User reviews

Man Made Monster is directed by George Waggner and stars Lionel Atwill, Lon Chaney Jr & Anne Nagel. It's adapted from an original story titled "The Electric Man" which is co-written by H.J. Essex, Sid Schwartz & Len Golos. It is notable for being the first horror venture for Chaney Jr who would make his signature horror movie "The Wolf Man" the same year. Plot sees Chaney as "Big Dan" McCormick, the sole survivor of an electric train wreck. That all the other passengers were killed by electrocution fascinates the sci-fi boffins, particularly diabolic Dr. Paul Rigas (Atwill), who coerces Dan into a series of tests. The outcome of which will spell disaster as Dan absorbs huge levels of electricity and becomes immune to it. Soon Dan will become the unstoppable Electric Man.

Universal's "Man Made Monster" has no pretence what so ever, it is what it is, a short sharp shock shocker that plugs itself into the mains and lights up the screen for the 1 hour running time. Which in the case of the excellent Chaney Jr is actually the case, as he is transformed into a hulking, walking light bulb head that garners sympathy in the way that Universal's other man made monster did. The photography (Elwood Bredell) is moody and atmospheric, Hans J. Salter's musical score delightfully oozes familiar Universal values, while Waggner and his team, when one considers the short running time, do very good work on the characterisations - with Atwill given full license to be bonkers - real bonkers...

It's all very conventional in the grand scheme of Universal horror. Monster elicits sympathy, a foxy lady in the mix (Nagel), mad scientist, dashing hero type (Frank Albertson) and here we even have the intelligent pet. There's some smarts in the writing as the makers observe capital punishment and note man messing with things he probably shouldn't be. But really just don't go too deep with it and enjoy a solid little chiller that's boosted by John Fulton's first rate special effects. 7/10

After surviving an accidental electrocution, Dan McCormick (Lon Chaney, Jr.) comes to the attention of a couple of scientists doing work with the effects of electricity on the human body. While Dr. Lawrence's intentions are very noble and above reproach, Dr. Rigas (Lionel Atwill) has other, more "sinister" applications in mind for their experiments. His idea is create, through repeated exposure to extreme levels of electricity, an army of supermen to do his bidding. And Dan McCormick represents the ideal test subject.

Man Made Monster might be considered a "lesser" Universal horror film, but it's a good one. I haven't seen it in literally decades and I'm happy to report that it held up rather well. It's not as good as some of Universal's better known films, but it's a solid, entertaining effort. Director George Waggner (who would go on to direct Chaney in The Wolf Man) does a marvelous job of keeping things moving at a nice pace. None of the relatively short 59 minutes is wasted. Chaney, always good at playing the sympathetic figure, does so here as well as ever. Atwill has always been underrated in my eyes and he gives one of his most demented performances as Dr. Rigas in Man Made Monster. The special effects are "cool" for the lack of a better word. The glowing Chaney works. Overall, this is one that deserves a much wider audience, especially among horror fans. Even though it's a limited release, hopefully the new R1 DVD release will put Man Made Monster into the hands of more fans.

Watching this movie again recently I was impressed with how efficiently crafted it was. Clearly not meant to be a major feature, MAN MADE MONSTER is nonetheless put together with great skill. I was particularly impressed with how fast they kept the pace and the attention paid to fleshing out the characters. The attempted execution is conveyed only through the reactions of supporting characters who are clearly conscious of the grim circumstances of state approved homicide. Chaney portrays the likable lug turned pathetic victim with real sincerity. He has no idea what's happening to him, and in one of the final scenes his mime reminds me of Karloff's original Frankenstein monster (ironic since when Chaney himself played the monster he had no such opportunity). And Lionel Atwill as a scientist more mad than evil is, as always, a delight. Good movie.

