Tod Slaughter was well set in his career of playing movie villains by the time this film was produced and his familiarity with the role he plays is easy to see. Plotting, cackling, and eventually going mad are all trademarks of Slaughter's creations throughout his life and the elements are in abundance in his character of the Chevalier here. Standing head and shoulder over the other cast members – who are all admittedly decent themselves – Slaughter steals his scenes and makes the film his own. This time around, he's a French aristocrat – complete with top hat and tails and goatee beard – who falls in love with the daughter of a bank manager.
The plot is familiar stuff to anybody who has seen the likes of previous Slaughter fare like MURDER IN THE RED BARN and NEVER TOO LATE TO MEND. However, what makes this film seem different are the plot elements that are more in line with a Universal horror film from the period than the previous British murder-thrillers that the actor starred in. Ingredients of this film include a mystery killer nicknamed 'Le Loup', who may or may not be a sinister werewolf; a hideous, half-human monster that lumbers around like Frankenstein's Creature; and a laboratory in which a scientist is using electricity to bring murder victims back from the dead so that they can identify their killers – complete with the scientific apparatus familiar from many horror films, including Hammer's THE CURSE OF FRANKENSTEIN.
Scenes involving the courtship between the young lovers are very predictable and lacking in interest, but the film-makers wisely choose to focus on the horror and mystery aspects of the plot instead. There's some fun action to be had involving the young male lead, who is falsely accused of murder and forced to go on the run from the authorities. The River Seine also puts in an appearance, particularly at the climax that is as rousing and entertaining as you would hope. THE FACE AT THE WINDOW may be familiar fare for melodrama fans, but it pushes all the right buttons and the change of scenery from rural England to 19th-century Paris is an interesting one. Recommended.
The plot is familiar stuff to anybody who has seen the likes of previous Slaughter fare like MURDER IN THE RED BARN and NEVER TOO LATE TO MEND. However, what makes this film seem different are the plot elements that are more in line with a Universal horror film from the period than the previous British murder-thrillers that the actor starred in. Ingredients of this film include a mystery killer nicknamed 'Le Loup', who may or may not be a sinister werewolf; a hideous, half-human monster that lumbers around like Frankenstein's Creature; and a laboratory in which a scientist is using electricity to bring murder victims back from the dead so that they can identify their killers – complete with the scientific apparatus familiar from many horror films, including Hammer's THE CURSE OF FRANKENSTEIN.
Scenes involving the courtship between the young lovers are very predictable and lacking in interest, but the film-makers wisely choose to focus on the horror and mystery aspects of the plot instead. There's some fun action to be had involving the young male lead, who is falsely accused of murder and forced to go on the run from the authorities. The River Seine also puts in an appearance, particularly at the climax that is as rousing and entertaining as you would hope. THE FACE AT THE WINDOW may be familiar fare for melodrama fans, but it pushes all the right buttons and the change of scenery from rural England to 19th-century Paris is an interesting one. Recommended.