Isle of the Dead

Just not enough going on to keep the attention, now if Karloff played the crazy out a little sooner and a little better, I could have been wowed, or at least entertained. It also could have had a complete script work over, but it was enough to watch, I guess.

Middling Val Lewton horror film. Classy and literate with some lovely touches, but the pacing is off, and the ending is not quite successful.

The intriguing premise is butchered by the silly and incoherent screenplay. Karloff's undeniable charisma doesn't help much, when the material he has to work with is so sub-par. At least the film redeems itself slightly at the end, when it suddenly becomes actually spooky.

The last 15 minutes are creepy and very well done and save this from being a complete loss, but there's not enough in the first hour to really save it. Karloff is more "normal" than usual in this role, which is interesting to see. One thing that's kind of odd is that Karloff is treated as a madman while really, I think 95% of his behavior totally makes sense. He seems to be the only one other than the doctor urging reasonable precautions against a plague (sound familiar?)

Great acting from Karloff was not enough to save this from a middling plotline.

A great suspenseful concept with strong cinematography and decent performances. The plotting is sometimes a little haphazard and at times the film feels a bit lifeless, but the good parts make up for it.

Karloff puts on a great performance, as always, and the supporting cast is quite good. A slow, atmospheric movie that serves up a unique plot and deals with mythology that hasn't been touched upon in many other horror flicks.

Boris is superb in another atmospheric Val Lewton chiller. As usual with producer Lewton, the horror is hinted at rather than openly revealed, but the fog-enshrouded ambience here provides genuine visual chills.

Atmospheric to be sure, and Karloff is always good to watch. But none of the characters have believable motivation; they seem to be puppets to the writer, not actual individuals.

Lewton's incessant need to keep the audience unclear as to whether a threat is supernatural or not kills this. While this starts out as an "exploration" of how superstitions & intractable beliefs cause believers to behave badly/cruelly it grows even more needlessly & annoyingly opaque by the end. Arthouse types love to ponder over opacity but here it not only remains unclear as to whether or not there was a vampire, but the motivations of the only person we know is a killer are left unexplained.

"He said it was just a name!" "What he meant is that Isle of the Dead is actually an island."

Those expecting a graphic horror film will be disappointed, for it's the actual story that's chilling in Isle of the Dead without much aid of the visuals and any gimmicks attached to it. I guess you could say there more of a subtle touch to this Boris Karloff led mythic plot. And that in a way becomes the attraction. Just don't get your expectations wrong thinking this was some kind of Universal-style horror movie. This was done at RKO and comes across more sophisticated in its presentation.

The general mise-en-scène is decent but the film suffers from dullness which cannot be overlooked despite the short length which is a part of its charm.

Karloff is amazing, the rest of the cast does well also. The story moves slowly but i appreciated how it displays different approaches to death: faith, reason, boldness, fear, and the main event of the film - blame. This kept it interesting and while its a suspenseful drama not a horror film there are a couple scary moments in the fog once things get spooky. The ending was a fitting resolution.

76.500

The story itself is a little low on horror, but the atmosphere has it in spades. The last few minutes were legitimately creepy. As always Karloff gives a memorable performance. I love these Lewton flicks; they always deliver pretty much exactly what I was expecting and wanting. Short, sweet, and spooky.

Atmospheric and effect low-budget work with a fine, nuanced Karloff performance.

Karloff is great fun to watch in this typically atmospheric Val Lewton chiller. I suppose modern viewers would find this much too tame, but I prefer the power of suggestion and imagination over crass shock effects, gore, and the appalling modern subgenre of torture porn. ISLE OF THE DEAD is my kind of horror movie.

Subtle. Karloff is great.

One of the better Val Lewton "quiet horror" films