Mad Love

"I have conquered science! Why can't I conquer love?!" Peter Lorre steals every scene and every second of this Faustian-esque rewriting of Wiene's "Orlacs Hände", and is perhaps even better than the extraordinary Conrad Veidt. The running time of 68 minutes keeps everything moving at a nice speed.

This not only marked Lorre's American debut but prompted no less a luminary than Charlie Chaplin to dub him "the greatest living actor". Running an intense 68 minutes, it not only boasts a bravura turn by Lorre as the alternately abject and arrogant scientist ("I, a poor peasant, have conquered science!" he rages. "Why can't I conquer love?!") but fine supporting work by Drake, Clive, and Luke as Gogol's aboveboard medical assistant (a rare nonstereotypical role for an Asian-American actor).

Lorre is utterly magnificent in this absurd yet gripping tale of muscle memory gone awry. In the briefest and most important of moments he gives Gogol what just might be sympathy, and then the character does something lecherous and we're left reeling. I thought the direction was excellent and matched the prestige all the actors brought. The story is insane but delightfully so.

It's a wonder Peter Lorre didn't get more roles as the romantic lead.

Nice and short. It is way over the top, but that's what makes it great. Peter Lorre is creepy as fuck.

Now this is what I call 'over-the-top'!

A great horror movie; the performances are wonderful, the plot eerie and creepy, the sets and costumes perfectly fitting.

Goofy crazy plot front loaded with a great unhinged Peter Lorre performance. Colin Clive is pretty great too, as the dude who can't put a finger on why he's so messed up.

Magnificent performance from Lorre and a creative, if somewhat predictable, story. Really though, it's Lorre's show every scene he's in is riveting and he makes madness both sympathetic and fearsome.

Over the top, yes, but so much fun.

Watchable thanks to the unique qualities of Peter Lorre. Was there ever an actor who could be so frightening, and yet so sympathetic at the same time?

Lorre is mostly great here. With better direction this could have been a classic.

Short and well-paced, Mad Love features a gloriously creepy Peter Lorre as an obsessive surgeon who transplants a killer's hands onto the husband of the woman he loves. While it can stray a little far into melodrama, it remains light and enjoyable throughout its brisk runtime, and the gothic setting is well executed. The ending, as with many films of the era, is rushed and somewhat abrupt however.

American version of Orlacs Hände (1924) with Colin Clive as the man who loses his hands. Peter Lorre as the love sick doctor who operates Colin Clive's hands. A magnificent psychopathic performance by the creepiest man in film. Lorre desires Clive's wife and even has a life-size wax figure of the beauty! The film has so much to love and also the comedy works out well with the drunken housemaid. That Lorre ever got laid is mind-baffling. Those ladies must not have seen his films....

While I agree that Lorre gave a great performance, I just think the movie is a little silly. There are definitely good elements, and some great scenes, but -- even among the short running time -- I think those great scenes are too few. There are some funny parts and some parts of horror, however, so it's a good movie... just has a long way to go before being a classic.

This was a fun, pulpy B horror film version of The Hands of Orlac. Peter Lorre was great everything else was merely okay.

a fairly well made proto-sci-fi movie that delivers a decent dose of entertainment without too much of a sting of silliness.

Creepy. Loved the lighting and Lorre was perfect for the role. I would have changed the title to Dr Gogol though.

An eccentric, powerful film, full of memorable images. This is one of Lorre's best roles.

short and sweet like Lorre

Pretty twisted dark comedy. If you get a kick out of Peter Lorre doing his weird creep bit, then this is a movie for you.

Good variation on a classic theme

Well, that was...er...overwrought. Extravagant even. Cool anyway to see Healy (without a Stooge in sight). All the goofy grotesqueries (the lady with the cockatoo, the fun-loving murderer guy, the silent-movie-style montages) may not have cohered as a film, but they did add up to some fun moments anyway.

87.000

I didn't have any prior knowledge of this movie before watching, so didn't realize it was a retelling of The Hands of Orlac, which I also watched earlier this year. This one has a bit of a different angle on it, focusing more on the surgeon than Orlac himself. Peter Lorre steals the show as this character, and you can tell the film was built around him, given how abruptly it ends after his storyline wraps up. Did Orlac himself live happily ever after? Who knows!

A grand, over-the-top performance from Peter Lorre drives this well-made gothic melodrama. Colin Clive does his haunted, tortured thing that he does so well. Ted Healy is more than a little bit out of place, but Frances Drake well-cast as the obscure object of Dr. Golgol's desire. A fine addition to any Horror movie festival.

Creepy classic.

A one man show, but the effects help as well.

85.750