Boris Karloff shines in dual roles as twin brothers: one good, one evil. A prophecy foretells the younger will kill the older. But the younger is a nice, sweet guy and the older is a fiendish tyrant. So will the prophecy be fulfilled or not? A must-see for any Karloff fan. Nice direction from Roy William Neill. Loved the exterior and interior castle sets. Alluring Katherine DeMille plays a victim of the evil brother. But, of course, Karloff is the whole show here. He's brilliant in one of his best non-Universal films. Not really a horror movie but a thriller. Although an argument could certainly be made that the evil brother is a horror villain if ever there was one.

"The Black Room" is a clever little thriller from Columbia Pictures that gives Boris Karloff a dual role.Karloff plays twin brothers from a powerful family. The oldest is the kindest of gentlemen, and the youngest is wickedness personified. When Bad Karloff is bad, he's really bad, fond of murdering women and burying their bodies in a basement pit. His subjects are on to him and call on Good Karloff to take his place. If only it were that simple. Bad Karloff adds his good brother to his collection of corpses, confident that a prophecy in which he dies by a knife held by his older sibling can no longer be fulfilled. Again, if only it were that simple.Karloff is terrific in both parts, and there's a fine atmospheric touch, not surprising since "The Black Room" was directed by Roy William Neill, the unsung genius who guided Basil Rathbone and Nigel Bruce through 11 of their 12 Sherlock Holmes movies at Universal.

If you're going to have a plot involving an evil twin, who could do it better than Boris?The evil Baron Gregor, who has a habit of luring women from the local village and then "disposing" of them, has a public relations problem. Everyone hates him, and he seems to spend most of his day fending off assassins. So why not invite his nice twin, Anton, to come for a visit, let the villagers meet the "good guy," and then take his place? Clever old Gregor, and of course he wants the hand (and other bits) of the lovely Thea as part of the deal.There are plenty of horror-movie clichés, such as Balkan military uniforms, sealed rooms, terrified peasants, scary hounds, and of course the storming of the castle. But there are some really wonderful touches here and there: like the shot when Thea's father sees Gregor/Anton in the mirror, or the look on Thea's face when they announce her lover's sentence.And at the center is the great Boris, doing wonderful characterizations as the two brothers. Along with "The Body Snatcher," I would rate this film at the top of Karloff's performances.

Boris Karloff plays dual roles in this very suspenseful and fun horror film. Twins are born with a curse on them. It is prophesied that the younger (by a few minutes) brother will kill the older. The Count becomes a horror to his subjects, using women and committing murder at will. The villagers have little to say; he has isolated themselves. In their forties the two are reunited when a plot is developed to seize land and combine two royal entities. The other factor is a beautiful young woman who the Count lusts after. She is the apple of her father's eye and loves a young lieutenant. Another significant entity in all this is the title "Black Room." It was bricked up because of the prophecy, but the Baron has built a death chamber in it for the disposing of bodies. He tosses them down a sort of well. The whole plot is quite good and the acting is excellent. Also, the suspense is very good because there is a need for the prophecy to be fulfilled. The screenplay and direction work very well and Karloff pulls off both roles to perfection. This is well worth the effort.