HOUSE OF WAX
T. it.: La maschera di cera. Sc.: Crane Wilbur, dalla pièce «The Wax Museum» di Charles S. Belden. F.: Bert Glennon, Peverell Marley, Robert Burks. Mu.: David Buttolph. M.: Rudy Fehr. Scgf.: Stanley Fleischer. Trucco: George Bau, Gordon Bau. Su.: Charles Lang, George R. Groves, William A. Muller, Lloyd Goldman. Ass.R.: James MacMahon. Cast: Vincent Price (Henry Jarrod), Frank Lovejoy (Tom Brennan), Phyllis Kirk (Sue Allen), Carolyn Jones (Cathy Gray), Paul Picerni (Scott Andrews), Roy Roberts (Matthew Burke), Angela Clarke (Mrs. Andrews), Paul Cavanagh (Sidney Wallace), Dabbs Greer (serg. Jim Shane), Charles Buchinsky (Igor), Reggie Rymal. Prod.: Warner Bros; 35mm. D.: 88’ a 24 f/s. Col.
Film Notes
It is ironic that House of Wax holds a place in film history, not for the technical excellence of a 3-D production that is second to none, but rather because it is a 3-D film made by a one-eyed director, denied the ability to see three-dimensional objects. To appreciate fully André de Toth’s achievement, one needs to get beyond the director’s disability and examine the director’s capability. House of Wax demonstrates that it is possible to make a 3-D film with intelligence and humor, and, most important of all, with a tight control of 3-D gimmicks. As Jack Harrison enthusiastically wrote in the «Hollywood Reporter»: «Discard all your previous notion of 3-D which resulted from inferior gimmick pictures designed solely to cash in with quickie efforts. Millions will see House of Wax and come back for more.»
Anthony Slide, in De Toth by de Toth. Putting the Drama in front of the Camera, London/Boston, Faber and Faber, 1996