User Reviews

DOCTOR X is one of those heartbreaking films to watch for a fan of old horror movies, because it has so many wonderful things going for it yet just narrowly misses the mark of being really good due to a liability or two which could have been avoided. As is so often the case with early '30s fright films like this, the need was felt to add a "funnyman" to the proceedings to perhaps give audiences of the day a chance to laugh along with being scared. The culprit in this case is Lee Tracy, who plays a typical golden age newspaper reporter who snoops around and gets his nose tangled into everyone's business.

The "business" at hand is a string of killings in New York regarding a fiend who strangles people and then apparently cannibalizes them. Dr. Xavier (the always enjoyable Lionel Atwill) heads a group of doctors who are all suspects up for scrutiny, and though we have to deal with the frequent lapses into silliness from Mr. Tracy, this old chestnut is interesting and gripping a fair amount of its running time. Director Michael Curtiz does a fine job of visually entertaining us with strange angles, quick closeups and flashy set designs. An added delight is the early use of two-strip color that gives the film a rather eerie dimension with its muted greens. Fay Wray (KING KONG) steps into another early horror picture here, but really doesn't have much to do and isn't of much use to the story. There's a completely out of place beach scene with Wray and Tracy that will leave you wondering who thought it shouldn't be left on the cutting room floor (perhaps it was an excuse to get a pantie shot of Fay as she sunbathes under her big beach umbrella).

The film's strongest moment comes in a revelation sequence late in the movie where we finally get to see who the crazed murderer is, and it's still chilling even now to watch him go through his insane routine. You're bound to have the words "synthetic flesh" etched into your subconscious for a long time after seeing DOCTOR X, and if there's one thing you'll remember, this will be it. **1/2 out of ****

Wow, what a shock - a 1932 color movie! Well, sort of......only two colors, but they look great.

I only got this because I saw it at the library as part of a two-pack with "The Return Of Dr. X." It is part of a Hollywood "Legends Of Horror" package that includes several other films I am familiar with and think highly of, so I can see a possible future purchase.

Anyway, the first thing that struck me watching this was that fantastic two-strip Technicolor. Immediately there is a street scene of green and brown that looks tremendous....and eerie. You would think that only black-and-white might make this look eerie, but not so - that combination of green and brown was very effective and made this a fascinating visual film. Hats off to the UCLA film restoration team, which made this 75-year-old film look really good.

As for the story, well, let's just say it doesn't measure up to the visuals. It starts off looking like a fun movie, even - surprise - a comedy as the newsman "Lee Taylor" (Lee Tracy) cracks a few corny jokes. However, it settles down into a crime story (more than horror) and we wind up with a whodunit and a room full of suspects, a la Charlie Chan or Sherlock Holmes. The suspects are all scientists working in the Academy of Surgical Research. A bunch of recent hideous crimes by the "Moon Killer" were all done in the vicinity of the academy, so they're the prime suspects. Even the head man at the academy, "Dr. Xavier," looks a bit suspicious. He is played well by Lionel Atwill.

The police give "Dr. X" 48 hours to find out if any of his employees are the killer before they totally take over the investigation and ruin the reputation of the scientific institution. All of the scientists, by the way, look and act creepy which adds to the mystery. Heck, they all could be serial killers.

The film drags during much of that period - except for a short testing session that Dr. X sets up to see if any of his subordinates are, indeed, the killer. Apparently, it's true because someone kills one of the suspects during the experiment! Then there is another long lull and the cops are getting impatient with the good doctor. They give him another ultimate so he "tests" his employees again, this time using his daughter "Joanne" (Fay Wray) as a guinea pig, so to speak.

Then, we finally see who the real killer is and that part is fun to watch and he transforms into a hideous monster-like man. I guess this why the film is called a horror film instead of a crime movie. I won't give the ending away but I admit, it's pretty good.

If that long middle part had been spiced up a bit, this would have super, but it was too talky for too long. Still, this isn't bad and I love those two colors. I wish more movies looked like that.

