Night of the Ghouls
Night of the Ghouls, 1958, B&W, about 68 minutes. Directed by Edward D. Wood, Jr. Starring Kenne Duncan as Dr. Acula. Valda Hansen as the White Ghost, Tor Johnson as Lobo, Duke Moore, Paul Marco, and Criswell. (Also known as Revenge of the Dead) Schlock-Meter rating 7 stars out of 10.
If Night of the Ghouls -- a sequel to Bride of the Monster and sort of semi-sequel to Plan 9 from Outer Space -- seems a little less spontaneous than other Wood offerings, it's important to remember that it's really an unfinished film. In Nightmare of Ecstasy, there's a letter Wood wrote after filming that promised extensive reworking of the finished product. Of course, that didn't happen, and in fact the finished product was unavailable for more than a generation because Wood couldn't pay the film lab bill!
That said, Night of the Ghouls is still a lot of fun. It features a bizarre plot, weird characters, ridiculous special effects and actors who -- like all Wood films -- take the convoluted plot very seriously. Narrated by Criswell (in a coffin, of course) It involved a fake medium (Duncan) and his girlfriend (Hansen) who have inhabited the old mansion that Bela Lugosi's mad scientist lived in in Bride of the Monster. The hulkish Lobo (Johnson) is still hanging around as well.
Dr. Acula makes a living bilking the gullible by faking seances and stealing the retirement monies from old fools with the help of Hansen and another con who impersonates dead spirits. As with any Wood film, plot holes are a mile wide, so it's best to just sit back , don't think much, and enjoy the chaos onscreen.
Two cops from Plan 9 From Outer Space, Moore and Marco (who was also in Bride), eventually team to stop the scam artists. Duncan and Hansen appear to have escaped in the end, but are foiled when the dead really do rise and put a stop to Dr. Acula's shenanigans. The fate of Lobo remains a mystery, but he did take several gunshots near the film's climax, so one must assume he's dead (especially since he never surfaced again in a Wood film!).
It's not very scary stuff, but it's a pleasure to watch if you're a Wood fan, particularly since it's the only horror film Duncan ever made for Wood and the only Wood film the teenage ingenue Hansen starred in. Also, old Wood regular Harvey B. Dunne makes a cameo. As with all Wood films, the director was thrifty and used anything he could to add to plot and save cash.
Here's an example: Wood used scenes from his completed short, Final Curtain (starring Moore) and inserted it in the middle of Night of the Ghouls. The only problem was Moore is wearing a tuxedo in the Final Curtain clip. No problem for Wood, of course! He just has cop Moore, early in Night of the Ghouls, all dressed up in a tux, ready to leave the station house and go to the theater! Of course, Moore is asked to work overtime and visit Dr. Acula, so he takes right off, still wearing his tux! Sometimes you just jave to admire Ed Wood's ingenuity ... or his just plain gall!!!
Night of the Ghouls is a real treat for Wood fans, but is not the best film to initiate non-Wood viewers to the "master's" work, since it's a little slower paced than Plan 9 or Bride. A final note: Tom Mason, who played Bela Lugosi's double in Plan 9 from Outer Space, plays one of the resurrected dead in Night of the Ghouls, as does David de Mering, the co-pilot in Plan 9.