The Body Snatcher (film)
| The Body Snatcher | |
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 theatrical poster |
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| Directed by | Robert Wise |
| Produced by | Val Lewton |
| Written by | Robert Louis Stevenson (story) Philip MacDonald Val Lewton |
| Starring | Boris Karloff Bela Lugosi Henry Daniell Edith Atwater |
| Music by | Roy Webb |
| Cinematography | Robert De Grasse |
| Editing by | J.R. Whittredge |
| Distributed by | RKO Radio Pictures |
| Release date(s) | May 25, 1945 |
| Running time | 77 minutes |
| Country | United States |
| Language | English |
The Body Snatcher is a 1945 horror film directed by Robert Wise based on the short story The Body Snatcher by Robert Louis Stevenson. The film's producer Val Lewton helped adapt the story for the screen, writing under the pen name of "Carlos Keith". The film was marketed with the tagline The screen's last word in shock sensation!. The frequent mentions of Burke, Hare, and Dr. Knox, all refer to the West Port murders in 1828. This would be the last film to feature both Boris Karloff and Bela Lugosi.[1]
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[edit] Plot
In Edinburgh in 1831, one year before the Anatomy Act was passed, a surgeon (Henry Daniell) hires a cabman (Boris Karloff) to dig up graves to provide him with fresh corpses for dissection – but the body provider turns to murder to get new corpses for the doctor.
[edit] Cast
- Boris Karloff as Cabman John Gray
- Béla Lugosi as Joseph
- Henry Daniell as Dr. Wolfe "Toddy" MacFarlane
- Edith Atwater as Meg Camden
- Russell Wade as Donald Fettes
- Rita Corday as Mrs. Marsh
- Sharyn Moffett as Georgina Marsh
- Donna Lee - Street singer
[edit] DVD release
The film was released for the first time on DVD in 2005, along with I Walked with a Zombie, as part of the Val Lewton Horror Collection.
[edit] See also
[edit] Notes
- ^ Mank, p. 516
[edit] References
- Mank, Gregory (2009). Bela Lugosi and Boris Karloff: the expanded story of a haunting collaboration, with a complete filmography of their films together. McFarland & Company. ISBN 0-7864-3480-5.
[edit] External links
- The Body Snatcher at the Internet Movie Database
- The Body Snatcher at the TCM Movie Database
- The Body Snatcher at AllRovi
- The Body Snacther at Rotten Tomatoes
- The Body Snatcher Bibliography
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