I’m seeing many of these Val Lewton horror films for the first time and frankly those not directed by Jacques Tourneur simply don’t measure up. The Ghost Ship for the most part is slow-paced, talky, and lacking in the requisite atmosphere. Director Mark Robson can’t seem to make a virtue out of his low-budget sets – the camera set-ups often seem wrong, revealing rather than the hiding the empty and underpopulated sets. We need more shadows! Still, the climatic knife fight between the crazed captain and the mute sailor over the hero’s trussed-up body must have seemed pretty lurid in its day.
by Ian Johnston | Source: WB DVD
19 Dec 2005 2:53 PM | Submit Comment
