White Zombie: What Scares Us

by L. J. Sandhal of A Viewer's Guide to Classic Films.

Life and death, when you think about them, are still the most incomprehensible mysteries of existence; that’s why we don’t think about them if we can possibly avoid it. But of course, we can’t avoid it; but scary entertainment helps us cope with these nagging mysteries. As soon as movies began, horror films began. Audiences love to be scared, and the silent era provided many classics of horror, When sound arrived, it just added a fresh new dimension for inducing thrills and chills.

1931 was a banner year for classic monsters. The great series began, with the release of the first sound Frankenstein, Dracula, and Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde. 1932 brought a fascinating crop of one-offs, Murders In the Rue Morgue, The Most Dangerous Game, The Old Dark House, as well as the The Mummy, another series founder. The great horror actors, Boris Karloff and Bela Lugosi, began their long reign at the box office. 1932 also brought the first important entry in a new genre, White Zombie....dying to read more about Lugosi's film? See the whole article here on A Viewer's Guide to Classic Films!

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