What is the secret of Doctor Xavier's Academy of Surgical Research, where nearby a grisly murder occurs each month during the full moon? The mystery shouldn't be spoiled here, but it involves cannibalism, sleeping gas, schizophrenia, and synthetic flesh. All this is more than enough to keep wisecracking ace reporter Lee Tracy busy, with two or three interludes reserved for dalliance with Fay Wray. Goodness knows if this macabre Vitaphone curiosity was meant to be taken seriously, but the restored two-tone Technicolor print is enormously entertaining when seen today. The film's thick Gothic mood and décor (with all it's flashing and crackling laboratory hardware) will certainly recommend it to fans of early Hollywood horror esoterica.
