66 Days To Halloween- 1953 The House of Wax

Over the next 100 days, I will present one movie of significances in horror, suspense or thrillers for each year from 1919 to 2018. The next film presented here is the pre-Hays Code 1930 mystery thriller "The Cat Creeps" starring Helen Twelvetrees, Raymond Hackett and directed by Rupert Julian.

House of Wax- (1953)

Dir- Andre DeToth

Vincent Price plays a mad sculptor who produces superbly realistic wax figures for his museum. With the adoration of his patrons, no one is aware that the sculptures are real humans dipped in wax. The movie makes good use of the surroundings to create an atmosphere reminiscent of 19th century Victorian London. Although the film was based on the 1930's film Mystery of the Wax Museum, House of Wax makes a radical change in the story by employing a finale more reminiscent of Phantom of the Opera. A film that seems to bank entirely on the performance of its star and, in this case, was quite successful.