It's uncomfortably uncanny how well William Beaudine's The Ape Man works as a metaphor for Bela Lugosi's career and personal life. Think about it: a dignified professional is reduced to a mentally unstable ape-man who must prey off others to restore himself to his old self. The less said about the obvious drug addiction symbolism, the better. Lugosi's Poverty Row films were merciless in how they demeaned and disgraced him. But The Ape Man is one of the very worst, stripping Dracula Himself of his dignity. One positive thing that I can say about the film is that I enjoyed how unapologetically evil Lugosi's character is. More than once he is confronted with the fact that the only way he can return to being a man is to steal the spinal fluid of innocent victims, killing them almost instantly. And more than once he says that he doesn't care. It's nice to see a villain who doesn't try to justify their crimes with lofty, ridiculous ideals and reasons.
3/10
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