The police are investigating a series of murders where victims have been cut up by scalpel and cannibalized. The murders always take place on a night with a full moon. They trace the scalpels to a nearby surgical academy. The head of the academy, Dr. Xavier (Lionel Atwill), doesn't believe someone at the academy is the killer and asks police for a chance to prove this using his own scientific methods. Also on the trail of the killer is reporter Lee Taylor (Lee Tracy). Taylor is suspicious of Doctor Xavier but when he meets the doctor's daughter (Fay Wray) he becomes smitten. Allowed only 48 hours to prove his case, Xavier gathers all the suspects at his mansion to perform his experiment. But things don't go as planned and another murder is committed.

Doctor X is a classic horror-mystery that has many points of interest for film fans. For starters, the two-color Technicolor process it was filmed in was new for the time. It also has great Max Factor makeup that looks especially nice in the early Technicolor. Another thing, it's a pre-Code film. Cannibalism, a major part of the plot, wouldn't have been allowed just a short time later. Lastly it's the horror debut of one of the greats of the genre, Lionel Atwill. Atwill would go on to a great career making many horror films, including two more with Wray the following year. He always brought class and dignity to his usually villainous roles. He's great here as well.

The major complaint about the film seems to be directed at Lee Tracy's comic character. He is probably the worst part of the movie, but not because his performance is bad. He does fine with what he's supposed to do. It's just that comedy in horror films is usually best left to minor supporting roles not for the male lead in the film. However, I personally feel he's not obnoxious enough to hurt the film significantly. It's still very fun and very interesting, both from a film history perspective as well as sheer entertainment value. I would recommend all fans of classic horror films check it out.

Don't even try to compare this wonderful old WArner Brothers thriller from l934 with today's thrillers. It was made at a time long gone when atmosphere, sets, lighting and camerawork were king. I adore getting this movie out at least once a month along with "Mystery of the Wax Museum" and "Night Monster" (another reviewer has also cited "Night Monster" as the classic it is)turn out the lights and lose myself in the early Technicolor two-strip photographey which is beautifully pastel and atmospheric in its eerie greens, pinks, crimson and gold. The Anton Grot sets are unforgettable. The cast of Hollywood's greatest character actors throw themselves into their roles (I doubt they had any other choice. After all, the demonic Michael Curtiz was cracking the whip as director). Fay Wray is pretty and screams now and then. Most irritating of all is Lee Tracey as the relentlessly wise-cracking reporter. Glenda Farrell had the same role in "Mystery of the Wax Museum" also filmed in early color and she was fantastic. A great old thriller, set in a remote mansion by the sea. The monster is terrifying. Ironically, you never see any carnage, blood or torture. Hats off to those long-ago film masters who knew how to do things right.

Not wholly creak-free (Lee tracy's performance is notably of it's time), but still with some marvellous moments. The legendary "synthetic flesh" scene is still totally shocking and bizarre, worth the price of admission alone. Definitely one for the collection.

When you think of it, everything about this film is strictly synthetic...the plot, the hokey comic relief, the occasional ham acting--but the atmosphere photographed in crisp looking two-strip Technicolor is fully charged and the taut direction of Michael Curtiz (long before he did another more polished noir called THE UNSUSPECTED), makes this a very watchable early horror film from Warner Bros.

The Anton Grot sets in early color will keep the viewer totally enhanced even when the plot holes become too obvious. The annoying comic relief supplied by Lee Tracy as a fast-talking newspaperman (was there any other kind?), is fortunately not much of a handicap when the cast includes an assortment of richly eccentric characters.

I have to confess I guessed who the murderer was from the start--but it didn't dampen my enjoyment of the melodramatic and very creepy events. The storyline concerns a killer known for striking when there's a full moon and Lionel Atwill is the doctor who thinks he can solve the crime by some scientific detective work of his own.

It's the sort of film that became a staple of the "old dark house" mysteries audiences loved in the '20s and '30s--and even into the '40s with films like THE CAT AND THE CANARY. None of it seems quite as compelling as some of the better known fright films (including MURDER IN THE WAX MUSEUM), but we do get a chance to hear some first rate screams from Fay Wray (who looks very attractive in close-ups even though the Max Factor make-up is a little too extreme), and the capable cast includes such sturdy performers as Lionel Atwill and Preston Foster.