1941's "Man Made Monster" is noteworthy for a number of reasons, chiefly that this was the Universal feature debut for Lon Chaney Jr. (previously used only in a couple of serials). Having scored an acting triumph just twelve months earlier in "Of Mice and Men," the Chaney name had become a bankable one for a studio hoping to replace the departed Boris Karloff, Bela Lugosi never even considered. Intended to be a Karloff-Lugosi followup to "The Invisible Ray" (John P. Fulton's glowing effects retained from that film), Chaney plays the sympathetic role earmarked for Boris, but tailored more to Lon's strengths, while top billing was accorded to Lionel Atwill, essaying Lugosi's role, in what Forrest J. Ackerman astutely described as 'the maddest doctor of them all.' So frequently shunted aside in supporting parts thereafter, Atwill truly revels in some ace scenery chewing; in one scene, Lon asks about the now missing test rabbit: "oh, he worked yesterday!" It would be difficult to imagine Boris Karloff as an ordinary Joe performing electrical tricks for 'yokel shockers,' so completely does Chaney inhabit this good natured, unsuspecting dupe, Dan McCormick, having survived an accident that left all other passengers dead, now utilized as the perfect guinea pig for the power hungry experiments conducted by Atwill's Dr. Paul Rigas. This would be the last time Atwill enjoyed top billing in any Hollywood picture, and though he did future mad doctors in "The Mad Doctor of Market Street," "The Ghost of Frankenstein," and "Pardon My Sarong," he never again showed such a devious glint in his eyes. Perfectly cast are lovely Anne Nagel, female lead opposite Lugosi in "Black Friday," and dependable Samuel S. Hinds, always believable no matter what the dialogue. Still, after nearly a decade in Hollywood, mostly in bit parts, this must have been a revelation for Lon Chaney, who had done only "One Million B. C." and "North West Mounted Police" since his triumph as Lennie Small; apparently studios were still unsure of his overall talent. Luckily, Universal allowed him to broaden himself as their resident horror star during the prolific WW2 years, the busiest period of his career, and one where he made many lifelong friends. Included in Universal's popular SHOCK! package of classic horror films issued to television in the late 50s, "Man Made Monster" surprisingly appeared only four times on Pittsburgh's Chiller Theater- July 29 1967 (preceded by 1935's "Bride of Frankenstein"), Mar 17 1973 (followed by 1962's "The Horrible Dr. Hichcock"), July 27 1974 (preceded by 1965's "Women of the Prehistoric Planet"), and Jan 21 1978 (following 1955's "Invasion of the Body Snatchers").

This has been one of the most elusive of the Universal Horrors for me – a fellow member here in particular knows that for a fact; having caught up with it finally via ulterior sources, I still had to go through a variety of hassles as my copy froze no less than three times during its brief 60-minute duration and pixellated twice besides! Anyway, while I cannot say that MAN MADE MONSTER scales the heights of the best the studio had to offer in its heyday, this is as good a B-movie as they turned out (especially coming from their second phase). Of course, it introduced Lon Chaney Jr. into the fold of Universal horror stars: "The Electric Man" (an alternate title for the film itself) – a sideshow performer who survived both a bus crash and electrocution – proves a nice antecedent (going from vigor to sheepishness and from wild-eyed disbelief to self-destruction) to his signature role of Lawrence "The Wolf Man" Talbot; actually, he supports Lionel Atwill – who is in top (that is to say, over-the-top) "Mad Doctor" form here, especially relishing those scenes in which he tries to persuade others to his radical credo (basically constituting megalomania). Interestingly, the film was originally intended as yet another pairing of Universal's two reigning genre icons – Boris Karloff and Bela Lugosi – and, in point of fact, it does play quite a bit like THE RAVEN (1935)! The rest of the cast includes Samuel S. Hinds, who made his fair share of films in this vein, as Atwill's eminent superior and the first to take interest in Chaney's case (also, cluelessly – but hilariously – suggesting to Atwill that he drop the experiments and 'help himself to some cheese and beer' instead!) and the obligatory romantic couple i.e. pretty Anne Nagel (as Hinds' niece/secretary, who is sympathetic to Chaney) and Frank Albertson (as – conveniently – a reporter who, for love of the heroine, is in two minds about what to do with the scoop of his life). As expected, the film particularly scores in the make-up (Chaney's constant 'treatments' lend him an effectively sickly, even aged, countenance) and special effects (his imposing glowing automaton comes courtesy of a master, John P. Fulton) departments. And while MAN MADE MONSTER is kind of short on action during its first three-quarters, it more than makes up for this with a terrific climax which sees Chaney being tried, convicted and executed for Hinds' murder – but, since he is impervious to electricity, he breaks free to exact well-deserved retribution upon the man who ruined his life; arriving just in time to save Nagel from Atwill's clutches, typically for a Universal Studios monster, he then makes off with her into the countryside (chased by the authorities and Albertson) towards his doom. There are, however, a couple of unexpected touches as well – its stance against capital punishment (the heavy heart evident in the people assigned the grim task) and the pained reaction of Chaney's devoted mutt at his demise.

