Bela Lugosi Meets a Brooklyn Gorilla

Poster tagline: BROOKLYN CHUMPS BECOME ISLAND MONKEYS IN A JUNGLE FULL OF LAFFS! A HORROR FILM THAT WILL STIFFEN YOU WITH LAUGHTER!!! The star of horror icon Bela Lugosi was completely extinguished after the war, and he took every acting opportunity he could to make a living and keep his name from fading into the dust. This was supposed to be a return to the elite, but it ended up being an obscure affair that many critics overseas consider the worst Hollywood comedy of all time. As for the stupid script, it was still bearable, as was the directorial approach of Beaudin, who took things very seriously (he never repeated a scene), but the performance of stand-up comedian Sammy Petrillo almost caused me physical pain (Kevin Hart is a similarly awkward element nowadays), so it was hard to get through the 70 minutes. Otherwise, the rest is in keeping with the period: cute sets, terrible effects and a gorilla costume that must have been hilarious even at the time of its creation. Lugosi keeps throwing those shifty looks, having a go at a young girl like he did when he was younger, but it's obvious that he's probably tired of it. But you have to pay the rent somehow, right? In summary, I've seen a lot of similar crap from that period, but I'll repeat myself – Sammy Petrillo is evil in the making, and like Octavianus, I'd like to see some long martyrdom as satisfaction for the culture shock I'll be recovering from for a long time :o) (04/18/2015)