MovieChat Forums > The Body Snatcher (1945) Discussion > Is this Karloff's best performance?

Is this Karloff's best performance?

posted 18 years ago by A_Roode
64 replies | jump to latest

I think it is a tough call, but is this the best you've ever seen Karloff? There are plenty of other movies you could nominate: Frankenstein, Bride of Frankenstein, The Mummy, Isle of the Dead, Targets -- the list is huge. I think he really goes for it in this one though. He seemed to have a real sense of fun with the character of the Cabman, but he also seems ... competitive? Everyone he appears on the screen with he is challenging to step up to his level -- and they all do it. The film is great anyway but his performance, in my mind, really elevates it. A different character from what you normally expect to see him as but extremely entertaining.

On another note, Lugosi looks like he's pretty sick.

[–] 13 years ago

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[–] moundshroud 13 years ago

I agree, it seems like Karloff is enjoying this role immensely. As much as I love Karloff's Frankenstein monster, this has to be my favorite Karloff performance.

I think Henry Daniell deserves a lot of credit too. He and Karloff have amazing chemistry. The scene in the tavern alcove where Daniell is demonstrating backbone surgery using glassware is priceless.

[–] jgrge3 13 years ago

I couldn't agree with moundshroud more. This is also my favourite Karloff performance, and it is made even better by Daniell's perfect portrayal of his character. The give and take between Karloff and he is priceless.

"When you have to shoot, shoot, don't talk."

[–] chrismartonuk-1 13 years ago

Is it because Henry Daniell is delivering the performance of a lifetime that Karloff steps up to the plate in the Body Snatcher? arloff later said how much he respected Daniell.

[–] jquirk-1 12 years ago

Yeah, Karloff definitely respected Daniell. That really is evident in the number of appearances Daniell made in the Karloff-hosted 60s anthology TV series, "Thriller."

"The Body Snatcher" definitely features one of Karloff's best performances, if not THE best. Although Lugosi was good in this, too, I can't say this is the best Karloff/Lugosi film because of Bela's abbreviated screen time. I think the best Lugosi/Karloff film is "Son of Frankenstein," followed by "The Raven."

[–] Balok-2 12 years ago

I'm a big fan of Billy Wilder in general and _The Lost Weekend_ in particular, and Ray Milland was a great actor, but there is no question whatever in my mind that Boris Karloff was robbed by not even getting an Oscar nomination for his role in _The Body Snatcher_.

[–] jquirk-1 12 years ago

That's an interesting point, Balok-2. Milland was great in The Lost Weekend, but Karloff certainly deserved recognition for The Body Snatcher with an Oscar nomination.

[–] brand78 12 years ago

Yes, Boris Karloff is very good in this - he was an incomparable actor and you could clearly hear every word he said. I think he was even better in ISLE OF THE DEAD.

[–] heelmaster2000 12 years ago

Was Karloff great in this film, yes! Was this is best role, no. In my opinion his best performance was for the 1968 film Targets.

[–] phillipsdan83 11 years ago

I agree with the poster that chose The Black Room, as Karloff is practically giving three performances---a good brother, an evil brother, and the evil brother posing as the good brother. But Cabman Gray in The Body Snatcher is Karloff's finest performance of the 1940s and one of his top five (the others being The Black Room, his first two Frankenstein films, and Targets).

[–] 11 years ago

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[–] LarrupinLou 9 years ago

I have maintained for years this was his best performance. Obviously it's not his most iconic, but I can't see anybody doing a finer job than Karloff in this film.

No blah, blah, blah!

[–] 9 years ago

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[–] 9 years ago

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[–] bnwfilmbuff 9 years ago

Hard for me to chose between Frankenstein, Bride of Frankenstein, The Mummy, Isle of the Dead and this. The thing about Isle of the Dead is that was the best roles for the entire cast in their careers and they all nailed it. In Body Snatcher, I thought that Karloff elevated Henry Daniel's performance to an amazing level. The other three Universal Horror films are iconic primarily due to Karloff's presence and performance.

[–] flapdoodle64 8 years ago

Just rewatched. I think this is indeed Karloff's best film performance.

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