Matrixston Wow! Such a good movie.

ChicRawIdol A brilliant film that helped define a genre

Ketrivie It isn't all that great, actually. Really cheesy and very predicable of how certain scenes are gonna turn play out. However, I guess that's the charm of it all, because I would consider this one of my guilty pleasures.

Sienna-Rose Mclaughlin The movie really just wants to entertain people.

lugonian THE MYSTERY OF EDWIN DROOD (Universal, 1935), directed by Stuart Walker, is a complete motion picture taken from an incomplete final story written by Charles Dickens (1812-1870). Being Universal's second contribution to Dickens' novels captured on film, the first being the little known nor seen GREAT EXPEXCTATIONS (1934) starring Henry Hull and Phillips Holmes, also directed by Stuart Walker, EDWIN DROOD contains many performers in the cast usually associated with horror movies of recent years, which somewhat explains why this production is often part of fright night/shock theater on commercial television during the 1960s and 1970s, as well as distribution on video cassette in 1996 as part of Universal Horror Classics. Bearing a fine cast of Claude Rains ("The Invisible Man" 1933); David Manners ("Dracula" (1931), "The Mummy" (1932) and "The Black Cat" (1934)); Valerie Hobson (1935 "Bride of Frankenstein" and "Werewolf of London"); E.E. Clive and Forrester Harvey (both from "The Invisible Man" and others), one cannot help but assume this to be a horror film. Though there are no monsters nor mad scientists involved, there is the frightening presence of an insanely jealous choirmaster who happens to be an opium addict (Rains), but its basically a story of jealousy and mystery story with a surprise twist.Set in 19th century England, the story revolves around John Jasper (Claude Rains), a cathedral choirmaster of Cloisteram desperately in love with his music pupil, Rosa Bud (Heather Angel), a beautiful girl just turned 18, engaged to marry his 21-year-old nephew, Edwin "Ned" Drood (David Manners). Entering the scene are Neville Landless (Douglass Montgomery), and his sister, Helena (Valerie Hobson), arriving from Ceylon on a carriage to live under the wing of the Rev. Mr. Crisparkle (Francis L. Sullivan) and his wife (Louise Carter). Neville meets and immediately falls in love with Rosa, which leads to heated anger and near fights between the two men. Neville finds Edwin's vanity intolerable and not worthy of Rosa's hand in marriage. With a reputation of having a violent temper, as told to Crisparkle, Neville, in a drunken rage, takes a knife to Edwin, but holds back his anger and goes away. Realizing he is right in his assumption, Edwin breaks his engagement to Rosa, with Edwin and Neville later parting simply as friends. Jasper, unaware about the broken engagement, spots Ned kissing Rosa as they part company, assuming their embrace to be love and affection. With careful planning, Jasper murders Ned on Christmas Eve. The following day Jasper reports Ned missing to the authorities and accuses Neville of his nephew's murder, even though Ned's body has yet to be found. While all the evidence is now against Neville, especially after leaving town and adding to his "guilt," Jasper posts a $200 pound reward on Neville's return and arrest. Later a mysterious white haired/-bearded old man named Mr. Thackeray arrives, arousing suspicion to John Jasper as to why this mysterious old man is so much interested in the mystery of Edwin Drood.Others seen in the cast include Zeffie Tilbury (the opium den hag who predicts harm will come to anyone by the name of "Ned"); E.E. Clive (Mayor Thomas Sapsea); Walter Kingsford (Grengious, Rosa's guardian); Forrester Harvey (Durdles); Georgie Ernest (The Boy Deputy); J.M. Kerrigan (Chief Vergon Tope); and Ethel Griffies (Miss Twinkledon). Look quickly for Walter Brennan appearing briefly as the cockney town gossip. Claude Rains is perfectly cast in the lead as John Jasper, the one whom Rosa Bud (Heather Angel) describes as one "haunting her thoughts like a dreadful ghost." Much of the story rightfully belongs to Montgomery, as the accused, who goes to extreme measures to clear himself of a crime for which he is innocent. While Hobson has little to do as Angel's roommate and companion, the story is also helped by the angelic beauty of Heather Angel and Edward Ward's stock background music.It's a wonder had Charles Dickens lived to complete his novel of "The Mystery of Edwin Drood," would he have come up with a surprise twist ending as depicted in this motion picture or something completely different? It's also a wonder how the 1914 silent screen adaptation to the same story was handled? Notably the novel had been completed and published in 1980 by another author over century after Dickens' death, yet this climax itself is enough to indicate its satisfying conclusion. Regardless the familiar background settings used in other horror films produced at the same time, this production does capture the essence of Gothic 19th century England and anything else associated with Dickens' work.Nearly forgotten through the absence from television revivals in later years, THE MYSTERY OF EDWIN DROOD did surface again on Turner Classic Movies (TCM premiere: December 5, 2011), and later on DVD as part of Universal's Vault Collection, the movie itself is a worthy rediscovery to an outlook of now forgotten films outside Frankenstein, Dracula or The Werewolf productions produced by Carl Laemmle's for which Universal is known for today. (***)

