Solidrariol Am I Missing Something?

Joanna Mccarty Amazing worth wacthing. So good. Biased but well made with many good points.

Celia A great movie, one of the best of this year. There was a bit of confusion at one point in the plot, but nothing serious.

Cody One of the best movies of the year! Incredible from the beginning to the end.

salvidienusorfitus It is a little hard to believe that the original play on which this film is based had over 100 performance. The story is silly and not very believable nor plausible. Johnny Arthur does well in spite of the lame script and is the lead actor in this comedy. Gertrude Olmstead didn't impress me very much as the love interest. She has a rather homely appearance. Lon Chaney seems also like a secondary character actor in this film. The special effects are poor and in a few cases laughably poor and unconvincing. Not one of Lon Chaney's best. Poor comedy and unbelievable story line.

sddavis63 The best known name in this is, of course, Lon Chaney, who plays Dr. Ziska - a mad scientist who has taken over a sanitarium and is performing experiments on poor unfortunates. The bulk of the movie, though, is carried by an actor named Johnny Arthur. He seems to have had a relatively lengthy (if not especially well known) career, that made the crossover from silents to talkies. This is a silent movie, of course, and Arthur was fine as a wannabe detective who's out to solve the mystery of a wealthy farmer who mysteriously disappeared one night. "The Monster" tried perhaps a bit too hard to be a combination comedy/suspense thriller. Some, I guess, would call it a horror movie, but it never really came across that way to me. In fact, the comedy elements seemed to predominate for the most part. It's irreverent and even at times slapstick in its approach. It uses the pretty standard setting of what seems to be more of a large house than a sanitarium to create a mystery - and, while at times it is mysterious, it never really (to me at least) became frightening, nor did the humour become truly funny. It caused a smile every now and then, I suppose. My biggest criticism would be that it took far too long (really until about the last 10-15 minutes of the movie) for us to get a real sense of what it was that Dr. Ziska was up to, and waiting for that became at times rather tiresome, as likable as all the main characters were.Chaney, who received top billing although his role was secondary (and maybe even less than that) did make Ziska mysterious and in some respects even threatening. The other primary members of the cast were Gertrude Olmstead as Betty, the wannabe detective's love interest, and Hallam Cooley, as his rival for Betty's affection. This was OK. Nothing more than that. I wouldn't consider it a silent classic, although it isn't difficult to watch. (4/10)

whpratt1 Lon Chaney, (Dr. Ziska) plays the role of a mad scientist who takes over a sanitarium full of lunatics and removes all the professional staff and begins to use the mental patients as his helpers in getting him bodies for his experiments. Johnny Arthur, (Johnny Goodlittle) plays the role as a sissy or pansy and has a great attraction for Betty Watson,(Gertrude Olmstead) who also seems attracted to him also. Johnny Goodlittle is also studying to become a detective and to prove himself as a successful crime expert. There is plenty of creepy looking characters and secret panels all over dark looking homes. The great actor, Lon Chaney gave an outstanding performance in a very great silent film from 1925 and there was also plenty of laughs. Don't miss this great film classic. Enjoy

ametaphysicalshark This 1925 silent film starring Lon Chaney and Johnny Arthur and directed by Roland West ("The Bat", "The Bat Whispers") is a harmless little horror-comedy about two men and a woman who get trapped in an old dark house with a mad scientist (the always excellent Chaney) and go through a series of perilous events caused by the scientist and his never ending supply of creepy servants. The acting is good and the production values are superb. Most of the comedy is funny and the creepy parts still hold up reasonably well. All in all, "The Monster" is no classic and certainly one of Lon Chaney's less remarkable films but it's still a decent, harmless film.