The Mask (1961 film)

Last updated
The Mask
Maskpost1.jpg
Theatrical release poster
Directed byJulian Roffman
Written by
Produced by
Starring
CinematographyHerbert S. Alpert
Edited byStephen Timar
Music by Louis Applebaum
Distributed by
  • International Film Distributions (Canada)
  • Warner Bros. (international)
Release date
  • October 27, 1961 (1961-10-27)(United States)
Running time
83 minutes
CountryCanada
LanguageEnglish
Budget$287,000-300,000
Box office$1.5 million

The Mask (re-released as Eyes of Hell and The Spooky Movie Show) is a 1961 Canadian surrealist horror film produced in 3-D by Warner Bros. It was directed by Julian Roffman and stars Paul Stevens, Claudette Nevins, and Bill Walker. It was written by Franklin Delessert, Sandy Haver, Frank Taubes and Slavko Vorkapich.

Contents

Plot

The story concerns a psychiatrist, Dr. Allen Barnes, who obtains a mysterious ancient tribal mask after one of his patients, Radin, committed suicide. Whenever he puts on the mask, Barnes experiences dream-like visions that become increasingly disturbing and violent and even physically harm his girlfriend Pam. The visions begin to alter Barnes's personality and eventually drive him insane. Lt. Martin questions those who knew Barnes and the whereabouts of the mask.

Cast

Production

Julian Roffman, a documentary filmmaker who directed The March of Time newsreels, directed The Bloody Brood in 1959, with Nat Taylor as a partner. Frank Taubes and Sandy Haber, two New York advertisers, proposed to Roffman and Taylor, without a script, a 2D film with 3D sequences. Taubes and Haber produced test footage for the film, but Roffman was unimpressed and stated that their 3D effects were "crap". Taubes and Haber were given producer and writing credits, but their only contributions to the film was the idea for 3D effects. [1] [2]

Raymond Spottiswoode, a friend of Roffman, developed a 3D system called Depth Dimension while working for the United Kingdom National Research Council and The Mask was the first film to use it. The NRC created a 20-minute short using the system ten years prior, but had not reused it. The NRC rented the 3D cameras to Roffman and Taylor for £4,000 a week. Herbert Alpert was the cinematographer for the film and Charles Smith supervised the 3D cinematography. James Gordon, an optical effects worker for 20th Century Fox, was also hired. Herman Townsley, Skin Schwartz, and Dick Williams were hired for the practical effects. [3] [4] [5]

Roffman stated that the idea for the film's plot came after he saw a museum exhibit on the Aztecs and modeled the mask in the film based on an Aztec mask. [6] Joe and Vicky Morhain were hired to write a script, but had difficulty writing the dream sequences. Slavko Vorkapich, who had developed montage sequences for Mr. Smith Goes to Washington (1939), wrote the dream sequences. However, Vorkapich's ideas were too expensive and was working slowly. Vorkapich's ideas required tanks of black ink, thousands of frogs, and large amounts of mice. The Mask became his last screenwriting credit before his death. [7] [8]

The dream sequences were written by a collection of people including Herb Alpert, the film's cinematographer and brother of Harry Alpert; Gordon; Townsley; Schwartz; Williams; and Hugo Wuetrich. Wuetrich was a storyboard artist and drew many of the ideas, including ones that were not filmed such as a scene of giant spiders attacking the protagonist. [7] The nightmare sequences in the film were inspired by Andreas Vesalius paintings that Roffman had seen. [9] [10]

The film was shot over the course of ten weeks in Toronto from 22 March to May 1961. The 14 minutes of 3D scenes were shot over eight weeks while the remainder of the film was shot in 16 days. The 3D scenes were shot in black and white, but were printed using colour film stock. $100,000 was budgeted for the 3D photography before the effects were added. The 3D scenes were shot first as they were more important according to Roffman. The sets used for the 3D scenes were built on wheels. Interior museum scenes were filmed in the Royal Ontario Museum while the Ontario Legislative Building was used for exterior scenes. The optical effects were completed by 20th Century Fox by August, and editing was completed by September. Myron Schaefer was meant to do the soundtrack, but died. Louis Applebaum wrote the film's score. [11] [12] The budget was between $287,000 (equivalent to $2,871,828in 2023) and $300,000 (equivalent to $3,001,911in 2023). [11] [4]

