Horror movies from the 1930s don't get more basic and poverty row than "The Crime of Dr. Crespi. The film looks as if it didn't cost much more than the price of an apple and an egg to make, what with its limited number of sober sets and hardly any use of exterior locations, costumes, make-up, or whatsoever. And yet, most genre fans - myself included - seem aligned about this being a spine-chilling and effectively uncanny fright tale thanks to the involvement of some incredibly competent people. The plot, for starters, is inspired by the writings of Edgar Allan Poe. His tales, and specifically "The Premature Burial", automatically guarantee horrific atmosphere and grisly themes. Secondly, Erich von Stroheim as the titular Dr. Crespi. Wow, this man is good! His performance alone eliminates the necessity of expensive set-pieces and advanced special effects.

Von Stroheim stars as the brilliant titular surgeon called upon to rescue another doctor who got near-fatally injured in a car accident. This other doctor, however, is also Dr. Crespi's love-rival, so the wrathful doctor sees his change to get his revenge. Von Stroheim's charisma is diabolical, his evil stare is penetrating, his tone of voice is petrifying, and his unpredictable mood swings are menacing. Simply put, he turns this simple thriller into a scary horror film. If you then also have the versatile but criminally underrated Dwight Frye ("Dracula", "Frankenstein") running around in the supportive cast, you can safely conclude it's a hidden gem.

Even though Erich von Stroheim privately referred to this film as "The Crime of Republic," he delivers one of his most gracefully modulated early sound performances in this beguiling low-budget shocker. One of the better examples of the mad-doctor-gets-revenge-against-normal-man-who-stole-his-girl genre of the mid-thirties ("The Raven," "Murders in the Zoo," "Mad Love"), "Crespi" is made especially memorable by its low-key, dapper star, who wears designer lab coats, keeps a baby skeleton in his office as a sort of mascot/alter ego, and shows a refreshing lack of patience with the earnest, romantic idiots he's surrounded with.

Although certainly not up to the standards of the competition over at Universal, this little horror film provides enough good moments to warrant at least a look. Stroheim is wonderful, and it's always a treat to see Dwight Frye in anything.

There are some great moments, all involving Stroheim, but some of the best scenes are ruined by sloppiness either in direction or editing. Stroheim's best scene is where he gloats above his paralyzed victim, but the scene is choppy and the edits are so jarring that it's simply a tribute to the actor that the scene works at all.

The funeral scene, however, is very well done. The intercutting between the funeral and the restrained Frye attempting to kick his way to freedom is very good, and continually reminds the viewer of the fate of the poor man in the coffin. The subjective camera angle as the dirt hits it was probably pretty strong stuff in 1935.

If your a fan of horror movies, especially 1930's films, this one should be on your list to view.