"Man Made Monster" is a polished "B" movie that was a good film for the studio's new star, Lon Chaney Jnr. He shares leading man status with Lionel Atwill.

This has a routine plot but is still very watchable.

Lionel Atwill usually had a bit of a leering look in his eye, especially when he played mad scientists.

The production values are OK.

Chaney's first horror film with Universal Pictures. I heard this was described as a test vehicle, to see if young Chaney Jr. had the chops to fill the shoes not only of his legendary father, but to see if he could become the studio's new horror man after Karloff and Lugosi.

He must have passed the test because it was not long after this that Universal put him in a little picture titled "The Wolf Man" where Chaney cemented his legacy as one of the all-time horror greats.

Getting back to "Man Made Monster", it's a pleasant B-Movie programmer, speeding along at barely over an hour & featuring a suitably sinister "mad doctor" performance from the always capable Lionel Atwill. And Chaney is excellent as the ill-fated & tragic Dynamo Dan, a type of character that he would portray again as Larry Talbot.

Hopefully one day, this Universal feature will get a standalone DVD release (fingers crossed).

This is written from an English perspective, not an American one. This film in the main deals with capital punishment, and at the end, shows the equivalent of it. To most English sensibilities this is nauseating. In 1941 when this film was released we had the death penalty in the UK, but since the 1960's mercifully we have not inflicted this on anyone. In 1941 this film was given an 'A' certificate which meant a child could see it with an adult. It would have been more appropriate for it to have had an 'H' (horror) certificate for Adults Only, but during the Second World War 'H' certificates were not given, the logic being that what was happening in the UK with bombings etc was tame in comparison to what was happening on the screen. To my knowledge it has not been released in the UK on DVD and I am glad of it. The normality of executions is prevalent throughout this film and without questioning or irony. It is available to see on You Tube which again is unfortunate. The film in its way is well acted and Anne Nagel is excellent. But for those of us who abhor Capital Punishment this is a flippant and nasty film. I do not believe in banning films, but I would make an exception for this one. This is not 'I Want to Live' or 'Yield to the Night' which were given 'X' certificates here, but which showed the true mental agony of 'eye for an eye' reasoning among uncivilized people.

A prime example of how to make a good movie on a low budget. Excellent photography, solid script, great cast (including Chaney in his first Universal horror flick), and that now very familiar but still exciting Salter-Skinner-Henderson music score. Fondly remembered little movie.

Lon Chaney, Jr. plays the title role in Man Made Monster, a man who through electricity is turned into a killer. The doer of this evil deed is Lionel Atwill playing the part of the mad scientist with the usual relish he brings to these kind of roles.

It all starts out when Chaney is the sole survivor of a bus crash which hit a power line. All the other passengers are electrocuted when the downed power lines hit the bus. But Chaney emerges with a few cuts and bruises.

Turns out he has a carnival act of sorts in which controlled amounts of electricity pass through his body and it's given him a certain tolerance level. Chaney agress to live with Dr. Samuel Hinds and his niece Anne Nagel to be a human guinea pig for some relatively benign experiments. But Hinds's associate Atwill has other ideas and his experiments turn Chaney into a walking dynamo who can electrocute at a touch and needs those jolts of electricity from Atwill to stay alive.

As I said before Atwill is the real star of this film. He must have chewed two living room sets of furniture in Man Made Monster, but it all works beautifully for his performance. Frank Albertson is also around as a wisecracking reporter and love interest for Nagel.

Chaney seems always cast as the good, but doomed soul, a part played well in Of Mice And Men and the original Wolfman movie. In Man Made Monster he's not simple minded like Lennie Small, but he's a happy go lucky sort when we first meet him. He does change and horribly.

In the end its not humans who do him in, but rather the properties of electricity itself. Watch this good horror flick from Universal to see what I mean.

Apart from Spider Baby (1967) and The Haunted Palace (1963), I don't think I've been very impressed with the Lon Chaney Jr. Movies that I have seen so far (no, I don't think much of The Wolf Man): he's just not a very good actor-certainly not in the same caliber as other Universal greats such as Boris Karloff, Peter Lorre and Bela Lugosi. In Man Made Monster (AKA The Electric Man), Chaney gets solid support from Lionel Atwill (as the villain, obviously), but the film is yet another disappointment, the star putting in a wooden performance as carnival performer Dan McCormick, AKA Dynamo Dan The Electrical Man, whose act involves him taking jolts of electricity.

