House of Horrors (DVD), Universal, Horror

After a particularly devastating critique by a famous art critic, Marcel walks to the waterfront, intent on suicide. Instead, he ends up rescuing a man who is drowning and drags him to safety. The would-be victim is a large, hulking brute with hideous features yet Marcel takes pity on him and offers him refuge. The sculptor realizes he has found the perfect subject for his new work. Never mind those newspaper headlines about the Creeper, a serial killer on the loose whose description matches this strange homeless man. Even if his new friend is guilty of murdering prostitutes by snapping their spines, why give him up to the police? He might actually prove useful in removing any obstacles in the way of Marcel's success. House of Horrors (1946) is an atmospheric B-movie delight with familiar screen heavy Martin Kosleck (The Flesh Eaters, 1964) as the demented Marcel and Rondo Hatton, an actor who needed no makeup, as the Creeper.