This classic horror has more of a cohesive story that is incredibly strong from start to finish than its 2005 remake of the same name. A very captivating story with really rather stunning wax sculptures (again, especially compared to the 2005 remake by the same name). The acting is lovely, the music is grand, and I found myself pleasantly surprised by the twist (I gasped out loud, alone). Truly a fun and compelling watch!
⭐⭐⭐⭐.5
The wax figures in this movie are top notch, I mean, hotdog! I’m looking at these and I’m not sitting here thinking that the prop guys just coated a mannequin in wax, they actually did the damn thing and made ART. I feel like I can usually tell in horror movies when they use a body double instead of just the actor pretending to be dead but these wax figures pretending to be the dead bodies pretending to be wax sculptures… I’m getting ahead of myself, we aren’t there yet. Right now, they are just wax sculptures. Or are they? Yes they are. (For now.)
We find out our resident artist Jarrod von Mustache is not very well liked by his financier (which, if you don’t like art, don’t fund art), so even after Jarrod and his Mustache show how passionate they are about the sculptures, moneybags burns down the studio and all the wax folk. My heart ACHED when everything was burning (That and I will never understand risking someone's life for money). When Jarrod said he would rather die than say goodbye to his art (or his mustache) he meant it, or at least that someone would die, because big boss took a trip down an elevator shaft.
Suddenly a man with a suspiciously burn-scarred face is running around murdering folks (and these folks just happen to disappear from the morgue, but who cares, right?) but it’s not Jarrod because he still has his mustache and is crippled now. Mystery! Sue is our brunette babe who Jarrod sees a muse in (yikes) so thus begins the hunt. Sue spots the murderer and deftly avoids him twice! Even realizes that her friend with the annoying laugh is in the House of Wax as Joan of Arc. Sue is smart! She also knocks off Jarrod's incredibly realistic mask of his own face to reveal the burn scars! (Phantom of the Opera vibes like crazy but not as romantic.)
It was Jarrod all along! He had help from his little art henchmen, but he had a super realistic wax mask on. What a clever twist. I gasped so loudly when she shattered his mask off. I really had no idea it was him after they had shown his face being untouched previously! Now one of the little art henchmen begs the cops to stop Jarrod in a scene that I think really shows off how much alcoholism is a disease but I digress. Next is lots of fighting and the police are actually really helpful. I feel like if the movie happened in any other time period the police would sit around and not be that helpful because of protocol but these guys just rushed right in which is what Sue needed at that exact moment or else she was going to become a candle.