The film's distribution rights were offered to Warner Bros. and Paramount Pictures. Paramount offered $350,000 for the film, but Taylor chose Warner Bros. despite their lower offer, as he believed that they "were nicer guys". Paramount later offered Roffman a contract to make two more horror films, but he declined as he wanted to make more "serious" films. [13] The film was initially 95 minutes long but was reduced to 83 minutes for its theatrical release. [4] [14]

Release

The Mask was the first time that a film entirely produced by Canadians received wide international distribution. [15] The film was distributed by International Film Distributions in Canada and by Warner Bros. internationally. [4] The film was released in New York on 27 October 1961. The Mask was later changed to Eyes of Hell after the distribution contract with Warner Bros. ended. [11] It earned $1.5 million during its initial release. [16] New Line Cinema later distributed the film across college campuses in the 1970s. Roffman's son Peter stated that Warner Bros.' accounting prevented them from receiving profits from the film's American release. [17] The film was later retitled to The Spooky Movie Show. [18]

A "Magic Mystic Mask", showing both front and back, which was handed out to theatergoers to view the movie The Mask (1961). Mask from Mask Movie.jpg
A "Magic Mystic Mask", showing both front and back, which was handed out to theatergoers to view the movie The Mask (1961).

Jim Moran, a mask collector, was used for the trailers. [19] [20] Specially made 3D glasses were given to audience members and prompts were shown on screen for the start of each sequence that utilized 3D. [21]

The 3-D Video Corporation acquired the home media rights in the 1980s and intended to release it using anaglyph 3D, but went bankrupt before it could. Many bootleg versions were made, including one where Harry Blackstone Jr. narrated the 3D instruction video, before Rhino Video released the film in 1989, with the instructions narrated by Bob Burns III in his gorilla costume. [16]

The film, restored by The 3-D Archive, premiered at the 2015 Toronto International Film Festival before being eventually released on DVD and Blu-ray. [22]

Reception and legacy

In a contemporary review, Howard Thompson of The New York Times commended the film's acting and cinematography but criticized the film's nightmare sequences, soundtrack and melodramatic plot. [23] The Hollywood Reporter praised the film as "a superior horror film". [16]

In retrospective reviews, Time Out panned the film, deeming it "a bland and hackneyed murder mystery that was spiced up by surreal nightmare sequences" and "tacky" use of 3D. [24] Brad Wheeler of The Globe and Mail gave the film one out of four stars, similarly criticizing its 3D and plot and stating that its appeal was "limited to genre fetishists and popcorn-chomping ironists". [25] Conversely, Chris Coffel of Bloody Disgusting felt that, despite a thin story, the film's psychedelic visuals, makeup effects and set pieces made it an enjoyable B-movie in the vein of William Castle. [26]

The film has since gained a fan following over the years and is now considered a cult classic. [25] [27] The film was also featured in a season 13 episode of the cult science fiction series Mystery Science Theater 3000 . [28] [29] [30]

Accolades

AwardDate of ceremonyCategoryRecipient(s)ResultRef.
Berlin International Film Festival 18–29 February 1980 Best Special Effects in 3DThe MaskWon [16]

Related Research Articles

<i>Batman: Mask of the Phantasm</i> 1993 film by Eric Radomski and Bruce Timm

Batman: Mask of the Phantasm is a 1993 American animated romantic superhero film featuring the DC Comics character Batman. It was directed by Eric Radomski and Bruce Timm, and written by Alan Burnett, Paul Dini, Martin Pasko, and Michael Reaves. The film is based on Batman: The Animated Series (1992–1995), and is the first film of the DC Animated Universe and the only one to receive a theatrical release. Kevin Conroy, Mark Hamill, Efrem Zimbalist Jr., Bob Hastings and Robert Costanzo reprise their voice roles from Batman: The Animated Series, joined by Dana Delany, Hart Bochner, Stacy Keach Jr., Abe Vigoda, Dick Miller and John P. Ryan.