When Dan survives a bus crash into a pylon that kills everyone else, scientist Dr. John Lawrence (Samuel S. Hinds) is intrigued and invites him to take part in tests to see if the man has built up an immunity to electricity. John's lab partner Dr. Paul Rigas (Atwill) has other ideas: he wants to expose Dan to ever increasing voltage to turn him into an obedient slave with a dependency on electrical power. When Dr. Lawrence leaves to go to a conference, Rigas seizes the opportunity, zapping Dan with more and more volts, getting him hooked on regular doses of juice, eventually turning him into a glowing killer.

With Chaney out-acted by a pooch (Corky the Dog, who has quite the impressive filmography), some not-very-special effects (the fully-charged Chaney looking like he's had his Ready Brek), and a predictable finale in which 'the electrical man' goes on the rampage after being given several jolts in the electric chair (having been found guilty of the murder of Dr. Lawrence), Man Made Monster is an unexceptional B-movie in almost every way.

4.5/10, rounded up to 5 for IMDb.

MORD39 RATING: *** out of ****

This was Lon Chaney, Jr.'s first "monster" movie, from the same director who would later helm THE WOLF MAN, Chaney's most popular flick of all. MAN MADE MONSTER is highly entertaining and enjoyable. It contains all the elements of a good, solid horror film.

Lionel Atwill is at the top of his game as an insane doctor trying to create an army of electrically charged zombie-men. He finds the perfect subject in the sweet and gentle Chaney, a sideshow attraction famous for demonstrating his immunity to electricity.

Lon's performance echoes his acclaimed role of "Lenny" from 1939's OF MICE AND MEN. He comes off as a likeable but gullible lug. He was always best as an actor when conveying pathos or brutish strength.

The pace of the film is quick and easy, and the Universal music adds spice to an already competent thriller. It's a fun hour or so that fans of early horror films do not want to miss.

"Man-Made Monster" is the first horror movie that Lon Chaney Jr. made for Universal Studios. Considering that he made for a likable and sympathetic monster in this one, it's not too surprising that the studio soon cast him as another very sympathetic victim...Larry Talbot who was bitten and became the Wolfman!

When the story begins, a bus crashes and all the folks aboard are electrocuted...except, oddly, Dan McCormick (Chaney). It turns out that his sideshow act using electricity somehow made him immune to the electricity. The evil Dr. Rigas (Lionel Atwill) wants to exploit this and use his crazy theory to transform Dan into a man without a will. How? By subjecting Dan to electrical treatments that will transform him into an electrical man--a man who doesn't need to eat but lives off energy! There's only one unforeseen problem...Dan soon becomes a murder machine!!

This is pretty good stuff and a bit better than the usual Universal B-monster film...which is shocking considering it was the cheapest film made by the studio in 1941! Still enjoyable after all these years.

Mediocre Universal horror film which paired director George Waggner and Lon Chaney Jr., a pair which would produce one of the best of the genre, The Wolf Man, later that same year. "Electrobiologist" Lionel Atwill doses patient Lon Chaney Jr. with larger and larger jolts of electricity until he becomes his murderous slave. When Chaney follows an order to dispose of Atwill's scientific partner, he is arrested and sentenced to death. Since Chaney is famous for surviving an electrical shock that killed four other people, you would think they would hang him or send him to the gas chamber. But no, they electrocute him, which, of course, gives him super powers and allows him to go on a classic movie monster rampage. The rampage is fun enough, and you've got to love the image of a glowing Lon Chaney Jr., but most of what comes before is rather boring. The script is quite poor. Late in the film, characters start knowing things that they were never around to learn in the first place. It has a couple of great howl-inducing lines, my favorite being "He stole some rubber boots! Now he won't die!" The title is also pretty stupid. It's based on a story called "The Electric Man". The original story's title was retained in the UK, and I don't understand why that was replaced with its much more generic title.

Lon Chaney Jr. plays Dan McCormack, an amiable carnival worker who can withstand electrical shocks. When the bus he's on crashes into a power line, killing the other passengers, Dan becomes front page news as the sole survivor. Dr. John Lawrence(played by Samuel Hinds) offers Dan a job in order so that he can be studied to see why he is immune. Dan starts to fall for the doctor's niece June(played by Anne Nagel) but reporter Mark Adams, who covered Dan's story, has also. Sadly. Dr. Rigas(played by Lionel Atwill), who is also there studying Dan, has evil designs on exploiting Dan to reap power, but when Dr. Lawrence gets wind of this, he orders Dan(who is now being controlled through electric charge) to kill him, causing Dan to be tried, convicted, and executed for his murder, but putting him in the electric chair only makes things worse...

