Horror Extreme Movie Catalog

Filmed in '58, 'The Haunted Strangler' is a somewhat entertaining English horror/murder mystery from '58 starring the legendary Boris Karloff.

Plot: Set in London, England circa 1860, accomplished writer James Rankin (Boris Karloff) develops an obsessive interest in a twenty year old series of can-can girl killings. His investigation into the matter eventually unveils a harsh (and I might say totally expected) reality bringing dire and deadly circumstances when the truth is finally uncovered.

While Boris Karloff delivers a fine performance, the real interest in this now OOP DVD is the presence of the very sexy Vera Day in the role of the ill-fated Pearl, the first victim in a new series of killings. Vera was a very popular model in England in the mid-to-late fifties. Of the few films she appeared in, 'The Haunted Strangler' is the most successful at showing this incredible beauty to the appreciative audience.

This movie -also known as Grip of the Strangler-marked the great Boris's return to the UK to make a movie after a 20 year gap and it is a somewhat neglected and capable little movie .
He plays a Victorian writer obsessed with a 20 year old murder case ,that of "The Haymarket Strangler" .A man was convicted of murdering a number of women in the Haymarket area of London and summarily executed for the crimes .The writer is unpersuaded of the deceased's guilt and re-opens the case ,claiming the real killer is still at large
He takes on the personality of the strangler and begins killing .The mystery reaches its climax in a bleak and wintery graveyard where the truth is revealed .
The star did this kind of Jekyll and Hyde role more than once in his career -as per The Body Snatcher and also The Black Room .He was able to suggest a divided personality without recourse to elaborate make-up merely by a subtle facial reconfiguration -the sign of an assured professional..He gives a subtle and measured performance aided by a literate script from Jan Read and vivid monochrome photography by Lionel Barnes

This is neat little movie and merits viewing as an example of the horror movie which shows us that the monster can be internal rather than some ravening werewolf or vampire