<i>The Wizard of Oz</i> 1939 film based on the book by L. Frank Baum

The Wizard of Oz is a 1939 American musical fantasy film produced by Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer (MGM). Based on the 1900 novel The Wonderful Wizard of Oz by L. Frank Baum, it was primarily directed by Victor Fleming, who left production to take over the troubled Gone with the Wind. It stars Judy Garland, Frank Morgan, Ray Bolger, Bert Lahr, Jack Haley, Billie Burke, and Margaret Hamilton. Noel Langley, Florence Ryerson, and Edgar Allan Woolf received credit for the screenplay, while others made uncredited contributions. The music was composed by Harold Arlen and adapted by Herbert Stothart, with lyrics by Edgar "Yip" Harburg.

<i>The Devils Advocate</i> (1997 film) 1997 film by Taylor Hackford

The Devil's Advocate is a 1997 American supernatural horror film directed by Taylor Hackford, written by Jonathan Lemkin and Tony Gilroy, and starring Keanu Reeves, Al Pacino and Charlize Theron. Based on Andrew Neiderman's 1990 novel, it is about a gifted young Florida lawyer invited to work for a major New York City law firm. As his wife becomes haunted by frightening visions, the lawyer slowly realizes that the firm's owner John Milton is the Devil.

<i>Dames</i> (film) 1934 film by Busby Berkeley, Ray Enright

Dames is a 1934 Warner Bros. musical comedy film directed by Ray Enright with dance numbers created by Busby Berkeley. The film stars Ruby Keeler, Dick Powell, Joan Blondell, Guy Kibbee, ZaSu Pitts, and Hugh Herbert. Production numbers and songs include "When You Were a Smile on Your Mother's Lips ", "The Girl at the Ironing Board", "I Only Have Eyes for You", "Dames" and "Try to See It My Way".

<i>House of Wax</i> (1953 film) 1953 film by André de Toth

House of Wax is a 1953 American mystery-horror film directed by Andre de Toth and released by Warner Bros. A remake of the studio's own 1933 film, Mystery of the Wax Museum, it stars Vincent Price as a disfigured sculptor who repopulates his destroyed wax museum by murdering people and using their wax-coated corpses as displays. The film premiered in New York on April 10, 1953, and had a general release on April 25, making it the first 3D film with stereophonic sound to be presented in a regular theater and the first color 3D feature film from a major American studio. Man in the Dark, released by Columbia Pictures, was the first major-studio black-and-white 3D feature and premiered two days before House of Wax.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Warner Bros. Animation</span> American animation studio owned by Warner Bros.

Warner Bros. Animation Inc. is an American animation studio which is part of the Warner Bros. Television Group, a division of Warner Bros., which is a subsidiary of Warner Bros. Discovery and serves as the animation division and label of Warner Bros.

<i>13 Ghosts</i> 1960 film

13 Ghosts is a 1960 American supernatural horror film produced and directed by William Castle, written by Robb White and starring Rosemary DeCamp, Margaret Hamilton, Charles Herbert, Martin Milner, Jo Morrow, John van Dreelen, and Donald Woods.

<i>Gremlins 2: The New Batch</i> 1990 horror comedy film directed by Joe Dante

Gremlins 2: The New Batch is a 1990 American comedy horror film and the sequel to Gremlins (1984). It was directed by Joe Dante with a screenplay by Charles S. Haas and creature designs by Rick Baker. Zach Galligan, Phoebe Cates, Dick Miller, Jackie Joseph and Keye Luke reprise their roles from the first film; Belinda Balaski also returns, this time playing a different character. New cast members include John Glover, Robert Prosky, Haviland Morris, Robert Picardo and Christopher Lee; additionally, the film features Tony Randall providing the voice of one of the gremlins. It continues the story of the mogwai Gizmo, who spawns more of his kind that eventually become the titular monsters when wet. Whereas the first film depicted the gremlins wreaking havoc on the town of Kingston Falls, The New Batch has them spawn from Gizmo within a skyscraper in New York City after his owner dies. These new gremlins thus pose a dire threat to the city should they be able to leave the building and the story revolves around the human characters' efforts to prevent this disaster.

