Jungle Woman * (1944, Evelyn Ankers, J Carrol Naish, Acquanetta, Samuel S Hinds, Lois Collier, Milburn Stone, Douglass Dumbrille) – Classic Movie Review 5241

‘RAPTUROUS BEAUTY!… FURY OF A BEAST!’

Director Reginald LeBorg’s hilariously banal, incredibly cheap-looking 1944 Universal Pictures sequel to 1943’s Captive Wild Woman has an almost identical story of what happens after a second mad scientist, Dr Carl Fletcher (J Carrol Naish, taking over from John Carradine), revives Paula, the lovely but dead Ape Woman (Acquanetta). The result is of course the jungle girl’s reversion to orangu-tan status and the same disastrous consequences.

Dr Carl Fletcher is in court for the murder of Paula Dupree, admits that he has murdered her, but he says she had the ability to turn into an Ape Woman. The film proceeds through a flashback. Naish gives it some quietly intense oomph and Acquanetta is impressive in her non-speaking role.

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The film stars Evelyn Ankers as Beth Mason, J Carrol Naish as D. Carl Fletcher, Acquanetta as Paula Dupree, Samuel S Hinds as Coroner, Lois Collier as Joan Fletcher, Milburn Stone as Fred Mason, and Douglass Dumbrille as District Attorney.

Also in one of Universal’s better casts are Richard Davis as Bob Whitney, Edward M Hyans, Jr as Willie, Christian Rub as George, Pierre Watkin as Dr Meredith, Nana Bryant as Miss Gray, Alec Craig as Morgue Attendant, and Tom Keene as Joe. It might have one of Universal’s better casts but it enjoys a reputation as one of Universal’s worst horror films.

Jungle Woman was released by Universal Pictures on 7 July 1944.

It is followed by another repetitive sequel, Jungle Captive (1945), the final film in the series starring Otto Kruger, Rondo Hatton and Vicky Lane.

Reginald LeBorg recalled: ‘It was an atrocious script, and a silly idea anyway. But, again, I was under contract. If I had refused it, I would have been suspended without pay, and I wouldn’t have gotten anything anymore. You had to play ball with the front office.’ He claimed it was shot in seven days while production documents claim it was 10 days.

Acquanetta said she did the film as she was ‘assigned to it. But once I accepted it, I did it to the best of my ability. It made money because Acquanetta as in it. I came to realize that I was the property, not the film. That’s why I left Universal. I felt that I was being used.’ It was Acquanetta’s last film as the Ape Woman as she left Universal before the sequel Jungle Captive.

It got into trouble with the Breen Office’s Motion Picture Production Code, judging the script by Edward Dein ‘unacceptable under the provisions of the Production Code by reason of a flavor of bestiality.’

Edward Dein recalled: ‘We always used old sets from other films. These jungle pictures and horror films were exploitable, so we did them. Sixty minutes was about right for a B film because they were used as filler, like newsreel.

© Derek Winnert 2017 Classic Movie Review 5241

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