OneView
Some films are known more for the trivia associated with them than their actual content - The Thirteenth Chair (1929) being one of them. As the first sound film for director Tod Browning and his first collaboration with the Hungarian emigre actor Bela Lugosi it is these points of interest in a film a few years before Dracula (1931) that draw most attention.Browning seems very restricted by the early sound recording systems and this very theatrical film plays out mostly on a single set in prolonged wide shots. The opening scene as a mysterious figure enters a building and almost steps on a pool of blood left by a murder victim is handled with some style but is one of the few visual treats in a very static film. Lugosi is very engaged in his part, talking much faster and with greater passion than his lugubrious Dracula performance, indicating the latter was very much an interpretation of his original stage part. His dramatic confrontation with the suspects is full of passion and a certain intensity.
Of the remaining cast John Davidson as Edward Wales is the sole standout, bringing a creepy intensity and mystery to his role, which is portrayed as one of mystery.Existing prints of this film are fairly washed out and damaged which reduces the ability of the modern viewer to identify clearly what is going on. A full restoration might be of benefit if quality elements exist but this is far from being the forgotten masterpiece of early sound horror that a viewer might have hoped for.
gridoon2018
"The Thirteenth Chair" is an early teaming of director Tod Browning and actor Bela Lugosi; two years later, they made the classic "Dracula". So I suppose it holds a lot of interest for film buffs, especially those who want to see Lugosi in a rare "heroic" (he's the police inspector, and he is quite commanding) role. The script was based on a play by Bayard Veiller, and the film is really little more than a filmed stage play; it is certainly more palatable than "The Trial Of Mary Dugan", another MGM film I saw yesterday, also made in 1929 and based on a play by Veiller (that one was also directed by him - if that's the right term, he basically just turned the camera on), but still very talky and draggy, and the way the murderer suddenly breaks down and confesses at the end is unbelievable. It does get points, however, for actually USING sound cinematically - in certain scenes the screen goes black and what matters is what you can hear. ** out of 4.
bkoganbing
When sound came to the motion picture there must have been a scramble for written material of any kind for the studios. Once it was proved it could be done, the public wanted to hear their screen idols speak and they had to have dialog.What works on stage did not often work on screen and when The Thirteenth Chair was made the studios were still getting sound right. We got all kinds of dialog, but here it was all kind of static and dull. And the cast generally overacts in this filmTwo performers here stand out. Margaret Wycherly best known as the mothers of Alvin York and Cody Jarrett later on was in the original cast on Broadway when it opened in 1916. She plays a psychic medium who is brought in to solve a murder already committed. During the séance the guy who arranged the séance is also dispatched. After that the cops call in.Lots of mysteries always have that climatic scene where the detective gathers the suspects be it Nick Charles or Jane Marple. But this is a film where the whole film is that scene. The other actor is Bela Lugosi who in this mystery set in British India speaks that marvelous Hungarian as a Scotland Yard detective.Lugosi acquits himself well, but he's just so well known in those horror films I expected him to be the murderer.Everybody overacts, but they were learning on the job the art of acting in talking pictures.
preppy-3
Early talkie feature based on a popular stage play. A murder has been committed and a bunch of people hire a medium to conduct a séance to see who the murderer is. While the lights are out there's ANOTHER murder...so it's someone in that room.What follows is an obvious, dull and creaky murder mystery. Most of the cast overacts to a ridiculous degree. They act like they're on stage (where you have to overdo things) and it looks silly on screen. Most embarrassing is Bela Lugosi (two years before "Dracula") who REALLY overdoes it as a police inspector. Static direction by Tod Browning (who was always overrated) doesn't help.For Browning and Lugosi completists only. I give it a 3.
AD