Trivia note: The killer's synthetic flesh make-up is very effective when he's in full mode on the kill. Kudos to Michael Curtiz for a fun-filled fright film.

By the late 20s, Warner Brothers had already become a major studio thanks to the enormous success of their revolutionary "talking pictures", finally delivering fully synchronized sound and dialogs that could be heard. Soon after this, Warner moved to color as their new novelty, and using the advanced Technicolor Process 3 (which allowed a better use of their two color technology), the studio released a wide variety of films that looked better than the previous Technicolor films, creating a new revolution of almost the same impact as the creation of the "talkies". Among those films was the 1932 tale of horror and mystery, "Doctor X", directed by Michael Curtiz, who in those years was still one of the many studio directors at Warner. Mainly known for his effective (always on time and under budget) and versatile work, this would become the film that proved that this Hungarian immigrant had a style of his own and was able to make films of great success.

There is a serial killer on the loose in New York, committing his cannibalistic murders using a scalpel with surgical precision, and always under the light of the full moon, earning the moniker of "The Moon Killer". While the police still has no idea of who the killer is, they know one important thing about him: the killer works as a scientist at the Academy of Surgical Research. The Academy's director, Dr. Jerry Xavier (Lionel Atwill), decides that in order to avoid any bad reputation for the Academy, he must find who the killer is among the suspects, and asks the Police Commisoner for time to carry on an experiment. Gathering his four comrades in his old mansion, Xavier will try to discover the identity of the killer, as anyone could be the murderer, including himself. At the same time, a wisecracking reporter named Lee (Lee Tracy) finds himself trying to discover what's the mystery at Xavier's Mansion.

The screenplay for "Doctor X" was written by Robert Tasker and Earl Baldwin as an adaptation of a moderately successful three-act play by Howard W. Comstock and Allen C. Miller. The story remained faithful to the mix of mystery, comedy and horror that was popular in that kind of plays, but Tasker and Baldwin enhanced the horror elements of the story, clearly in an attempt to equal the success of Universal's horror movies. While the plot is indeed more focused on horror (including detailed, although not graphic, descriptions of rape and cannibalism), the story remains true to its origins as a play with the inclusion of lighthearted comedy in the shape of Lee, the wisecracking reporter, whose comedic exploits serve to break the tension at several points of the film. While nothing really amazing by today's standards, the story still works very well, with some cleverly written twists and unexpected surprises that spice up the plot.

While the plot sounds definitely like another of those "old dark house" thrillers that were so popular in the 30s, the execution of the film is what truly sets it apart from the rest. For starters, Warner Bros' decision of making "Doctor X" part of their series of Technicolor films allowed director Curtiz to be able to work with the now legendary cinematographer Ray Rennahan, and together they crafted very atmospheric images of haunting beauty. Rennahan's skills with color cinematography works perfectly together with Curtiz' expressionist background in the making of a fast-packed, yet beautifully looking story. As a director, Curtiz was still far from becoming the master who directed "Casablanca", but his classy style can already be seen raw in this movie.

Another of the high points in the film is the casting, starting with Lionel Atwill as Dr. Xavier. Atwill delivers a terrific performance, completely owning his character and giving it a subtle feeling of impeding doom, adding a lot of emotion to the film. Fay Wray is also very good, although like Lee Taylor, doesn't really have anything to do besides playing a stereotype. Preston Foster, John Wray, Harry Beresford and Edmund Carewe are pleasant surprises, each giving their own quirky character a distinct look, and like Atwill, make very believable suspects of the heinous crimes. Finally, George Rosener and Leila Bennett have small, yet very funny scenes that add a lot to the black comedy aspect of the film, and personally, I found them infinitely better than Fay Wray and Lee Tracy.

