A Monster, A Girl and Multiple Genres

Have you ever seen a movie that's part courtroom drama, part gangster story, part noir tale, and part mad scientist thriller? If the answer is no, then you obviously haven't checked out 1941's The Monster and the Girl, which just might be the oddest mix of genres ever put together. The film opens with Susan Webster (played by Ellen Drew) facing the camera and telling her story in flashback. We begin in a big city courtroom where a man is on trial for murder. Susan is in the audience, and we learn that the defendant is her brother, Scot. He had traveled to the city to save her from the clutches of a gangster named Bruhl, who's forced her to work as a "bar hostess" aka prostitute. It turns out that the dead man is one of Bruhl's men, and Scot (Phillip Terry) was at the scene (where he ended up holding the murder weapon) when the thug was killed. Scot is found guilty, and sentenced to die, despite Susan's heartfelt appeal to the judge.

Paul Lukas & Ellen Drew

A reporter named Sam, who has been covering the trial, takes pity on Susan and tries to help her. Meanwhile, a scientist named Dr. Parry visits Scot in prison. He asks permission to use Scot's brain, after his death, for an experiment. A despondent Scot agrees, and is executed shortly thereafter. The doctor then transplants Scot's brain into a gorilla! What Parry doesn't count on is that the gorilla now has Scot's memories. The "monster" escapes and starts knocking off the members of Bruhl's gang, one by one. The police are baffled by these mysterious killings, in which all the victims are crushed to death. As the gorilla continues his murder spree, Scot's dog, who senses that the monster is Scot, loyally follows him around! Yes, folks, it's a boy and his dog story, too!

Sam and Susan investigate the killings. As the gang members continue to be eliminated, Bruhl suspects someone is targeting him. When Susan goes to confront the gang boss, will she be sealing her own fate? Can the gorilla/Scot complete his final revenge by killing those responsible for his death? It all comes together in the film's climax, which despite the numerous plot threads on display, runs barely over an hour. The solid cast features dependable character actors such as Paul Lukas, who portrays Bruhl, and George Zucco, as...(who else?)..the "mad" scientist, Dr. Parry. Onslow Stevens (House of Dracula), Joseph Calleia (Touch of Evil) and Robert Paige (Son of Dracula) also turn up in supporting roles.

This enjoyable movie, with its delightfully daffy patchwork of genres, features some effective cinematography by Victor Milner and solid direction by Stuart Heisler. The Monster and the Girl was recently celebrated on Turner Classic Movies by John Landis, who selected the film as one of his choices when he acted as a Guest Programmer for an evening last December. Writer-director Landis was very enthusiastic regarding his appreciation of the film, and had a lively conversation with host Ben Mankiewicz about the movie. Alas, the film is currently unavailable on home video, but it does occasionally turn up on some cable movie channels. If you're looking for something a little different in your movie diet, give The Monster and the Girl a try.