The Gorilla (1939 film)

When wealthy businessman Walter Stevens (Lionel Atwill) receives a death threat from a mysterious killer known as "The Gorilla," he hires the bumbling Ritz Brothers, a team of inept private detectives, to protect him. As a violent storm rolls in and power outages darken his mansion, a real escaped gorilla begins to terrorize the household. Amid the chaos, suspicious characters emerge — including the creepy butler Peters (Bela Lugosi) and a nervous maid (Patsy Kelly) — leaving everyone to wonder whether the threat is a human murderer or something far more beastly. The film combines elements of mystery, horror, and slapstick comedy as the detectives scramble to solve the case before it's too late. ==Cast==

By October 1938, 20th Century-Fox bought the rights to Ralph Spence's play The Gorilla. Fox wanted production on the film to start in January, which would be when The Ritz Brothers finished their tour. The studio wanted Kane Richmond to play a part in the film, but Richmond was replaced by Edward Norris after Richmond signed on for the film Charlie Chan in Reno. Fox signed on Bela Lugosi for the film as the butler. This character was originally meant for Peter Lorre. The death of the Ritz Brothers' father caused production of the film in January to be delayed. Fox placed a $150,000 suit against the Ritz brothers for a breach of contract as the film was stated to start production on January 30, but was halted when the Ritz Brothers did not show up. They were reluctant to appear in a B picture. By March, the film began shooting again with the Ritz brothers returning to the film. The Gorilla became the last film made for Fox by the Ritz brothers. ==Release and reception==

The Gorilla premiered on May 26, 1939. A negative review of the film was written in The New York Times stating, "It's all supposed to be either really funny or shockingly thrilling, depending on how you look at it. We couldn't see it either way." Describing the Ritz Brothers performance in the film as "perhaps best appreciated by those who find the antics of The Three Stooges to be of too high an order of wit," critic Craig Butler wrote in AllMovie that "shameless scenery chewing from Patsy Kelly ... can't distract from the baldness of some of the plot machinations or from the fact that many of the comic moments are shoehorned in with little rhyme or reason." Writing for Turner Classic Movies, critic Jeff Stafford described the film as "interesting primarily for Lugosi's tongue-in-cheek performance," but that the Ritz Brothers "come off like a poor man's version of The Marx Brothers," and that "Patsy Kelly's shrill performance as the terrified maid can also grate on your nerves." ==Notes==