House of Wax (1953)

I watched this because of Vincent Price.  I didn't expect it to have so many cheap 3D gags such as the guy playing paddleball (a rubber ball attached with elastic to a wooden paddle that is the most frustrating game ever).  Luckily, we live in the future and have evolved way past needing 3D gimmicks for our films.  :)

So, this film is about Professor Jarrod, played by Vincent price, who is a talented sculptor.  He runs a wax museum and creates wonderful lifelike figures for it.  He focuses on real life people from history,  such as Joan of Arc and Cleopatra.  His business associate tries to get him to do a "Chamber of Horrors" to bring in the dollars, but Jarrod refuses to stoop that low.  The associate sets the place on fire, with Jarrod inside, in order to cash in on the insurance.

Jarrod escapes, but is badly burnt.  His face is disfigured and his hands are rendered useless.  He pretends to use a wheelchair, but that is so no one will suspect him when he goes on his nightly sprees for more victims.  It turns out that he is now using the bodies of real humans for his wax sculpture pieces!  He decides to use the beautiful Sue Ellen as his prized Marie Antoinette figure.  I see where this is going...

Jarrod's Mask
What's up with Professor Jarrod's mask?  He wears it a lot during the film to hide his burnt scarred face.  When he speaks his jaw moves normally, and the skin stretches and moves normally to show his expressions.  Yet when Sue Ellen punches him, it shatters!  It wasn't a rubber mask; it was made of wax and was hard.  How did his face move?

Back to film
That's it.  It was a simple story and a fun horror movie.  I have so much fun watching Vincent Price movies. This film was wonderfully terrible.  I will give it a 4/10.

PS: I have heard so much from friends about how great The Conjuring is!  I am so excited about watching this, but I may have to wait a while.