A down-on-his-luck businessman organizes an excursion to Sir Henry Morgan's Island for a treasure hunt only to encounter a mysterious phantom and murder.A down-on-his-luck businessman organizes an excursion to Sir Henry Morgan's Island for a treasure hunt only to encounter a mysterious phantom and murder.A down-on-his-luck businessman organizes an excursion to Sir Henry Morgan's Island for a treasure hunt only to encounter a mysterious phantom and murder.
Robert Barron
- Wreck Spectator
- (uncredited)
Ted Billings
- Wreck Spectator
- (uncredited)
Eddy Chandler
- Police Officer
- (uncredited)
Don Dillaway
- Sailor
- (uncredited)
Walter Tetley
- Delivery Boy
- (uncredited)
- Director
- Writers
- All cast & crew
- Production, box office & more at IMDbPro
Storyline
Did you know
- Trivia"Universal" released this film only 25 days after shooting began on March 3, 1941, finishing on the 15th.
- GoofsUpon arriving at the Island Castle, the group of treasure seekers walk from the foyer to the study. A very visible crew member is in frame holding a spotlight on lead man Dick Foran. As the camera pans right, the crew member turns and walks out of frame.
- Quotes
Professor Jasper Quinley: [examining the treasure map] It's amazing, positively amazing!
Bill Martin: You mean, it's on the level?
Professor Jasper Quinley: On the level? Oh, you mean "authentic?"
Stuff Oliver: Oh, what we want to know - is it real?
- ConnectionsFeatured in 100 Years of Horror: Scream Queens (1996)
Featured review
HORROR ISLAND (George Waggner, 1941) **1/2
I had first known about this through a still in the Halliwell Film Guide, though the noted late critic usually dismissed similar programmers: it turned out to be a fun horror comedy (from a story by Curt Siodmak) whose 60-minute length zips by providing plenty of characters (even if the gangster-on-the-lam and his moll don't really work here), action, old-fashioned thrills (a caped maniac after hidden loot is loose in a remote castle), chuckles and a surprise villain; the film is a shade overbalanced by the comedy, but the typical Universal atmosphere (and a few of its more notable sets!) are certainly present throughout. It also features a good second-tier cast: likable Dick Foran and cute Peggy Moran re-united after the superior THE MUMMY'S HAND (1940) are the leads and they're ably supported by the likes of Leo Carrillo, Fuzzy Knight, Hobart Cavanaugh and Walter Catlett; however, it's Lewis Howard who steals the film as Moran's chronically tired companion even though he's absent through most of the second half!
Michael Elliott had rated this a *** and I almost did myself but, in the long run, I don't think the film has quite the same draw as even some of the lesser titles in the Universal monster cycle; still, for an 'old dark house' type of film of which the studio did their fair share it's well up to par. Incidentally, I had acquired another copy of this on DVD-R last year, but the disc froze several times during playback and I had to give up after a while; I'm glad I caught up with it eventually, as the film deserves to have a legitimate DVD release along with some of the other rare/lesser-known Universal horrors, like MAN-MADE MONSTER (1941) which I've never watched! and NIGHT MONSTER (1942).
Michael Elliott had rated this a *** and I almost did myself but, in the long run, I don't think the film has quite the same draw as even some of the lesser titles in the Universal monster cycle; still, for an 'old dark house' type of film of which the studio did their fair share it's well up to par. Incidentally, I had acquired another copy of this on DVD-R last year, but the disc froze several times during playback and I had to give up after a while; I'm glad I caught up with it eventually, as the film deserves to have a legitimate DVD release along with some of the other rare/lesser-known Universal horrors, like MAN-MADE MONSTER (1941) which I've never watched! and NIGHT MONSTER (1942).
helpful•225
- Bunuel1976
- Mar 7, 2007
- How long is Horror Island?Powered by Alexa
Details
Box office
- Budget
- $93,000 (estimated)
- Runtime1 hour
- Color
- Aspect ratio
- 1.37 : 1
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![Leo Carrillo, Dick Foran, Fuzzy Knight, and Peggy Moran in Horror Island (1941)](https://m.media-amazon.com/images/M/MV5BYWQ0MjdiN2UtYjQwZi00MWI1LWIyMDAtZDliZTI3Y2E5ZTA5XkEyXkFqcGdeQXVyMTQ2MjQyNDc@._V1_QL75_UX90_CR0,2,90,133_.jpg)