring on right ear addressing his employer, "Yes, Master," gathers enough attention in spite of being basically secondary. Sally Blane, Loretta Young's look-a-like sister, does her part with her occasional screams, with one harrowing scene where she's abducted by an approaching hand from behind the wall.Regardless of being produced by Columbia, NIGHT OF TERROR looks more like something from "poverty row" Monogram Studios from the 1940s, right down from the stalking phantom-ish Mr. Hyde in the resembling manner of Fredric March's evil half from DR. JEKYLL AND MR. HYDE (Paramount, 1931), to the surprise finish recycled in some ways for Lugosi's Monogram cheapie of THE APE MAN (1943). Watch for it.With the Maniac as part of the story process, and no real background to whom he is and why, NIGHT OF TERROR rightfully deserves its contribution in the horror film cycle. Unseen on commercial television since the mid 1960s, and never distributed to video cassette, NIGHT OF TERROR has turned up decades later onto DVD as well as broadcasts on cable television's GET-TV (with commercial breaks) in October 2015 in commemoration of Halloween. Regardless of Leonard Maltin's "BOMB" rating critique found in his "Movies on TV-Video Guide" NIGHT OF TERROR is worthy of rediscovery and something to consider for avid fans of bad cinema at best. (**).

This film has a special interest to me because it was the only one with my grandmother, Mary Frey, on screen. It has all of the usual old spooky house elements with lots of screams and surprises. Along with this there are the stock incompetent police, and elements of classic farce. But I think the director had some fun with these elements. Check out the scenes with the grinning skeleton. With all of the special effects now available we can't take this film seriously, but we can laugh at the clichés. One notable flaw is the music which does not go well with some of the scenes. It is way too upbeat when it should be communicating mystery. However, it is very soft so it is not obtrusive.The séance scene has a little history. According to my father it was filmed during an aftershock of the Long Beach earthquake. But the actors were stage professionals and kept going despite the heavy lights swaying over their heads. The director was so impressed by the intent expressions that he said it was perfect with no retakes needed.OK, the characters are one dimensional, but that is common in this genre. Lugosi has ample opportunity to use dramatic facial expressions and outbursts. Very small children may find this movie frightening. The only available copy from Sinister Cinema is a fairly good, but soft focus print.

Bela Lugosi once again dons a turban (easily his favorite movie headgear) for a cliched turn as Degar, sinister Hindu servant of a well-to-do but overly disfuntional family, in "Night Of Terror", a seldom seen, quasi-horror thriller from Columbia studios. Although top-billed, Lugosi is mired in an undistinctive supporting role, which calls for him to skulk around, look mysteriously sinister and discover a freshly murdered corpse every 10 minutes or so. Still, he provides the ONLY reason to watch this movie.A maniac killer on the loose is blamed for a series of murders, but it's pretty obvious that one of the family members is the true fiend, plotting to control a family inheritance. Spooky elements are sprinkled throughout; secret passages, a seance, a suspended animation experiment that requires a man to be buried alive, not to mention frequent cutaways to the hunchbacked lunatic who's constantly lurking about the estate. None of it adds up to much.Wallace Ford plays a smart aleck reporter, a role he would repeat with slight variations throughout his career. "Comedy relief" is provided by a black chauffeur, who jumps and stutters at every shadow - tired, overly familiar stuff, to be sure!The ending is ridiculously hokey, as the lunatic killer threatens the audience with death if they reveal the ending of this film to anyone. Not much of a threat when you're too embarrassed to tell anyone you watched this flick in the first place.