"Doctor X" is a film that has aged badly, showing a style of mystery stories that is not popular anymore after countless of imitations and variations on the same subject. Lee Tracy's comedic performance is also another of the film's details that nowadays look silly and out of place ( Glenda Farrell would do a better work in a similar role in "Mystery of the Wax Museum", the following year), although then again, this kind of over-the-top performances were the standard of comedy/horrors of those years. It is clear that "Doctor X" is definitely not a classic of the genre in the sense of being innovative or groundbreaking, however, I think that the superb execution of the whole film really sets it apart from the rest, and gives it a special charm that it's hard to ignore.

It's safe to say that this movie pales in comparison to some of the best Universal's horrors of those years, and that the cast and crew of this film surpassed themselves the following year with "Mystery of the Wax Museum", completely overshadowing this film; however, "Doctor X" is an enjoyable movie that shows the days of experimentation with color, and the style of horror of the years prior to the Hays Code. While not a life changing experience, "Doctor X" is a perfect film for a dark atmospheric night, where its haunting colors can shine the most. 7/10

Old dark house thrillers were all the rage in the early talkie era. Doctor X combines a spooky old house with a mad scientist horror story, and as directed by Michael Curtiz in early two-strip Technicolor, it's a quite good show even by today's standards.

Lionel Atwill's Doctor X is a scientist who runs a medical research institute in New York City near where a series of grisly murders have recently occurred. He and his entire teaching staff are suspects in the case, as the police have determined that the killer has some medical knowledge. The ever-helpful doctor seeks to prove the authorities wrong, and transports his staff to the cliffside manor, Blackstone Shoals, to prove them wrong, and gets more than he bargained for.

Newspaperman Lee Tracy is along for the ride, and can't seem to keep his mouth shut, as he continually makes wisecracks. His character is utterly of the time, and as such a fascinating glimpse of a bygone type, both of real life and the movies. Fay Wray is her usual lissome self, with her peculiarly gyrating physicality far more interesting than her delivery of dialog. She's a brunette here, and proves herself once again filmdom's definitive Scream Queen, on at least one occasion shrieking with no provocation whatsoever, as if in preparation for the horror to come.

For a 1932 movie, this one moves quickly. There are enough dour and sinister-looking suspects to keep one guessing the identity of the murderer till near the end. Curtiz shows an often sadistic sense of humor, as when several suspects are manacled to their chairs to witness reenactment of one of the murders, only to have the real killer turn up! The director's control of the material is complete, and he shows himself once more one of great unsung masters of the studio era.

Very early horror entry from Warner Brothers on the heels of Universal's success with Dracula and Frankenstein. Rather than use older, more costly period piece backdrops for their horror movie stories, Warner Brothers innovatively(and frugally I might add) decided to use modern settings and modern "monsters." Doctor X is a fast-paced thriller about a moon killer that strangles his victims and uses a very sharp surgical instrument to dissect them for...let's just say its seems for a late midnight snack. The story for its time is quite shocking, and director Michael Curtiz(of Casablanca fame) has obvious talent creating ominous moods, dark, barely-lit streets, and hands coming out of the darkness. Lionel Atwill, the oily/suave-British-character actor stalwart, plays Doctor X, a man who tries to find the moon killer from his scientific institution rather than have the police bring the school's name in the mud. Doctor X is himself a suspect and the cast of doctors along with John Wray and Preston Foster is an eccentric bunch indeed. Atwill and his scientific cronies give solid performances as does Fay Wray as Atwill's daughter and the love interest of reporter Lee Tracy. Tracy; however, tries to give more of a comedic turn as the stereotypical wise-cracking, joke-buzzer-in-hand reporter out to get a story no matter what. He really got on my nerves with his portrayal and obvious shortcomings as a thespian. But the film zips by and has a whole lot of punch for its day.

Very slow, creaky early two-color horror film. It's often paired with "Mystery of the Wax Museum". "Mystery" is very good--this isn't.

There is someone going around killing people and then (partially) devouring certain parts of their body. They only do it when there's a full moon out and all the murders happen near an academy run by Dr. Xavier (Lionel Atwill). The police are certain that the killer is one of the doctors at the academy. Xavier says he'll figure out who the killer is within 48 hours. News reporter Lee Taylor (Lee Tracy) tries to find out what's going on. Also Fay Wray is around as Xavier's daughter Joanne.

