The Ghoul (1933)

Karloff is a wealthy Egyptologist who pays most of his fortune for a diamond he believes has the ability to bring him back to life, but this "eternal light" is later proven to just be a gemstone and nothing more. Lots of characters are after the diamond, though. This has a cast that includes the great Ernest Thesiger (as a butler to Karloff), Cedric Hardwicke (as Karloff's "manager of the books"), and Ralph Richardson (as a faux clergyman, actually just a conman who pulls quite a trick on Karloff through the use of a "Anubis hand close") in roles as greedy folks looking to capitalize on Karloff's death. Dorothy Hyson and Anthony Bushell are heirs to whatever fortune Karloff might have left, told by Hardwicke that he spent most of it on the diamond. They are drawn into the whole mess where plenty go after the diamond, with lots of guns pulled on each other to nab it. Harold Huth as an Arabian out to get the diamond, too, eventually has the same trouble as Richardson...there is always one more person wanting the diamond. I wish the print was better quality but the history of there even being a film, once considered lost, is quite a story. One found in Czechoslovakia, and another one eventually found in Shepperton Studios, The Ghoul (1933) found new life. This wasn't a big hit in the States but did okay in Great Britain where it was made. I learned that this film was Karloff's return to England during a contract/financial dispute with Universal Studios. There is just so much history about the legends of horror I'm afraid might eventually be lost to time as more people who lived then die. And there aren't a lot of them still alive. I often wonder what we currently have is either made up or dramatized for effect. I love reading about the greats from Universal, but, again, they're all gone now so I often wonder/ponder just what great stories go with them. I'll bet a lot of juicy stories on sets will never be revealed. Karloff in "The Ghoul" is ghoulish enough, and he looks like he might be a zombie, but a physician later tells a copper that he suffered from catalepsy. I think that detail is a bit of a groaner, because that supernatural aspect of a ghoulish Karloff strangling crooks is fun, but he's soon turned towards innocents like Hyson and her buddy, Kathleen Harrison (Mrs. Dilber of "A Christmas Carol" (1951); this was cool to see her so young), by the likes of Thesiger (who talks about how Karloff is a heathen, yet his supposed strict Christian comments prove false) and Huth. I wish this film wasn't so dark, because a lot of the big scenes, like the crypt climax and the streets of London, are murky and often hard to see. There's a lot of atmosphere, though. The story isn't too strong, unfortunately. Karloff in bed dying while Thesiger and Hardwicke await his demise patiently and uncaringly is pure horror of the 30s. I just can't say this film is a 30's classic gem in the horror mineshaft, but some fans of this era might feel differently. 2.5/5

***Big props to Turner Classic Movies for reminding me of "The Ghoul" since I hadn't seen it in several years. They keep these films alive. I worry of the day when the channel might not be available to those who could sure benefit from knowledge of these old films.***