Interesting yarn is far-fetched but engaging, with good performances and an effective sense of tragedy surrounding poor Dan, especially at the end with the dog.

If you're the kind of horror buff who likes the kind with graphic violence, then Man Made Monster is not for you. It brought Lon Chaney Jr.-namesake son of his famous father-to the Universal horror fold where his dad had previously made his most successful films. He plays Dan, a man who survives a bus accident that got tangled in electrical wires. I'll stop there and just say this was quite an atmospheric good time with Lionel Atwill as Dr. Rigas-a mad scientist (Is there any other kind in these movies?), leading lady Anne Nagel, and-since I like to cite when players from my favorite movie, It's a Wonderful Life, are in other films-Frank Albertson as Anne's reporter boyfriend with Samuel S. Hinds as Anne's scientist uncle. Also, a dog named Corky! I'll just now say if you like these classic Golden Age thrillers, Man Made Monster should be right up your alley!

Lon Chaney Jr. plays Dan McCormick, a man with a novelty carnival act who survives a terrible bus crash in which the driver and other passengers got electrocuted. Scientist John Lawrence (Samuel S. Hinds) would like to probe the mystery of Dans' seeming immunity to electricity, so Dan goes to stay with him. As fate would have it, Dan falls victim to the machinations of Lawrences' crazed associate Paul Rigas (Lionel Atwill). Rigas wants to prove his crackpot theories, and thinks that Dan is the perfect guinea pig. His scheme works all too well, as Dan becomes a rampaging, electricity-addicted monster who won't be easy to kill.

"Man Made Monster" may not carry the same weight as the subsequent collaboration between Chaney and director George Waggner, "The Wolf Man". In the end, it's not terribly memorable, but it's still very engaging sci-fi entertainment. The heaviest asset is a wonderfully theatrical performance by Atwill, giving an A performance in what is essentially B fare. The movie also goes far on the enduring likability of Chaney, who creates a character just as sympathetic and engaging as Larry Talbot. Hinds is terrific, the lovely Anne Nagel performs well as Lawrences' concerned niece, and Frank Albertson adds a little bit of humour as reporter Mark Adams. Initially this character comes off as pushy and obnoxious, but he endears himself more to the audience as the story plays out.

And it's a decent story, to boot, adapted by Waggner (using the pseudonym Joseph West) from a tale by Harry Essex, Sid Schwartz, and Len Golos titled "The Electric Man". You'll notice that it's paced very well, and wraps up in just under one hour. The visual effects are amusing, and work just fine for a movie made over 70 years ago.

The presence of a cute and scruffy (and very well trained) dog named Corky certainly doesn't hurt matters at all.

Fun stuff, especially if one is a fan of Universal horror from the 1930s and 40s.

Seven out of 10.

This is the story of Dynamo Dan, a sideshow worker who does a faked electrical act. Perhaps because of this he's the only survivor when a bus he's on slams into a high tension tower and all the passengers are killed by the electricity. Dan ends up working with Lionel Atwill a mad scientist trying to make electrified super humans.

Yes, its as corny as it sounds but then so are the Frankenstein films. Corny or no the film is a great way to spend an hour of your time on a rainy night.When most people think of the Universal horror films in the 1930's and 40's they tend to think of the Frankenstein/Dracula/Wolfman movies forgetting or unaware that Universal turned out a a number of very good second tier horror films at the same time. This is one of them.

Warning: do not confuse this with The Indestructible Man which has a similar plot line but which is not particularly well made.

8 out of 10 on a rainy night with the lights off and your best honey by your side.

Big Dan McCormick survives a bus accident that is hit with electricity only to end up being the guinea pig for two scientists...one a good man who wants to investigate McCormick's immunity to electrical currents for the benefice of mankind and the other who wants to make McCormick the prototype of his super human electrical men army that only he is able to control. Lon Chaney, in his first horror film for Universal(Well, after all everybody else mentioned it so why not me?), does a good job doing another variation of Lenny from Of Mice and Men being the simple man who is tricked and coerced by the evil scientist. The evil guy is played with relish and finesse than none other than Lionel Atwill. Atwill plays the man with a degree of enlightened insanity. Lionel Atwill played evil scientists better than anyone else for my money. He enunciates his words with delicacy while all the time looking through those snake-like eyes. The special effects and direction in this one are pretty good and the film is very enjoyable.