The story is VERY slow moving (even at 77 minutes) and full of plot holes, unexplained occurrences (I'm still trying to figure out who gassed Tracey and why he was where he was at the end) and truly bizarre situations. Ever worse is the alleged comedy from Tracy. He's just simply not funny and his wisecracks get on your nerves. The best part of the picture is the unmasking of the killer on a dark and stormy night in a castle(!!!). Lionel Atwill (an excellent actor) seems bored in the lead role and Fay Wray (another good actor) does her best but can't overcome the script. To cap it off Warner released in on DVD in a version that looks terrible. The two color Technicolor looks washed out so badly that some scenes appear to be in black & white!

On the plus side, it DOES look great and hearing Wray rip out a few good, loud screams is always kind of fun. And Max Factor did the makeup! Still it's really slow going. "Ssssynthetic flessshhh!"

As a collector of old mystery-horror-comedy films (over 700 in my collection!), "Dr. X" (& "Night Monster") rank as my Top Two Films of All-Time! And, that's quite a statement!

Why? The marvellously spooky sets by Anton Grot, the superstitious antics of the maid, plus the ad-libbing of Lee Tracey make this film a gem! The entire film is extremely "atmospheric" and the effects of the "monster" shadows on the walls, clutching hands, wind (machines!), and all the rest really add to it!

Sometimes I watch this film just to observe the SETS!

(If you see it, watch the scene where Lee Tracey is trying to get into the house on Blackstone Shoals....the "wind" is howling like crazy, but not many of the trees are moving! I LOVE it!)

If possible, try to watch this film in the original tri-color technicolor version, as it's a lot better!

A wonderfully creepy film!

...Seriously! This girl (Fay Wray) needs some heavy duty nerve tonic! Dad on a ladder in the library frightens her but a stranger found ransacking her bedroom is subject to catty teasing remarks? Somebody lecture this woman on stranger danger. But I'll get back to that later. First some background on the film.

This and "Mystery of the Wax Museum" were made as horror movies because Warner Brothers was on the hook to the Technicolor corporation to make two more two strip technicolor films. These were planned to be musicals, but with musicals out of favor, they decided to make them horror films instead. Wax Museum was pretty good, but this film turned out neither scary nor suspenseful.

The "moon killer" is killing somebody by the light of the full moon every full moon. The victims have all been strangled and had a surgical instrument inserted at the base of the skull. The latest victim has been cannibalized. Apparently, after the sixth victim six months into this, the police decide to get serious about this spree. Why now? Why not after the third victim three months ago? Question never asked or answered. The police have traced the surgical instrument involved in the murders down as something only sold to and used at Dr. Xavier's (Lionel Atwill's) research institute, thus somebody at the institute must be the murderer. Dr. Xavier doesn't want any publicity, so he gets the police to...agree to let him do the investigation??? And why did they let somebody who they already suspect - Dr. Xavier - autopsy the sixth victim? What kind of police department is this? But I digress.

Meanwhile there is a fast talking reporter (Lee Tracy) investigating this without Tracy's trademark finesse and rapid fire delivery which he develops later in his career. He actually goofs up quite a bit and isn't the wily fellow he is in "Blessed Event" or "Bombshell". And what is his obsession with that hand buzzer of his?

The good things about this film - Lionel Atwill is always scary and ambiguous in these old horror films even if the film itself is not. The art design is very good considering Warner Brothers was just a poverty row outfit five years before. Michael Curtiz' crisp direction goes a long way given the mediocre plot line he is given to work with. But maybe a plot where looking into the night sky lit up by the moon is a key part of several scenes was a bad idea when that sky can only look slimy green given the technology of the time.

Probably worth a look for Lee Tracy fans, and who isn't one?

