The Gorilla. 1927. USA. Directed by Alfred Santell. Screenplay by Al Boasberg, Alfred A. Cohn, Sidney Lazarus, Harry McArthur, Ralph Spence. With Charles Murray, Fred Kelsey, Walter Pidgeon, Claude Gillingwater, Tully Marshall. Digital restoration courtesy Cineteca di Milano. New York restoration premiere. 80 min.
Long thought lost but recently rediscovered in the collection of the Cineteca di Milano, The Gorilla is one of many Old Dark House comedy thrillers that flourished in the 1920s, though this one is distinguished by the robust mise-en-scène of director Alfred Santell (That Brennan Girl), here working with an uncredited production designer to create some spectacular gothic imagery. Santell’s camera prowls the inventive, multistory sets as the inevitable pair of dumb detectives (this time, Charlie Murray and Fred Kelsey) try to solve a series of killings apparently committed by the escaped primate of the title.
Ko-Ko's Haunted House. 1928. USA. Directed by Dave Fleischer. DCP. 6 min.
In this send-up of the "Old Dark House" genre of horror comedies, Max Fleischer and his animators entrap Ko-Ko and his loyal dog-servant Fitz in a mockup of a haunted house stuffed to the brim with Inkwell Imps. Things get stranger still when Ko-Ko and Fitz sojourn into the three-dimensional world...