The Black Raven (1943)

Old dark house mystery from poverty row studio PRC starring George Zucco as a guy who runs a hotel on the American side of the Canadian border, where he helps criminals flee the country. One dark and stormy night a group of strangers stop at the hotel to wait out the bad weather. Then a crooked politician with connections to several people in the group shows up and promptly gets himself murdered.You had me at George Zucco, PRC. This is an enjoyable little B movie with a decent cast. In addition to the always terrific George Zucco, the cast includes Byron Foulger, Noel Madison, Wanda McKay, Charles Middleton, and Glenn Strange as Zucco's simpleminded sidekick. It's cheaply made and the story isn't particularly original, but it's just an hour so it won't kill you to give it a shot.

"You'll have to turn back! The bridge is washed out!" This is always followed by the friendly suggestion, "You can always stay at the Black Raven right down the street" With that raven's feather in his cap, the man turning drivers back sends these poor travelers possibly to their doom to this dark inn run by George Zucco. Among the travelers are a couple eloping against the will of her father and a single middle aged accountant heading to Canada on vacation. Before long, the bride to be (Wanda McKay) is confronted by her pompous father (Robert Middlemass) who also recognizes the single accountant (Byron Foulger) as an accused embezzler. Bizarre creeping figures make for a spooky evening as thunder and lightening darken the rain-soaked night. It's the spooky Glenn Strange lurking in the hallways, frightening Foulger while Zucco offers support to McKay's groom-to-be (Noel Madison). It's no shock when Middlemass is found dead, discovered right after the spooky music utilized in several PRC horror films is played over and over again.Cheezy fun, this dimly lit "Old Dark Inn" horror yarn is thrilling and short with the perfect atmosphere for murder and mayhem. I can just hear the director on the wind and rain machine barking "Faster!" to the technical workers on the set. "Oh dear, how did this happen?", suspect Foulger asks to which Zucco dryly replies, "Obviously, somebody didn't like him!" Zucco gets some really funny lines, telling one of his paranoid staff members, "With your mind, you could see the statue of liberty doing a conga!" Veteran film villain Charles Middleton goes onto the right side of the law for a change to play the sheriff, but when it comes down to it, on a dark and stormy night, anybody could have done it! There are a lot of patches of simply the suspects roaming around the hotel as the music plays with no dialog at all, and although this slows it down a bit, it really doesn't matter. It's all over in an hour, giving chills, laughs and overall, a memorably macabre atmosphere that ends up being harmless fun.

George Zucco runs a little country inn called the Black Raven. He himself is also known as the Black Raven—a mysterious underworld figure whose services include assistance to those hoping to slip quietly over the nearby border into Canada.He has guests: his former partner has busted out of prison to come and get revenge on him; a gangster on the lam (Noel Madison) wants help getting to Canada; a bank clerk (Byron Foulger) stops on his way to Canada with a briefcase full of money; and an eloping couple (Wanda McKay and Bob Livingston—billed here as Robt. Randall) stop for the night, or at least until the storm lets up. Hot in pursuit is the eloping girl's father, who also happens to be a powerful and shady political figure and a bitter rival of the fleeing gangster. When one of these guests turns up dead and the bag of money goes missing, the Raven has a house full of suspicious characters throwing around accusations and digging around for the money. The action moves along pretty fast and the plot mostly holds together. The dialog is never particularly original but contains a certain amount of dry humor— Foulger: "Oh, dear, how awful. How'd it happen?" Zucco: "Evidently someone didn't like him."Zucco is good and is basically the hero—although we know he operates outside of the law, he takes a certain interest in protecting the young couple in particular. Glenn Strange is the Raven's handyman; it's kind of funny to see him as comic relief, as he shivers at shadows and falls down stairs. Charles Middleton is also essentially a comic figure as the clueless sheriff. (Here he has the authoritative voice but none of the brains of the Emperor Ming.) The cast give enthusiastic performances, the storm effects and lighting create the right atmosphere…it's lots of fun.

Many people have found that most DVD editions of "The Black Raven" to be too dark in places and of overall poor quality. I've found a nice, bright restored version of it on a triple feature DVD called Black & Blue Collection which is available through the Roan Group.com. It's compiled with "Black Dragons" and the most perfect copy of "Bluebeard" that I've ever seen (other DVD's of "Bluebeard" on the market are too grainy, edited or have bad sound). Anyway, "The Black Raven" focuses on a group of people who are trying to get over the Canadian border for different reasons but are forced by a rainstorm and washed-out bridges to spend the night at the shadowy Black Raven Inn. The film has plenty of old dark house atmosphere plus the effective relentless howling of the wind and the pounding of the rain. George Zucco and Wanda McKay give good performances in this intriguing murder mystery. Enjoy it in its most perfect DVD edition. It really makes a difference!