Before filming beloved classics such as Captain Blood, White Christmas and Casablanca, director Michael Curtiz shook things up at Warner Bros. in the early 1930s with two early Technicolor horror films, Doctor X and Mystery of the Wax Museum. The latter pre-Code film was the last studio feature to use the two-color Technicolor Process 3 system, which combined red and green dyes to create a color image with a reduced spectrum. While long thought to be a lost film due to the original negatives being junked by Technicolor, history has been mercifully kind to cinephiles as copies have been found and preserved over the years. A massive restoration process has recently been undertaken to restore the film to the glory that it deserves. While the film has been remade various times, most famously as Vincent Price’s House of Wax, Mystery of the Wax Museum offers up a fascinating initial adaptation of the story that can finally be seen beautifully restored with this new Blu-Ray.
The film begins in 1921 at a London wax museum owned by talented sculptor Ivan Igor (Lionel Atwill). The museum is filled with lovingly crafted pieces depicting figures such as Joan of Arc and Marie Antionette, but interest has been waning due to the lack of macabre content that has captured the attention of the time. Although he gets a personal boost when an investor offers to submit his work to the Royal Academy, Igor’s business partner, Joe Worth (Edwin Maxwell), suggests that they burn down the museum for the insurance money. Actually, it is more than a suggestion, as Joe promptly sets the museum on fire only moments later with Igor still inside. The fiery special effects are quite thrilling to behold, and make you believe that it must have been a dangerous day on the set. We pick up twelve years later in New York in 1933 where we learn Igor survived, but is now confined to a wheelchair and unable to sculpt. With the help of assistants, including the talented Professor Darcy (Arthur Carewe), Igor is opening up a new wax museum with figures that hold a disturbing secret.
This may or may not have some kind of connection to the missing body of a young supermodel, Joan Gale (Monica Bannister), who recently committed suicide. Intrepid young reporter Florence Dempsey (Glenda Farrell) is hot on the heels of this story, as she is in desperate need of a juicy scoop where she can keep her job. Lucky for Florence, her roommate is Charlotte Duncan (Fay Wray), whose fiancé Ralph (Allen Vincent) works at Igor’s new wax museum. During a visit to the museum, Florence notices that Joan of Arc bares a strong resemblance to the missing supermodel, and things only get weirder from there. At less than 80-minutes, the film offers up an efficient building of tension through careful reveals that keep you guessing exactly how twisted the story might eventually get. You are given just enough characterization to keep you invested in whether or not our characters will make it out of the scenario still breathing.
Mystery of the Wax Museum features some solid performances from the entire cast, but special attention should be paid to the two main ladies and the versatile performance from Atwill as Igor. In a twisted way, you kind of feel for Igor as the joy in his life was snuffed out by an unscrupulous partner, but you obviously cannot condone the places his madness takes him. The fact that this is a pre-Code film is very important, as you get a real sense of darkness that simply was not allowed just a few years later. While it may be difficult to conceive of it through modern eyes, there are some truly horrific developments in this film that still get the pulse racing. The film also employs some very impressive makeup work that makes this film standout on a technical level. In terms of classic Hollywood horror, Mystery of the Wax Museum is a true knockout of a film that should appeal even beyond the typical cinephile.
Video Quality
This sparkling new 1080p Blu-Ray from Warner Archive is derived from a recent restoration led by the UCLA Film & Television Archive and The Film Foundation in association with Warner Bros. Home Entertainment. It is truly amazing to view a film that is nearly 90 years old and have it look so immaculate. The transfer is respectful of the original two-color process with some very strong contrast levels. There is a very nice amount of natural film grain with a nearly imperceptible amount of debris or damage to be found. The black levels look great and hold up well throughout, and there is no evidence of any compression artifacts. The level of shadow detail present here is a wonder to behold. Considering the brittle elements that the restoration team was working with, this effort is something truly magical. This transfer is a thing of beauty.
Audio Quality
Mystery of the Wax Museum is presented here with a DTS-HD 2.0 Master Audio mix, and it thankfully honors the original single channel presentation. Cliff Hess and Bernhard Kaun composed a very pleasing original score that is well balanced with the dialogue and background noises throughout. Dialogue is rendered crisp and clear in a way that is greatly appreciated. There is a minimal amount of age related hiss, but for the most part the audio presentation is pretty spectacular and free of issues. There are no signs of sync issues or anything else of the sort. Warner Archive does provide optional English (SDH) subtitles.
Special Features
- Audio Commentary #1: Film historian Alan K. Rode gives a factually rich dissection of the film that primarily focuses on it from a historical perspective. Rode details the necessity of using actors for the wax figures in close-ups, Curtiz’s work ethic, Warner’s history with Technicolor, the boundary-pushing nature of the film and so much more. There is never a dull moment in this track, and you feel like you have just experienced a crash course in film history by the end of it. This is an essential listen to those interested in pre-Code Hollywood.
- Audio Commentary #2: Scott MacQueen, head of preservation for UCLA’s Film & Television Archive, provides a commentary track that focuses more on the restoration of the film, as well as thoughts pertaining to what is occurring on-screen. Actresses Glenda Farrell and Fay Wray also contribute to this commentary occasionally with the help of vintage audio interview clips. There are some anecdotes shared between the two tracks, but both are worth a listen.
- Remembering Fay Wray: A newly-produced 19-minute interview with Fay Wray’s daughter, Victoria Riskin, in which she shares a lot of fascinating information about her mother. Riskin candidly discusses her mother’s career from being loaned out by Paramount, trying to avoid being typecast, her detached relationship with director Michael Curtiz and more. In addition to the stories, you get many interesting stills and publicity photos interspersed throughout. This is a lovely tribute to the actress that should be appreciated by any classic film fan.
- Before And After Restoration Comparison: A seven-minute featurette which gives you a very enlightening comparison to before and after the new restoration with comments about the restoration by Scott MacQueen. Not to beat the point into the ground, but the work done on this was impeccable.
Final Thoughts
While it would be easy to get wrapped-up in the incredibly impressive restoration effort that rescued Mystery of the Wax Museum from oblivion, it is also important to remember that the film itself is quite excellent. The movie offers up suspense and thrills that should be impactful to even the most jaded modern audiences. Warner Archive has simply knocked it out of the park with this new Blu-Ray in all respects. This is an essential disc to anyone with even a fleeting interest in early horror films. Highly Recommended
Mystery of the Wax Museum is currently available to purchase on Blu-Ray.
Note: Images presented in this review are not reflective of the image quality of the Blu-Ray.
Disclaimer: Warner Archive has supplied a copy of this disc free of charge for review purposes. All opinions in this review are the honest reactions of the author.
Make sure to check out our podcasts each week including Geek Vibes Live, Top 10 with Tia, Wrestling Geeks Alliance and more!
Dillon is most comfortable sitting around in a theatre all day watching both big budget and independent movies.