Oof. Not a good one, even for the camp value. The premise is interesting enough: a "Moon Killer" is on the loose, murdering and surgically cutting off portions of his victims. This leads police to Dr. Xavier and his assistants, all of whom become suspects, and the laboratories these men use have all the requisite special effects circa 1932. The biggest problem with the film is Lee Tracy, who plays a snooping newspaper reporter who clowns around, makes lame jokes, and repeatedly uses an asinine hand buzzer. The film is quite tedious to sit through, and several scenes seem elongated or 'filler' even for a total run time of 77 minutes. Another issue is that despite the use of darkness, shadows, and ominous faces, there really is no tension. The film is predictable and character motivations are absurd, so that even if you suspend disbelief and accept Dr. Xavier's theory about detecting the killer through an elaborate experiment measuring anatomical reaction, you still end up thinking, man, this is so stupid. At least I did anyway. I'm surprised others find it 'creepy' - even the slathering on of "synthetic flesh" does not produce a reaction of horror, as other great films in this genre will. Silly and annoying right up to that last scene at the end.

DOCTOR X (First National, 1932), directed by Michael Curtiz, capitalizes on the current horror trend made popular by Universal's 1931 releases of Dracula and FRANKENSTEIN. What makes DOCTOR X stand apart with similar products distributed by other studios was its two-strip Technicolor process, considering how color was a rarity and quite costly for its time. Equally rare was the use of color for one categorized as a horror film instead of a musical. While the title DOCTOR X indicates a "mad doctor" theme, especially with Lionel Atwill heading the cast, in true essence is a mystery-comedy with horror elements and science fiction thrown in along with Fay Wray belting out a few screams for good measure.

Plot summary: Six brutal killings have taken place at night only when the moon is full. An scrub woman is the latest victim. Lee Taylor (Lee Tracy), an inquisitive reporter for New York's Daily Record, enters the scene on the waterfront where he witnesses Doctor Xavier (Lionel Atwill), escorted by O'Halloran (Willard Robertson) and Police Commissioner Stevens (Robert Warwick), entering the Mott Street Morgue to examine the body. Because the murders were committed by a maniac with powerful hands near the vicinity of Xavier's Medical Academy of Surgical Research, all evidence points to Xavier's staff. Hoping to clear his academy of a scandal, Xavier asks Stevens for 48 hours to conduct his own investigation. With Taylor constantly snooping around Long Island's Blackstone Shoals estate where the investigations are to take place, Xavier has his beautiful daughter, Joanne (Fay Wray) attract his attention while having his medical staff handcuffed on chairs bound to the floor while staging a re-enactment of the crimes in hope that the mechanism they are connected to (an early indication of a lie detector) will reveal the killer through his heart beat reactions. It is soon discovered there is a killer among them when one of the members participating in the reenactment was murdered during a sudden blackout.

In the supporting cast are Preston Foster (Professor Ben Welles, a one-armed medical student); John Wray (Doctor Haines); Arthur Edmund Carewe (Doctor Rowitz); Harry Beresford (the wheelchair bound Professor Duke); Leila Bennett (Mamie, the frightful maid); George Rosener (Otto, the mysterious butler); Mae Busch (appearing briefly as a boarding house Madame); and Thomas E. Jackson (The Newspaper Editor).

The weakness of DOCTOR X is often accredited to the silly antics provided by Lee Tracy, typically cast as a wisecracking reporter who uses a buzzer placed onto his palm to shock an unsuspecting victims as Mike the Cop (Harry Holman) and Xavier's daughter (Wray) by placing the buzzard onto her bottom; along with he hiding in a slab of the morgue with a name tag placed on his toe, followed by him roaming the laboratory surrounded with dangling skeletons. The strong point of the story, however, is the way the mystery and suspense is handled, from hideous figure lurking about in a dark cloak with hands with long finger nails seen slowly clutching the throat of intended victims to a mysterious eye peeking through the hole on the door; climaxed by the killer's horrific transformation through the use of "synthetic flesh," one of the greatest, yet gruesome moments captured on film, even more effective in color.

