There are two versions of THE PHANTOM CREEPS. There is the movie serial that lasts 265 minutes and a severely truncated version that lasts only 78 minutes and was released as a full-length movie. This review is for the 78 minute version and in no way is indicative of the overall quality of the longer film.
Bela Lugosi is a mad scientist and unlike many crazed scientists, he is a man of many talents. Not only has he developed a cool giant killer robot but he's got his hand in many other experiments--the most exciting of which is his invisibility formula. When his wife and a friend learn of his work AND hear that he's willing to sell his work to anyone who is willing to pay, they threaten to go to the authorities. Doing this was a good idea--TELLING this insane and amoral scientist before you do it isn't! And, after disposing of them, Lugosi decides to use his new 'toys' to threaten mankind and all the usual junk you'd expect from such a film.
Because the full-length film was so savagely chopped to pieces, the film was very hard to follow and was very disjoint. It looked at times like a serial (which usually have tons of holes to begin with) but was practically impossible to care about. My advice is skip this one and look for the serial IF you have 4-1/2 hours to spare!!
Bela Lugosi is a mad scientist and unlike many crazed scientists, he is a man of many talents. Not only has he developed a cool giant killer robot but he's got his hand in many other experiments--the most exciting of which is his invisibility formula. When his wife and a friend learn of his work AND hear that he's willing to sell his work to anyone who is willing to pay, they threaten to go to the authorities. Doing this was a good idea--TELLING this insane and amoral scientist before you do it isn't! And, after disposing of them, Lugosi decides to use his new 'toys' to threaten mankind and all the usual junk you'd expect from such a film.
Because the full-length film was so savagely chopped to pieces, the film was very hard to follow and was very disjoint. It looked at times like a serial (which usually have tons of holes to begin with) but was practically impossible to care about. My advice is skip this one and look for the serial IF you have 4-1/2 hours to spare!!