Stometer Save your money for something good and enjoyable

Grimerlana Plenty to Like, Plenty to Dislike

Arianna Moses Let me be very fair here, this is not the best movie in my opinion. But, this movie is fun, it has purpose and is very enjoyable to watch.

Portia Hilton Blistering performances.

Bonehead-XL Common knowledge would have it that, after "Freaks" proved too spicy a meatball for '30s audiences, Todd Browning's career was over. While I can't comment on the films' performances, Browning did go on to make two minor classics: "Mark of the Vampire" and "The Devil-Doll." Despite what the title might lead you to think, this doesn't feature the 1930s equivalent of Chucky slashing through flapper girls. Instead, the gimmick is similar to "Dr. Cyclops." The story starts with two escapees slinking away from infamous Devil's Island. One of the convicts is Lionel Barrymore and the other is a not-quite mad scientist. The scientist has whipped up some phelbotinum that shrinks people, making them slaves to the shrinker's psychic will. He dies, leaving his research to Barrymore. Lionel grabs the formula and heads to Paris, planning to use the tiny people to murder the men who framed him. As you do.I didn't expect so much cross dressing. Similar to 'The Unholy Three," Barrymore hides in plain sight by living as an old woman. I'm not exactly sure why Browning was so fond of guys dressing up as old ladies but, at the very least, Barrymore is convincing in drag. The criminal opens up a toy shop, selling the miniaturized people as dolls, using them to dole out his revenge."The Devil-Doll" does have three stand-out sequences. In the first, a female doll squirms out of a little girl's arm before sneaking into the victim's bedroom. In a moment just as much about special effects as building tension, the little person slowly climbs into the man's bed, moving around on the furniture. When the doll finally strikes, the camera cuts away to Barrymore's leering face, screams echoing through the night. During that murder, a rare emerald was stolen. A cop comes to Barrymore's toy shop, unaware that the incriminating jewel is in plain sight. This is the movie's most suspenseful moment, the protagonist coming very close to being found. Finally, in the climax, another devil doll comes for the final victim, creeping up under the chair, preparing to strike. These moments make the movie worth seeking out.A large portion is focused on a romantic subplot. Barrymore keeps an eye on his estranged daughter, who has grown to resent her missing father. He hopes to win the girl back and talks to her while in disguise. The daughter is in a budding relationship with a cab driver. Maureen O'Sullivan does well as the daughter and Frank Lawton is never annoying as her love interest. Still, you wonder when the movie's going to get back to the more interesting devil doll business.In a surprising move, Barrymore gets away with his crimes, the one person linking him to the murders conveniently blowing themselves up. The emotional climax has Barrymore meeting with the cab driver at the Eiffel Tower, preparing to reveal himself to his daughter. The way this plays out is sweet and satisfying, even if it conflicts with the overall tone. "The Devil-Doll" is just as much a melodrama as it is a horror movie. The special effects are quite good and Browning seems more interested then he did while making "Dracula." Its tonal shifts make it an odd one.

LeonLouisRicci Although much has been said about Barrymore in drag, there can be too much of a good thing. The performance is outstanding but on screen so much, with that irritating but realistic cackling voice and hunchback, it comes dangerously close to a detrimental domination and detraction from the bizarre, that is the backbone of the film. The film as a whole has so much more interesting and odd characters, horror, and sci-fi elements, and just plain creepiness that it comes off as an excellent example of the the depression era 1930's proliferation of pictures that are completely removed from the everyday. It is a supernatural stew. The magical and the mystical, the supernatural and dementia, are all in view with believable special effects and a suspenseful script.The Director's lovely obsession with the dark side and physical and psychological abnormalities are an obvious, predominantly personalized vision that was his greatest asset and his greatest liability. Always on or beyond the cutting edge his movies are seen today with more respect and serious consideration than this renaissance man received while he was creating his work of the weird and wonderful.

GManfred I thought "The Devil Doll" was really pretty good. It didn't sound like it from the description in the TV Guide, but sometimes you can get surprised. Of course, it was an MGM production, with MGM production values, supporting cast and staff.Movies in Hollywood's Golden Age of the 30's and 40's were mostly substance over form, unlike today's movies, which feature special effects over storyline. The miniature people and animals in this picture are primitive by comparison, but the story is so well written and the cast so competent that the picture succeeds on its own. Lionel Barrymore has the lead here as a man who was framed and sent to prison, escapes and plans his revenge with the help of a fellow-escapee. This picture is so old Barrymore walks upright instead of being confined to a wheelchair. Maureen O'Sullivan was OK in a small role, but I thought Rafaella Ottiano as his assistant was a little over-the-top. The rest of the cast was more than competent.It is very worth your time, and Director Tod Browning keeps the action moving at a good clip, so that the 79 minutes running time seems even shorter. It is a fascinating example of an MGM excursion into a genre dominated in the 30's by Universal.

Claudio Carvalho After seventeen years in prison, the former respected Parisian banker Paul Lavond (Lionel Barrymore) flees with his friend, the lunatic scientist Marcel (Henry B. Walthall) that is researching with his wife Malita (Rafaela Ottiano) the miniaturization of animals and human beings to improve the resources of mankind. Paul Lavond was framed for robbery by his scoundrel associates Emil Coulvet (Robert Greig), Charles Matin (Pedro de Cordoba) and Victor Radin (Arthur Hohl) that had stolen his business while his family was doomed to shame, poverty and tragedy. When Marcel reduces the retarded servant Lachna (Grace Ford), he learns that the woman is motionless and only responds to the control of his brain and has a heart attack. After the death of Marcel, Paul Lavond sees the chance to use the miniaturization process as instrument of vengeance and he travels to Paris with the insane Malita disguised of Madame Mandilip, a nice old lady and owner of a dolls store. Paul Lavond, using the identity of Madame Mandilip, befriends his resented and estranged daughter Lorraine Lavond (Maureen O'Sullivan) and plots a scheme to revenge and vindicate his family name. "The Devil Doll" is an entertaining film by Tod Browning with a good story and special effects still impressive in 2011. The cast has great performances but Lionel Barrymore is excellent in his double role, and convincing as an old woman. My vote is eight.Title (Brazil): "A Boneca do Diabo" ("The Devil Doll")