During the days of commercial television, DOCTOR X aired in black and white. A perennial favorite on New York City's "Chiller Theater" on WPIX, Channel 11, from the 1960s to 1977, it would be another decade before DOCTOR X turned up on the airwaves again, this time with early Technicolor prints acquired from UCLA Film Archives, on cable TV's Turner Network Television (1988-1993), Turner Classic Movies (1994-present), and further availability on video cassette in the 1990s and then DVD. In one of the briefings by TCM's host, Bob Osborne, he mentioned that Technicolor prints of DOCTOR X were few, having circulated in big cities like New York and Chicago, while black and white prints played at smaller theaters in other areas. Fortunately, DOCTOR X has survived in Technicolor, make this a worth while event, thanks to interesting make-up effects by the Max Factor Corporation, lavish sets by Anton Grot, a chance seeing classic film actors usually not associated in Technicolor, notably Fay Wray and her reddish brown hair.

With the obvious success by 1932 standards of DOCTOR X, Atwill and Wray would work together again in more of the same with 1933 releases of THE VAMPIRE BAT (Majestic) and MYSTERY OF THE WAX MUSEUM (Warner Brothers). Seven years later, Warners turned out a sequel in name only titled THE RETURN OF DOCTOR X (Warners, 1939). Instead of bringing back Tracy, Wray and Atwill, the new leads were enacted by Wayne Morris as the comical reporter, Rosemary Lane the heroine, and Humphrey Bogart (!) as a zombie, formerly Doctor Maurice Xavier brought back to life not through the use of synthetic flesh, but by synthetic blood. A missed opportunity for Lionel Atwill, the one and only Doctor X, or was it? (***)

The fact that Doctor X was shot in color was pretty rare in 1932 with most of the studios existing from day to day during the Depression. Very few had money to splurge on something like this. Knowing that I'm surprised Warner Brothers didn't bother to use it on one of their Busby Berkeley spectaculars.

There have been a string of mutilation killings in New York, really horrible stuff and forensics has determined the weapon used was a special kind of surgical scalpel only in use at a particular scientific institute. The one headed by Doctor Xavier the Doctor X of the movie title.

Atwill's got some pull with the cops because they allow him 48 hours to find who the killer is and save his institute some scandalous press. The press is in the form of Lee Tracy a determined reporter who sneaks into the institute looking for the inside scoop. He meets up with Fay Wray who is Atwill's daughter, but even she doesn't deter him from his mission.

Horror stories were not the Warner Brothers specialty and when you consider what was coming out of Universal at the time, Dracula, Frankenstein, and The Mummy, Doctor X looks pretty second rate besides them. No monsters in this film except the truly monstrous human being who is doing all the homicides.

Warner Brothers seven years later did The Return Of Doctor X which has absolutely nothing to do with this film and provided Humphrey Bogart with one of the worst roles in his career. Next to that one, Doctor X is like Citizen Kane.

A story full of plot holes,mad scientists and the perennial old dark house are the ingredients in this old campy horror flick/murder mystery. Made in the two-strip technicolor process this movie is quite an oddity. An annoying performance by Lee Tracy and some hammy acting can't take away the pleasure of watching this creaky horror melodrama. The sets remind me a bit of the German horror movies of the silent era like "The Cabinet of Dr.Caligari". Fay Wray as the female lead hasn't much to do than look lovely and do her legendary screams.Preston Foster in one of his early important roles does quite nice.An enjoyable campy horror-flick.

"Doctor X" is probably best remembered as an early two strip Technicolor movie (it was also filmed simultaneously in B & W) rather than as the horror/comedy its supposed to be. Granted, the settings and the color photography are excellent, I just didn't like picture all that much overall. The film could have been a great horror film but for the comical interludes that we find throughout. Director Michael Curtiz did the best he could with a weak and confusing script.

The "full moon strangler" has been murdering people during full moons and removing parts of the victims' flesh. Cannibalism? Hmmmm. Police Commissioner Stevens (Robert Warwick) has traced the suspected killer to the Academy of Surgical Research run by a Doctor Xavier (Doctor X--get it?). The suspects include Dr. Wells (Preston Foster), Dr. Haines (John Wray), Dr. Duke (Harry Baresford) and Dr. Rowitz (Arthur Edmund Carewe). All are engaged in various areas of medical research. One is identified as an expert in the the area of cannibalism so its not too difficult to identify the killer early on.

