The Face at the Window Blu-ray Movie

Rating summary

Movie		3.0
Video		3.0
Audio		3.0
Extras		3.0
Overall		3.0

The Face at the Window Blu-ray Movie Review

"Think of her in my arms. My lips upon hers. Yes, think of that, my friend, and then you'll be pleased to die."

Reviewed by Justin Dekker May 18, 2024

1939's The Face at the Window is an interesting amalgam. It's a unique combination of mad science, a creature feature, and a very early slasher, with each of these disparate elements receiving relatively equal time and importance, made all the more entertaining by having Tod Slaughter added to the mix. Likely inspired by Frankenstein, Professor le Blanc's (Wallace Evennett) experiments seek to harness the power of electricity to imbue the recently deceased with the ability to complete the actions they were taking at the moment they died, While successful with animals, the professor has not yet duplicated the results with human subjects. But by drawing attention to that fact, savvy movie watchers will know that this evolution of that experiment will be critical prior to the film's end. The titular "face at the window" is deformed and brutish, calling to mind some representations of Stevenson's Mr. Hyde, and his appearance before each murder makes him a likely culprit. After carefully choosing the targets, and striking with surprise, the killer employs a knife to dispatch the selected victims. For as quirky and outlandish as the professor's experiment and performance are these other elements add some much-needed gravity to the affair.

In 1880 unsolved murders haunt Paris. Someone referred to as "Le Loup" (The Wolf) is blamed. When a bank is robbed and a man is killed by The Wolf, Lucien Cortier (John Warwick) is framed for the crime by Chevalier del Gardo (Tod Slaughter). Those who have seen Slaughter's other films will understand immediately that Lucien is being framed solely to remove him as an obstacle so that del Gardo will be free to pursue the lovely (and young) Cecile (Marjorie Taylor in her fourth film with Slaughter). Eager to clear his name and win the hand of Cecile himself, Lucien soon deduces that Chevalier del Gardo is behind the murders and robberies, but proving it and bringing him to justice won't be as easy as he thinks.

Tod Slaughter is true to form here. He's conniving, cruel, greedy, and lecherous. He's as focused on robbery and manipulation as he is on securing the lovely Cecile to satiate his lustful desires. Actual comedy is in short supply, though several lines like Slaughter's, "Think of her in my arms. My lips upon hers. Yes, think of that, my friend, and then you'll be pleased to die.", said to Lucien as he leaves him for dead to go and steal his prize, Cecile, will no doubt elicit cheers and chuckles as viewers revel in the delectable fiendishness of the delivery. One can almost see Slaughter's Chevalier del Gardo salivating at the very thought as he says the words. It's a glorious moment in a film filled with them. As with Sweeney Todd: The Demon Barber of Fleet Street, even though The Wolf uses a knife to dispatch his victims, the killings are bloodless. However, whether or not the murders are seen or simply heard, they are sufficient to make the film's villain a credible threat, despite his occasional hamminess.

The Face at the Window Blu-ray Movie, Video Quality 

As those who have seen other films from this set will expect, some occasional density fluctuations are the primary issue to contend with in this otherwise solid transfer. Detail levels can again be quite high, and film grain is light and resolves naturally. It's a very good transfer. The film was previously released in the US by Kino in 2020, and I unfortunately do have access to a copy of that disc for a side-by-side comparison, though you may read about it here . The enclosed notes indicate that this set uses Kino's 4K scan and while it can be difficult to judge simply based on screen shots alone, to my eye they look extremely similar if not identical.

The Face at the Window Blu-ray Movie, Audio Quality 

The English Linear PCM 1.0 audio track is more than up to the task of handling the dialogue and moderate amounts of music. Dialogue is clear and easy to understand, with sibilance issues being very minor here. Special effects are mostly limited to some crackles of electricity and the odd lightning strike and sound convincing enough to create an appropriately spooky atmosphere for the uncanny experiments.

The Face at the Window Blu-ray Movie, Special Features and Extras 

The on-disc supplemental content located on Disc Four includes:

• 'The Face at the Window' Audio Commentary with Kevin Lyons and Jonathan Rigby

• 'Crimes at the Dark House' Audio Commentary with Kevin Lyons and Jonathan Rigby

• Stephen Thrower: Full Blooded (59.06) - Intermixed with stills, archival photos and footage, and clips from the films included in the set, Thrower discusses Tod Slaughter's theater career, the films, film censorship of the era, and the films' eventual second life on television as part of afternoon programming.

• Image Galleries

The Face at the Window Blu-ray Movie, Overall Score and Recommendation 

The plot here may be convoluted here, trying to incorporate a host of horror elements while throwing in the odd surprise and a few narrow escapes to keep The Face at the Window entertaining, even if it can sometimes spend too long on one plot thread or another. Performances are strong across the board here, with Slaughter asked to portray one of his most complex film villains. It's a definite highlight of the set. Highly Recommended.