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Denison CliftPhantom Ship , The (1936)

Also known as "The Mystery of the Marie Celeste". You can find more information regarding this film on its IMDb page.


This movie is part of the collection: Sci-Fi / Horror

Director: Denison Clift
Producer: Henry Passmore
Production Company: Guranteed Pictures Co.
Audio/Visual: sound, b&w
Keywords: horror; mystery; drama

Creative Commons license: Public Domain

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Reviewer: guyzilla - - April 26, 2009
Subject: Not Bela's Worst
Thought not the best movie Lugosi's been in, I don't believe there was anything wrong with Bela's performance here. In fact, I think he did the best he could with the roles he was given. As for the movie itself, the best thing about it was that it had Bela Lugosi. Hard to believe that this film company would eventually evolve into Hammer Films.

Reviewer: Moongleam - - March 18, 2009
Subject: Could be worse
Like many of the early movies in the talkie era, this film is unpolished, crude, and choppy. One is never allowed to get close to any of the characters. Poorly directed, photographed, and edited. The acting is artificial and unconvincing. The print is quite dirty.

Here's a more polished rendition of the story of the Mary Celeste:
http://www.archive.org/download/SUSPENSE6/53-06-08MysteryOfTheMaryCeleste.MP3

Reviewer: billbarstad - - June 6, 2007
Subject: Ok
Not a bad movie. One of the best I've seen here with Bela Lugosi.

I downloaded the mpeg1 file. Audio and video are adequate.

Reviewer: Ella Greggs - - October 26, 2005
Subject: Uneven and Stilted
The true story of the Mary Celeste is interesting, but this movie is like a train wreak -- you keep watching because it's just so bad. The pacing is VERY uneven. But even worse, the dialogue is stilted, the acting is wooden, and the characters (yes, even Bela) are one-dimensional It's almost as bad as James Cameron's "Titanic." Strictly for Lugosi fans and people fond of dark, cheesey movies.

Reviewer: burgo - - August 20, 2005
Subject: Great stuff!!
A very good Bela Lugosi in a very different role. (Hey, you can't always suck blood!)
I found the plot about the mystery around the Mary Celeste very believable (no bermuda triangle, no aliens, no sea monster, no ghosts). Only the end came too quickly - while it takes the killer an hour for the first two or three murders, the rest of the crew is killed in some minutes and in a glimpse of an eye there are only two men left.

Great stuff and very recommended to watch on a dark evening, maybe with some little thunder storm outside...

Normaly I love this archive for the many B-movies, the trashier and the more low-budget, the better. But this one is different - it's old (and maybe it wasn't too expensive), but it's really not bad!
I 'd like to see more of such movies in this archive!

Reviewer: Tomàs Pavlovich - - August 4, 2005
Subject: Good Adventure
I found it to be believable. Probably moreso than a Bermuda Triangle type of explanation. I downloaded the MPEG1 format and had no problems I watched it in one sitting which is unusual for me.

Reviewer: Travisab1 - - June 2, 2005
Subject: The Bela Strikes Differently Butttt Well
Bela is out of character here but pulls off this truly different character from the blood sucker he became famous for. I loved this film and after serving my time in the Navy and 30 years as a Merchant Marine I can tell you that there are times that IÃÂÃÂve lashed out at my superiors like some of these sailors did with the sir thingy. It seemed more realistic to me than it appears to others giving a review on this film. This seems all too real to me. IÃÂÃÂve spent a many a night in bed with a weapon nearby in fear for my life as did these folks not knowing who the killer/stalker is.

One can easily be hit over the head with a turn buckle and cast over the side and no-one would know who was responsible. A many a sailor has had this happen to them in one way or another since the first floating device hit the salt waters. You might watch this again and put yourself in the place of any one person. Whether you be a Man or Woman, you make the challenge. Do you like to be told what to do and when and where to do it???

Watch this show again, only this time pick a person to be and forget the ending until it comes.

Great show.

Travisab1

Reviewer: moxey - - June 1, 2005
Subject: if its bela...its got to be good!!
the copy is not that good.but not terrible either.i burned it to dvd and came out very well.
as far as the acting?....come on this is a lugosi film.

its a horror/mystery.
fans of lugosi....well what can i say?
download it now!!

its a shame theres no karloff films in public domain.
isnt there?????

Reviewer: TakerOfFlights - - February 24, 2005
Subject: Bela Lugosi Stars In A Stinker
These must be real sailors staring with Bela in this movie. Because no professional actors are this bad. The overacting is of epic proportions.

The mystery of the fate of the crew of the Mary Celeste is real enough. This movie presents one theory as to where they all disappeared to. It's presented in standard "dark house" murder mystery style. Anyone who wanders off by themselves ends up dead. But that doesn't stop people from wandering off.

Ship buffs may find the movie worthwhile just for the scenes of the ship under sail. Sailors will be amused by the scene where the captain looks through his telescope over a calm sea, and says "Look! A Hurricane!"

The original print doesn't seem to have been in very good condition. Many of the scenes are very dark, and the sound is muddy.