Thrown in with the horror element is comedy relief, provided by Lee Tracy as Reporter Lee Taylor and Leila Bennet as the Xavier's maid. For the romantic interest and plenty of screams is brunette Fay Wray as Xavier's daughter Joan. Although some laud the comedic segments, I for one feel that it spoils the whole film. It plays like a Bob Hope comedy a few years down the road.

The transformation of one of the doctors into the full-moon strangler is well done and the best part of the picture (synthetic flesh...ha, ha, ha). It reminds one of a similar sequence in "Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde" released the same year. The scene where all of the doctors are all shackled in order to watch a re-enactment of the crime makes no sense to me at all.

Lionel Atwill is totally wasted hereto . He has nothing to do but roam between the various laboratories and comfort his nervous daughter. He would do much better in "Mystery of the Wax Museum", also in color, released the following year.Tracy is totally out of place as the wise cracking reporter. As I have said, without the comedic elements, this could have been a horror classic. And in pre-production code Hollywood, watch for Mae Busch as the Madame of an obvious house of ill repute.

A creepy laboratory where eccentric doctors engage in bizarre experiments. An intrepid reporter & a beautiful young woman involving themselves in terrible danger. And a fiendish strangler who only strikes during the full moon...

DOCTOR X does have an absurd plot, but it is undeniably entertaining to watch. Much of the credit for this must go to the look of the film. Art Director Anton Grot designed some very spooky interior sets. The Max Factor make-up is striking. And both elements are enhanced because this was one of the first movies to be shot in two-strip Technicolor.

Lee Tracy, one of the most enjoyable actors of the early 1930's, plays another in his long line of fast-talking wise-crackers - this time a newspaperman out to get a big story. Fay Wray is lovely as always & gets to use her famous scream (a year before KING KONG). Lionel Atwill hams it up a bit as the instigator of many of the more unusual elements in the plot.

What is the secret of Doctor Xavier's Academy of Surgical Research, where nearby a grisly murder occurs each month during the full moon? The mystery shouldn't be spoiled here, but it involves cannibalism, sleeping gas, schizophrenia, and synthetic flesh. All this is more than enough to keep wisecracking ace reporter Lee Tracy busy, with two or three interludes reserved for dalliance with Fay Wray. Goodness knows if this macabre Vitaphone curiosity was meant to be taken seriously, but the restored two-tone Technicolor print is enormously entertaining when seen today. The film's thick Gothic mood and décor (with all it's flashing and crackling laboratory hardware) will certainly recommend it to fans of early Hollywood horror esoterica.

Doctor X isn't the story of just one but five mad scientists, all complete with mad scientist laboratories: simmering flasks, bubbling beakers, sizzling Jacob's Ladders, popping power breakers & crazy theories. Director Michael Curtiz (Casablanca, Captain Blood, Yankee Doodle Dandee) uses shadow effectively to throw us red herrings, cast menace and provide a rich atmosphere. Lionel Atwill is Doctor X (Xavier), owner of a seaside mansion that is home to four more great scientists happily working away until a series of murders throws suspicion on the gaggle of geeks. Lee Tracy is a newspaper reporter with a fondness for practical jokes (hand buzzer, exploding cigars) looking for a scoop and determined to do anything to get it. Fay Ray is Joanne Xavier, Doctor X's daughter. Here she is strong, determined, confident and independent; although still gets some opportunities to exercise her exquisite screams. Fay Ray could display an unmatched sensuous vulnerability that played so well in King Kong and which we get to see for a few seconds near the end of Doctor X. The downside is that the story is preposterous, sometimes goofy and has trouble deciding if it wants to be a comedy or suspenseful thriller. Doctor X, determined to prevent bad press, rigs a silly experiment to find the killer himself and when the experiment goes fatally wrong, decides to up the ante and do it again. What I found implausible is that the other scientists would risk their lives, again, and that Doctor X would risk his daughter's life without adequate precautions but that is what happens. In a dark comedy this would work but here it just seems silly. Lee Tracy's many scenes of practical jokes not only drags the pace but seem out of place against the otherwise dark and serious tone.