Retro Thriller: The Man They Could Not Hang

Boris Karloff is well-known, and much beloved by, several generations of fans for his iconic portrayals of the Frankenstein Monster and The Mummy, and as the narrator of the classic animated holiday special How The Grinch Stole Christmas. Karloff was a versatile performer who played a variety of roles on the big and small screen, as well as on stage, but he's perhaps best remembered for his horror and thriller films. Between 1935 and 1942, Karloff, a prolific actor, made six films for Columbia Pictures, several of which feature him as a doctor or scientist who makes a revolutionary discovery, only to have his brilliant and groundbreaking work misunderstood by the authorities and the public, leading to terrible consequences.

The Man They Could Not Hang (1939) stars Karloff as Dr. Henryk Savaard, who is experimenting with a procedure that could resucictate the dead. This will allow doctors to perform difficult surgeries that couldn't be done with the patient alive. Savaard's idea is that the patient's life could be temporarily ended, and they could then be revived after the life-threatening surgeries are completed. When a medical student actually dies as a result of the authorities interfering with a test of his procedure, Savaard is put on trial for murder. He's convicted, and sentenced to hang. When Savaard's assistant Lang visits him in prison, the doctor signs a release allowing his body to be released for use in experiments after his death. Savaard, who's vowed that retribution will be visited upon those who convicted him, is hanged, and dies. Or does he?

In the weeks following Savaard's death, some of the jurors from his trial die under mysterious circumstances. Several remaining members of the jury receive a mysterious invitation to a gathering at Savaard's home, which ostensibly comes from the judge who presided at the trial. But when everyone arrives at the house, it turns out a now revived Savaard plans to visit a deadly revenge upon those who voted in favor of his death. Can any of them escape Savaard's wrath? The Man They Could Not Hang (1939) is a fascinating thriller, well directed by Nick Grinde, who also helmed two other entries in Karloff's "mad scientist" cycle for Columbia, The Man With Nine Lives (1940) and Before I Hang (1940). Karloff is excellent in the film, bringing a great deal of depth to his role as Savaard. The supporting cast, including Lorna Gray, Don Beddoe and Roger Pryor, are also quite good.

The "revenge" elements of the plot anticipate later films such as the Vincent Price vehicle The Abominable Dr. Phibes, and the medical aspects of the story are quite forward thinking. Karloff would play variations of this role in several more films for Columbia, ultimately spoofing this type of character in the final entry in the cycle, The Boogie Man Will Get You (1942), which also features Peter Lorre. Karloff is often quite underrated as an actor, and he managed to raise the profile of B films like this with his always terrific work. The Man They Could Not Hang is an entertaining thriller, with some fine cinematography by Benjamin Kline, that's highly recommended for fans of classic thrillers. Here's a look at a trailer for the Eureka Films (Region B encoded) release of Karloff's Columbia films: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ppSb01QNBRE.