<i>Ghost Ship</i> (2002 film) 2002 American film

Ghost Ship is a 2002 American supernatural horror film directed by Steve Beck from a screenplay by Mark Hanlon and John Pogue. It follows a marine salvage crew in the Bering Sea who discover a mysterious ocean liner that disappeared in 1962 and stars an ensemble cast of Gabriel Byrne, Julianna Margulies, Ron Eldard, Desmond Harrington, Isaiah Washington, Alex Dimitriades, and Karl Urban.

<i>The Black Scorpion</i> (film) 1957 film

The Black Scorpion is a 1957 black-and-white Mexican-American giant arachnid horror film from Warner Bros., produced by Jack Dietz and Frank Melford, directed by Edward Ludwig, and starring Richard Denning, Mara Corday, Carlos Rivas, and Mario Navarro. The film's stop-motion animation special effects were created by Willis O'Brien. In the film, volcanic activity releases giant prehistoric scorpions from the earth. They wreak havoc in the rural countryside and eventually threaten Mexico City.

<i>Invasion of the Neptune Men</i> 1961 Japanese film

Invasion of the Neptune Men is a 1961 superhero film produced by Toei Company Ltd. The film stars Sonny Chiba as Iron Sharp.

<i>Time Walker</i> 1982 film by Tom Kennedy

Time Walker is a 1982 American science fiction horror film directed by Tom Kennedy.

<i>Zombie Nightmare</i> 1987 Canadian horror film

Zombie Nightmare is a 1987 Canadian zombie film produced and directed by Jack Bravman, written by John Fasano, and starring Adam West, Tia Carrere, Jon Mikl Thor, and Shawn Levy. The film centres around a baseball player who is killed by a group of teenagers and is resurrected as a zombie by a Haitian voodoo priestess. The zombie goes on to kill the teens, whose deaths are investigated by the police. The film was shot in the suburbs of Montreal, Canada. It was originally written to star mostly black actors but, at the request of investors, the characters' names were changed to more typically white names. While Bravman was credited as director, Fasano directed the majority of the film. Problems occurred between Fasano and the production crew, who believed him to be assistant director and ignored his directions.

Juan Piquer Simón was a Spanish film director best known for directing two cult classic horror exploitation films, Pieces (1982) and Slugs: The Movie (1988).

<i>Noahs Ark</i> (1928 film) 1928 film

Noah's Ark is a 1928 American part-talkie epic disaster film directed by Michael Curtiz and starring Dolores Costello and George O'Brien. In addition to sequences with audible dialogue or talking sequences, the film features a synchronized musical score and sound effects along with English intertitles. The soundtrack was recorded using the Vitaphone sound-on-disc system. The story is by Darryl F. Zanuck. The film was released by the Warner Bros. studio. Most scenes are silent with a synchronized music score and sound effects, in particular the biblical ones, while some scenes have dialogue.

<i>Friday the 13th</i> (2009 film) Film by Marcus Nispel

Friday the 13th is a 2009 American slasher film directed by Marcus Nispel, and written by Damian Shannon and Mark Swift, from a story by Shannon, Swift, and Mark Wheaton. It is the twelfth installment in the Friday the 13th franchise. The film stars Jared Padalecki, Danielle Panabaker, Aaron Yoo, Amanda Righetti, Travis Van Winkle, and Derek Mears. It follows Clay Miller (Padalecki) as he searches for his missing sister, Whitney (Righetti), who is captured by Jason Voorhees (Mears) while camping in woodland at Crystal Lake.

<i>Splice</i> (film) 2009 film by Vincenzo Natali

Splice is a 2009 science fiction horror film directed by Vincenzo Natali and starring Adrien Brody, Sarah Polley, and Delphine Chanéac, and produced by Gaumont and Telefilm Canada. The story concerns experiments in genetic engineering being done by a young scientific couple, who attempt to introduce human DNA into their work of splicing animal genes resulting in the creation of a human–animal hybrid. Guillermo del Toro, Don Murphy, and Joel Silver are credited as executive producers of this film. Theatrically released on June 4, 2010, it received generally positive reviews from critics and grossed $27.1 million against a $30 million production budget.

