Mon 28 Aug 2017
A Horror Movie Review by Dan Stumpf: THE MAD DOCTOR OF MARKET STREET (1942).
Posted by Steve under Horror movies , Reviews[4] Comments
THE MAD DOCTOR OF MARKET STREET. Universal, 1942. Lionel Atwill, Una Merkel, Claire Dodd, Nat Pendleton, Richard Davies, Noble Johnson, Ray Mala. Produced by Paul Malvern. Written by Al Martin. Directed by Joseph H. Lewis.
The good news is that this predestined 2nd-feature was done by people who knew their way around cheap movies. Producer Paul Malvern started out at Monogram with Duke Wayne’s Lone Star series, and went on to memorable kitsch like House of Dracula (far from the best in the series, but showing fine use of stock footage and contract players).
Writer Al Martin’s resumé is less distinguished, but director Joseph H. Lewis (who would go on to Gun Crazy and beyond) had lavished bizarre camera angles and punchy editing on low-budget movies for half a decade by the time this trifle fell onto his plate.
And then there’s the cast: Lionel Atwill at his supercilious best; Una Merkel ditzy as ever; Nat Pendleton clueless as always, and Noble Johnson playing a nasty Native Chief as one to the manner born. The only downside is that the film itself isn’t much good.
That is to say, I enjoyed it, and you might too, but there are definitely some Quality Control issues here. For one thing, there’s no Monster in this purported Horror Film, and that’s always a bit of a let-down for those of us who used to stay up late watching “Shock Theater†or the local equivalent thereof – indeed it was not until my later years, with mature critical sensibilities, that I learned to appreciate this work on its own terms, such as they are.
For another thing, Merkel and Pendleton are fine comedy performers, but they don’t have a funny line between them. And finally, the story tends to meander a bit, starting with a bit of Mad Doctoring in Frisco, then the hunt for a fugitive killer aboard a luxury liner, a little dab of shipwreck, and then some testy diplomacy with Island Natives who evince a taste for human sacrifice.
Well. it certainly moves around a lot, and like I say, Mad Doctor of Market Street carries this nonsense with a certain amount of style. There’s a particularly fine second or two toward the end, when Lewis’ camera pans in on Atwill’s terrified expression as he realizes the jig is up, a perfect confluence of fine acting and skillful direction. And if it seems wasted on a dumb picture like this, well, like I say: It’s still fun.
August 28th, 2017 at 6:39 pm
Needs Mantan Moreland or Willie Best. Watchable, but only for moments.
Atwill deserved better.
August 28th, 2017 at 10:43 pm
This is what I think is a good review. Except for the cast, I never had a lot of interest in watching this film, but now I feel as though I’ve already seen it.
August 29th, 2017 at 11:22 am
I agree with both of the main points of this review, that:
1) This is not a successful film, especially by standards of traditional entertainment.
2) Joseph H. Lewis is a great director, and that he occasionally adds interesting personal touches to the direction here.
Lewis stuck relentlessly to a few genres throughout his very long career: Westerns, thrillers, spy films, and occasional sports or horse racing film. He never had much interest in comedy: Andrew Sarris said he had a “somber personality”. And he was far from any sort of horror film specialist.
He made many great films that are much much better than “Mad Doctor”.
My own take:
http://mikegrost.com/lewis.htm#Market
September 4th, 2017 at 1:49 pm
Y’know, this actually sounds better than I remember… I may have been mudddling memories of other, worse, and distinctly poverty-row films which contained the same elements.