Robert Florey’s MURDERS IN THE RUE MORGUE, in a famous twist of Hol- lywood irony, came about because of James Whale’s film adaptation of FRAN- KENSTEIN (1931). Florey had been the first director assigned the task of bringing Mary Shelley’s Gothic novel to the screen with Bela Lugosi— who had portrayed Dracula in the suc- cessful Universal ad- aptation only a few months earlier—fea- tured in the star role as the Monster. Lugosi was reluctant to take the assignment be- cause, among other reasons, he did not wish to play a non- speaking role at that
Lugosi with Noble Johnson, an African-American actor made-up in whiteface to play “Janos—the Dark One.” Johnson subsequently played the native chief of Skull Island in KING KONG.
point in his career. (According to Florey, the di- rector first approached Lugosi with the opportu- nity to play Dr. Frankenstein, but the studio heads reversed that decision and insisted Lugosi play the Monster.) Lugosi refused the role, at which point the studio removed both Florey and Lugosi from the project and assigned them to MURDERS IN THE RUE MORGUE, while Whale and Boris Karloff went on to make cinematic history with FRANKENSTEIN.
Doubtless disappointed that such a plumb assignment had been torn from his grasp, Florey did everything he could to make up for it with his expressionistic take on 1845 Paris in his con- solation prize. An in-depth analysis of Florey’s film can only be beneficial, as it’s a telling touch- stone that reveals the attitudes towards the Theory of Evolution at a time in the United States when the subject was still in wide dispute and capable of enflaming great debate among both religious and scientific figures alike. That Florey attempted to address the issue within a semi- fictional framework, within a popular medium like film, was daring in 1932 and therefore wor- thy of deeper study now, when the topic of evo- lution is still capable of stirring anger and controversy in certain quarters.
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We begin our story at a carnival where we see exotic dancers from the Middle East (or at least their Hollywood stand-ins) entertaining our pro- tagonists: Pierre (Leon Waycoff, who later became Leon Ames), Pierre’s girlfriend Camille (Sidney Fox), Pierre’s friend Paul (Bert Roach) and Paul’s girlfriend Mignette (Edna Marion). A carnival barker directs our attention toward the dancers, advertis- ing them as “the adorable Arab angels.” Special emphasis is placed on the males in the crowd ogling the exotic dancers. Some older, respect- able looking gentlemen exchange suggestive jokes about the dancers, and the leering expressions on their faces make their desire obvious. First Gentleman (referring to the dancers): “Do
w they bite?” pay extra for that!”
Second Gentleman: “Oh, yes! But you have to Camille says to her boyfriend, “See, Pierre, how
brown they are. Is that their real color, do you suppose, or have they painted themselves?” Pierre says, smiling, “Shall I find out for you?” “Don’t you dare!” admonishes Camille. Paul asks his girlfriend if she would, for him, learn to dance like the “Arab angels.” When she appears offended and says no, Paul replies, “I guess I’ll have to join the show!”
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