xerses13 Universal in 1935 took on 'The Mystery Of Edwin Drood' a uncompleted Dickens novel. This is the first sound version, after two (2) silent adaptations and made in their 'Classic Horror' style. The film featured their current stock company, including David Manners and Valerie Hobson and the powerful presence of free lancer Claude Rains. These are all professionals and deliver what is expected of them.As in the other 'Classic Horror' adaptations of the time this film has a certain look. Every studio had a 'look' for their efforts. Grimy streets for Warner Brothers gangster films, pristine palaces and with C. B. DeMille, washrooms at Paramount. M.G.M. all gloss and polish in almost every production and R.K.O. art-deco grace. With Universal, decrepit buildings, cobwebs, drawing rooms with lots of stuff to knock over with crisp cinematography.For details of the plot either watch the film or read one of the other reviewers, they give a blow by blow description and plenty of detail, more is not needed here. What can be said it is too bad that for some reason Universal keeps these films buried in their vaults along with some 600 films from Paramounts classic period. Shown today on TCM (12/05/2011) this is the first time I can recall seeing it since the early 1960s! It does not disappoint, the print being in excellent condition. Hopefully more of these efforts will be released for viewing on TCM and possibly DVD.

MartinHafer If you watch this film, FORCE YOURSELF NOT TO TURN IT OFF! Several times in the first few minutes I'd contemplated turning it off, as the film definitely started very slowly and felt a bit stilted. Fortunately, it improved--and the final half hour was terrific. Stick with this one.The film begins with Mr. Jasper (Claude Rains) hanging out in an opium den! Yet, when he leaves, he assumes a very respectable veneer and few would suspect that he's a major screwball. No, to outward appearances, he's a respectable gentleman and the last anyone would suspect of wickedness-- few, other than his niece, that is. She thinks he's a creepy man who is casting lustful glances her way. And, she's right--he wants her and in the worst way. However, Rosa Bud (yes, that is the character's name!) is engaged to marry Japser's nephew--Edwin Drood. And when Drood disappears and Jasper begins telling everyone his nephew is dead, suspicion falls on an innocent man, Landless (Douglass Montgomery). As the innocent man sees that the deck is stacked against him, he disappears and only comes back later in disguise--in order to investigate the crime himself. See the film to see what happens next.It seems that Charles Dickens died before he finished this, his final story. But, as people loved Dickens, it's not surprising several film studios decided to finish his story and make the film. In this case, it's never really in doubt that Rains was the killer--but in the book this was not the case. In fact, there's good evidence to suggest that Dickens had intended for Drood to return--alive and in one piece! But, even if this isn't Dickens' vision, the folks at Universal did weave a good story--and the best was the latter portion that Dickens did NOT put on paper. Well done all around--with a particularly noteworthy performance by Montgomery--who, oddly, did much better in his alter-ego than when he was playing a normal character! A few things to look for in the film include: the ridiculously melodious voice coming out of Rains when he sang which obviously is NOT his, Will Geer in a tiny role as a lamplighter 53 minutes into the movie and the lovely sets which were recycled from the latest Frankenstein movie!! Well worth seeing.