<i>Ghostkeeper</i> 1982 Canadian film

Ghostkeeper is a 1981 Canadian supernatural slasher film directed by James Makichuk, and starring Riva Spier, Georgie Collins, and Murray Ord. Its plot centers on a trio of snowmobilers in the Canadian Rockies who become stranded at an abandoned hotel where the elderly female innkeeper is hiding an evil entity within the building. The film is inspired by the Windigo legend of North America.

<i>The Bloody Brood</i> 1959 film

The Bloody Brood is a 1959 Canadian thriller film directed by Julian Roffman.

<i>Final Destination 5</i> 2011 American supernatural horror film

Final Destination 5 is a 2011 American 3D supernatural horror film directed by Steven Quale and written by Eric Heisserer. It is the fifth installment in the Final Destination film series, following The Final Destination (2009), and a direct prequel to Final Destination (2000). Final Destination 5 stars Nicholas D'Agosto, Emma Bell, Miles Fisher, Arlen Escarpeta, David Koechner, and Tony Todd, and follows a young man who has a premonition and saves a group of people from death when a suspension bridge begins to collapse. However, they soon learn that they cannot escape Death's plan.

References

  1. ↑ Vatnsdal 2004, p. 34.
  2. ↑ Hamilton 1991, p. 84.
  3. ↑ Vatnsdal 2004, p. 34-35.
  4. 1 2 3 4 Morris 1970, p. 13.
  5. ↑ Hamilton 1991, p. 84-85.
  6. ↑ Hart 1992, p. 48.
  7. 1 2 Vatnsdal 2004, p. 35-37.
  8. ↑ Hamilton 1991, p. 85-86.
  9. ↑ Hart 1992, p. 49.
  10. ↑ Hamilton 1991, p. 86.
  11. 1 2 3 Turner 1987, p. 45.
  12. ↑ Hamilton 1991, p. 83; 86-88.
  13. ↑ Hamilton 1991, p. 87-88.
  14. ↑ Bossen 1961, p. 111.
  15. ↑ Bossen 1961, p. 23.
  16. 1 2 3 4 Hamilton 1991, p. 88.
  17. ↑ Vatnsdal 2004, p. 41.
  18. ↑ Pichonsky & Kuebler 2011, p. 47.
  19. ↑ Vatnsdal 2004, p. 38-39.
  20. ↑ "'The Mask' Publicist In N.Y." Montreal Gazette . 31 August 1961. p. 19. Archived from the original on 15 June 2023 – via Newspapers.com.
  21. ↑ Kroon 2010, p. 41.
  22. ↑ Kino Lorber
  23. ↑ Thompson, Howard (October 28, 1961). "Screen: Hidden Horrors:'Mask' in 3-D Arrives at the Warner". The New York Times . Retrieved September 24, 2020.
  24. ↑ "The Mask 1961, directed by Julian Roffman". Time Out . September 10, 2012. Retrieved September 24, 2020.
  25. 1 2 Wheeler, Brad (October 23, 2015). "The Mask (Eyes of Hell): Canadian 'cult classic' restored to access evil". The Globe and Mail Inc. Toronto, Canada. Retrieved September 24, 2020.
  26. ↑ Coffel, Chris (January 15, 2016). "[Blu-ray Review] 'The Mask 3D' Takes You on a Trippy, Psychedelic Adventure". Bloody Disgusting . Retrieved January 28, 2021.
  27. ↑ Marchessault & Straw 2019, p. 351.
  28. ↑ Haas, Shawnee (November 26, 2021). "'Mystery Science Theater 3000' Unveils All 13 Movies for New Season". Collider . Retrieved June 22, 2022.
  29. ↑ Jasper, Gavin (November 28, 2021). "MST3K Season 13: All The Movies, Details, and Release Date". Den of Geek . Retrieved November 28, 2021.
  30. ↑ MST3K Halloween Special: The Mask Review - JoBlo

Works cited

This page is based on this Wikipedia article
Text is available under the CC BY-SA 4.0 license; additional terms may apply.
Images, videos and audio are available under their respective licenses.