The Gorilla

It may come as news to some people that many of their favourite movie subgenres are older than they think. Take the horror movie spoof for example. While they seemed to make a resurgence in the late 90s and all though the 2000s with Dracula Dead and Loving It (1995), Shaun of the Dead (2004), and of course Scary Movie (2000), the genre itself has been around since the 1930s. The films from that day may not be as clever or witty as some of today’s spoofs, but they still do the job with classics like One Body Too Many (1944) and The Gorilla still getting the laughs. 

Beginning with a dramatic opening of flashing headlines about a maniacal murderer, The Gorilla tells the story of rich man, Walter Stevens (Lionel Atwill) receiving a threatening message from the killer, targeting him as the next victim. With only 24 hours to live, Stevenson hires three bumbling detectives (Jimmy, Harry, and Al Ritz) to solve the case before the killer strikes. But then he disappears. Stevens’ niece, her fiancé, the butler, and the maid are trapped in the house with the detectives in a race against the clock to find the Gorilla. 

Despite the predictability of its plot as well as a few of its gags, The Gorilla is still a clever little whodunit horror spoof. With an aesthetic more akin to a Bogart noir thriller, the film doesn’t rely on expositions and scripted red herrings to throw audiences off the scent. Rather, lit ets its characters do all the work. 

Each one is a certain sort of stereotype and plays the role perfectly, commanding all your attention and distracting you from any clues there are in the mise-en-scene. We’ve got the three bumbling detectives, reminiscent of the Marx Brothers or the Three Stooges but with words rather than slapstick. Then there’s the pretty and helpless heiress and her handsome, cynical, and enquiring fiancé. Add to that the humorously loud and wisecracking maid and the sinisterly smiling butler (played by Bela Legosi for further irony) and it’s a good recipe. 

Like with any great whodunit mystery, the entire film takes place in a single space (a mansion) with only three rooms being the sites of drama. This minimalism is made complex by the added gothic tropes of hidden passages as well as the appearance and disappearance of characters in the blink of an eye. 

While it’s not the most clever, exciting, or groundbreaking movie to grace screens, The Gorilla certainly has something that hasn’t expired over the years and is worth a watch for anyone remotely interested in older cinema, spoof movies, or cult classics. 

Starring Jimmy Ritz, Harry Ritz, Al Ritz, Lionel Atwill, Anita Louise, Joseph Calleia, Edward Norris, Wally Vernon, Paul Harvey, and Bela Lugosi 

Rating PG 

Year: 1939