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Scared to Death

Play trailer Poster for Scared to Death Released Dec 18, 1946 1h 5m Horror Play Trailer Watchlist
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63% Tomatometer 8 Reviews 16% Popcornmeter 250+ Ratings
Dr. Josef Van Ee (George Zucco) runs a private mental institution where he and his son, Ward (Roland Varno), are keeping his daughter-in-law, Laura (Molly Lamont), against her will. Laura is convinced her husband is trying to scare her away from their marriage, while Ward assures her she needs the help he's offering. Things go from bad to worse when Van Ee's brother, the magician professor Leonide (Bela Lugosi), shows up with his dwarf partner, Indigo (Angelo Rossitto).
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Scared to Death

Critics Reviews

View All (8) Critics Reviews
TV Guide Claustrophobic, eccentric, and at times downright incoherent, this film is oddly compelling in a warped sort of way. Rated: 1.5/5 Oct 19, 2016 Full Review Miles Fielder The List Keeping fang firmly in cheek, there's much to be savoured in this old dark house style mystery. Rated: 3/5 Oct 19, 2016 Full Review Tim Brayton Antagony & Ecstasy It's practically outsider art, made by an unusually incompetent outsider. Rated: 2/10 Jun 20, 2015 Full Review Phil Hall Film Threat A pale affair, made tolerable by Bela Lugosi's droll one-liners. Rated: 2.5/5 Nov 11, 2011 Full Review Dennis Schwartz Dennis Schwartz Movie Reviews Turns out to be more comic than gothic. Rated: B- Jan 2, 2008 Full Review Emanuel Levy EmanuelLevy.Com Rated: 3/5 Sep 26, 2005 Full Review Read all reviews

Audience Reviews

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Dave S The most appropriate responses to Scared to Death would be a shrug of the shoulders and a perplexed furrowing of the eyebrows. Nothing that happens during the scant 65-minute running time makes much in the way of sense, other than the fact that its non-stop weirdness makes it uncomfortably entertaining. Narrated by a dead woman, she tells the story of how she was murdered through flashbacks. Filled with nonsensical plot points, the movie is full of strange dialogue (“One hates to perform an autopsy on a beautiful girl”), campy attempts at humor, shots that look as though the camera lens was covered in Vaseline, characters that serve no purpose (including a munchkin from The Wizard of Oz), and a plot that defies any kind of reasonable description. It is one of those movies that somehow remains borderline interesting because of its many flaws. Rated 2 out of 5 stars 10/21/24 Full Review Liam D A very tongue in cheek gothic mystery that has predictable solid performances by Bela Lugosi (Glen or Glenda) and George Zucco (The Barkleys of Broadway) Rated 3 out of 5 stars 08/11/24 Full Review christopher c. m Instead of murder mystery with intense drama and clues, this is more goofy hijinks. Unfunny goofy hijinks. I don't think this was suppose to be a comedy. Plus how is she telling this story? She's dead? Is she telling Saint Peter? It's not like she comes back to life or was in a coma, she was dead. This fails as a mystery, a thriller or comedy. Plus what is with the Lugosi's Mini-Me? Did Brando see this movie and that's why he demanded one of his own for "Island of Doctor Moreau"? Rated 0.5 out of 5 stars 03/31/23 Full Review Audience Member Editing choppy and bad! Not scary, more funny. Not too funny, either. Still better than The Lighthouse -- which saw yesterday and still recovering from. Rated 3.5 out of 5 stars 01/17/23 Full Review Audience Member Fun to watch. Small attempts of humor. Kept my interest. Would watch again if a better copy found. Rated 3 out of 5 stars 01/21/23 Full Review Audience Member Bela Lugosi in color! Lugosi's only color film is a terrible film, but ever since Martin Landau's touching performance as Lugosi in "Ed Wood," I can't help but read into these terrible Lugosi film a kind of tragic subtext. Here's a great actor hobbled by addiction having to waste his talents in embarrassingly bad low budget horror films that capitalize on his early career successes. The story here follows a young woman who's been murdered and who then recounts the events leading up to her demise, which involve a creepy hypnotist, Lugosi, and his loyal dwarf man-servant, Angelo Rossitto of "Freaks" fame who himself was a talented actor hobbled by typecasting. Besides Lugosi and Rossitto, there's also Nat Pendleton, who's not a famous actor, but who's face and voice any classic film fan will recognize. Overall, this film isn't as bad an an Edward D. Wood Jr. production, but it doesn't seem that far off. Rated 2 out of 5 stars 01/31/23 Full Review Read all reviews
Scared to Death

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Cast & Crew

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Movie Info

Synopsis Dr. Josef Van Ee (George Zucco) runs a private mental institution where he and his son, Ward (Roland Varno), are keeping his daughter-in-law, Laura (Molly Lamont), against her will. Laura is convinced her husband is trying to scare her away from their marriage, while Ward assures her she needs the help he's offering. Things go from bad to worse when Van Ee's brother, the magician professor Leonide (Bela Lugosi), shows up with his dwarf partner, Indigo (Angelo Rossitto).
Director
Christy Cabanne
Producer
William B. David
Screenwriter
W.J. Abbott
Production Co
Golden Gate Pictures
Genre
Horror
Original Language
English
Release Date (Theaters)
Dec 18, 1946, Limited
Release Date (Streaming)
Aug 11, 2016
Runtime
1h 5m
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