theowinthrop Charles Dickens reputation did not need THE MYSTERY OF EDWIN DROOD to survive his death in 1870. He already had David COPPERFIELD, GREAT EXPECTATIONS, PICKWICK PAPERS, BLEAK HOUSE, OLIVER TWIST, A Christmas CAROL, A TALE OF TWO CITIES, and seven or eight other titles to remind the world of his talents. But he was a very jealous man. He edited a magazine, ALL THE YEAR ROUND, and had been lucky enough to get his friend, William Wilkie Collins, to write a novel for it to be serialized. It was THE MOONSTONE. It became the best selling series of issues for the magazine - outstripping issues that had contained Dickens' novel OUR MUTUAL FRIEND. Dickens did not care for that.He had been accused of writing sensational novels by his critics. OLIVER TWIST was certainly a crime centered tale of gangs of youths trained to be thieves in London. Murders played parts in MARTIN CHUZZLEWIT, BLEAK HOUSE, A TALE OF TWO CITIES, and OUR MUTUAL FRIEND. In his lesser fiction, he had used characters based on real life poisoners Thomas Griffith Wainewright and Dr. William Palmer. But in all of his books Dickens used crime and criminal as an element, not the central element, of the story. He was a social critic, and he had to notice crime as part of the social scene. Collins did this too, but he centered his plots on the crimes in the stories. Dickens, who could plot as well as Collins, could not quite see how differently the two approached novel writing. So Dickens decided he would write one novel where the center would be the commission of a crime: to wit, the disappearance (and probable murder) of the title character Edwin ("Ned") Drood. The novel's main figure would be Drood's young uncle (and rival) John Jasper. Both are in love with Rosa Bud, the ward of the lawyer Hiram Grewgious. Jasper, who is the choirmaster in "an old cathedral town" (based on Canterbury), is a secret opiun user. He loves his nephew, and yet cannot avoid hating him as a rival for the young woman. But they are not the only rivals here. Ned Landless, the brother of Helene Landless, is a headstrong young man who is courting Rosa (and it turns out he is actually the one she favors). There is a public scene between Landless and Drood, in which Landless threatens his rival, while a thoughtful Jasper looks on. Finally, Rosa and Edwin have a talk, and she firmly breaks off their engagement. Shortly afterwards, Edwin Drood vanishes.Has he left to bury his wounded heart abroad? Has he met with an accident in which he has lost his memory, or is injured and unable to get notice to his friends? Has he been killed in an accident? Has he committed suicide? Has he been murdered...and by whom? Jasper, of course, starts hinting broadly that his dear Ned has been murdered, and the murderer is Neville Landless. Landless insists that he and Drood have made up their quarrel (but there appears to be no witness to this). Jasper starts putting pressure on the local authorities (led by a beautiful example of Dickensian bureaucratic stupidity, Lord Mayor Thomas Sapsea) to arrest Neville, even though no body has been located. Neville flees.Jasper has the situation in his hand ... except that Neville's sister Helene does not trust him (and she makes a smitten ally in a young naval officer, Lieutenant Tartar). Grewgious also has his suspicions, when Jasper faints when he hears from the lawyer that Edwin and Rosa had broken their engagement. Reverend Crisparkle, the local clergyman, keeps Rosa comforted - but he is worried because Neville's fleeing is not good for his reputation of being innocent. Then to add to Jasper's woes, the old lady running the opium den he frequents (known as "the Princess Puffer") shows up, apparently looking into possible blackmail after she overhears something Jasper said about the missing Ned while under the drug. Similarly a stranger with a long white beard, Dick Datcherly, comes to town, and is making many inquiries. He meets the Princess Puffer, and he also meets "Durdles", the keeper of the local cathedral's burial grounds, who tells him about Jasper's interest in quicklime, and in the Sapsea memorial, which is supposed to be empty.After completing about two thirds of EDWIN DROOD, Dickens died suddenly. He left a literary puzzle that remains to perplex and bother his fans to this day. From my description it looks like he was aiming at Drood being murdered, and the murderer being John Jasper. Most of the details that survive suggest that Edwin was not going to reappear. But was Neville to reappear? Or was he Datcherly (or was Tartar or Grewgious Datcherly...or was Datcherly a new character in his own right - sent by Neville)? Who would uncover the truth: Datcherly, Grewgious, Neville, Helene, Rosa?In OLIVER TWIST the novel ended with a masterfully horror scene of Fagin in the death cell awaiting for his execution. Similar scenes were in BARNABY RUDGE, and (slightly changed) in A TALE OF TWO CITIES. It has beens suggested that DROOD would have ended with Jasper in the death cell, thinking about his crimes (he may actually have ended up killing at least two other characters before the end), and defending his conduct to his own satisfaction. If so, it would have been a true masterpiece of detective fiction. Instead it survives as a perplexing fragment which many people (including the actor, Sir Felix Aylmer) have tried to tear the secret out of.I saw the musical version of this in the 1980s, which (ironically enough) starred George Rose - who would die by a planned murder within two years of my seeing him on stage. The musical concentrated on a "who-dunnit" with audience participation. It was okay, but missed the point that a detective story by Dickens had to be more than a "who-dunnit", but a sensible piece of literary craftsmanship.This film is okay too. Douglas Montgomery, a forgotten actor, gave one of his best performances as Neville (and Datcherly in this version). Rains is masterful as the moody, and suspicious acting Jasper. One only wishes E.E.Clive were given more time to expand on the pompous Sapsea, but he touches on him well. But the melodrama is pushed here, not the treatment Dickens probably had in mind. As an entertainment, I'd recommend it. As a dose of Dickens...read the fragment he left, think about what I said, and weep for what we lost.