Reviewed by Colin Jacobson (November 19, 2024)
Given its title, one logically would expect 1939’s The Return of Doctor X to offer a direct sequel to 1932’s Doctor X. Instead, the two offer essentially unconnected efforts joined solely by horror themes and their titles.
When journalist Walter Barnett (Wayne Morris) goes to interview actress Angela Merrova (Lya Lys), he finds her stabbed and dead in her apartment. This allows him a scoop, one that backfires when Angela mysteriously shows up alive and kicking the next day.
Though fired from his job, Walter pursues this story and discovers Angela’s connection to Dr. Francis Flegg (John Litel), a hematologist who appears to possess some dark secrets. As Walter digs deeper, he finds horrifying connections.
If nothing else, Return deserves notice as a career detour for Humphrey Bogart. As the title character, this becomes the actor’s only stab at horror.
Apparently Bogart went into Return unhappily. He demonstrated disgust that studio head Jack L. Warner pushed him to work in the film and later referred to it as “rotten”.
Far be it for me to disagree with a legend, but I wouldn’t call Return “rotten”. Nor would I refer to it as anything special, though, as it offers an erratic horror tale.
The movie’s first act prompted me to think Bogart nailed it, as Return launches in a silly manner. It feels more like a snappy comedy than a scarefest, and it stretches credulity to posit its concept.
Morris’s performance doesn’t help. He plays Walter as a goofball and along with some other iffy performances, the movie’s opening creates concerns.
However, Return picks up after that – moderately, at least. Once the film brings out its blood-related mystery, matters begin to turn more somber and intriguing.
Again, to some degree, as I don’t think Return brings a truly impactful tale. It doesn’t help that it digresses into pointless tangents like an unnecessary romance between Dr. Mike Rhodes (Dennis Morgan) and Nurse Joan Vance (Rosemary Lane).
Other inconsistencies related to tone manifest as well. While the movie largely sticks with the horror plot, it rambles away too often into other domains.
The third act of Return also becomes awfully “talky”, as we wind up with a long exposition scene that slows down the pace. While we need to information conveyed, the manner chosen dings the flick’s momentum.
Unhappy as the project apparently made him, Bogart offers a reasonably creepy turn as oddball Dr. Marshall Quesne. Though he “acts down” to the part, he provides a professional enough turn.
All of this leaves Return as a mixed bag. It comes with enough strengths to make it moderately engaging but it flails too much to turn into a quality affair.
