Considering the fact that it was directed by Ed Wood, the man responsible for what's supposed to be the worst movie of all time ("Plan 9 from Outer Space"), "Bride of the Monster" is a surprisingly competent and even watchable effort. As the last in a long line of Poverty Row mad doctor films starring Bela Lugosi, it's far from conspicuously terrible; in fact, we find Lugosi in above-average form. (He pulls out all the stops in his confrontation with George Becwar, delivering a fine, emotionally convincing performance that may have been the high point of his career.) The only thing that significantly mars this film is the flaccid octopus, and with better judgment Wood might have left those scenes to the viewer's imagination.
Not a work of art, but if you're watching something with a title like "Bride of the Monster," art isn't what you're after. As a horror/sci-fi potboiler it works just fine.
Not a work of art, but if you're watching something with a title like "Bride of the Monster," art isn't what you're after. As a horror/sci-fi potboiler it works just fine.