"Before I Hang" was another of the films dealing with the age old problem of old age. Dr. John Garth (Boris Karloff) is an aged scientist who is accused of the mercy killing of one of his patients. It seems that the good doctor had been experimenting with an age reducing serum and had failed. To end his patient's suffering, Garth had performed a mercy killing.
Sentenced to hang, Garth is sent to prison. Much to his surprise, the prison doctor, Dr. Howard (Edward Van Sloan) has convinced Warden Thompson (Ben Taggart) to allow Garth to continue his work until his execution. The two continue the work until the supply of blood needed for the serum runs low. Garth asks Howard to obtain the blood of an executed killer (you know where this is going to lead) to replenish the stock.
When Garth's execution date arrives, he asks Thompson to inject him with the serum and study the results following his death. At the last minute however, Garth's sentence is commuted to life imprisonment. In the weeks following his injection, Garth begins to show signs of becoming younger. Wanting to experiment further, Garth plans to continue his work by injecting Thompson with the serum. But as he is about to do so, he is overcome with an urge to kill and murders Thompson and a convict Otto Krone (Frank Richards) who happens to walk in at the wrong time.
Garth manages to lay the blame for Thompson's murder on Krone. Seen as a hero Garth is pardoned and released. He returns home but his daughter Martha (Evelyn Keyes) and his former assistant Dr. Paul Ames (Bruce Bennett) begin to suspect that something is wrong and............................
Again Karloff is excellent in the title role. He goes from a kindly old doctor to a psychopathic killer over the course of the film. Bruce Bennett had recently changed his name from Herman Brix and moved from playing Tarzan into character roles. Evelyn Keyes had just appeared in "Gone With the Wind" (1939) as one of Scarlet's sisters. Edward Van Sloan had supported both Karloff and Lugosi in several films of the 1930s.
Also in the cast are Pedro de Cordoba, Wright Kramer and Bertram Mabourgh as Garths three aging friends whom Garth offers to "help" and Kenneth MacDonald (there's no mistaking that voice) as a prison guard.
Good "mad doctor" film.
Sentenced to hang, Garth is sent to prison. Much to his surprise, the prison doctor, Dr. Howard (Edward Van Sloan) has convinced Warden Thompson (Ben Taggart) to allow Garth to continue his work until his execution. The two continue the work until the supply of blood needed for the serum runs low. Garth asks Howard to obtain the blood of an executed killer (you know where this is going to lead) to replenish the stock.
When Garth's execution date arrives, he asks Thompson to inject him with the serum and study the results following his death. At the last minute however, Garth's sentence is commuted to life imprisonment. In the weeks following his injection, Garth begins to show signs of becoming younger. Wanting to experiment further, Garth plans to continue his work by injecting Thompson with the serum. But as he is about to do so, he is overcome with an urge to kill and murders Thompson and a convict Otto Krone (Frank Richards) who happens to walk in at the wrong time.
Garth manages to lay the blame for Thompson's murder on Krone. Seen as a hero Garth is pardoned and released. He returns home but his daughter Martha (Evelyn Keyes) and his former assistant Dr. Paul Ames (Bruce Bennett) begin to suspect that something is wrong and............................
Again Karloff is excellent in the title role. He goes from a kindly old doctor to a psychopathic killer over the course of the film. Bruce Bennett had recently changed his name from Herman Brix and moved from playing Tarzan into character roles. Evelyn Keyes had just appeared in "Gone With the Wind" (1939) as one of Scarlet's sisters. Edward Van Sloan had supported both Karloff and Lugosi in several films of the 1930s.
Also in the cast are Pedro de Cordoba, Wright Kramer and Bertram Mabourgh as Garths three aging friends whom Garth offers to "help" and Kenneth MacDonald (there's no mistaking that voice) as a prison guard.
Good "mad doctor" film.