Frequently cited in histories of the horror movie as the first American vampire motion picture, London After Midnight (1927) was actually preceded by at least two other American-made vampire movies: The Vampire (1913) and A Village Vampire (1916). However, both of these earlier films were shorts (15 minutes running time) made for penny arcades, and poorly received. They do little to detract from the importance of London After Midnight in initiating future American treatment of the theme.
London After Midnight came during the fruitful period of collaboration between director Tod Browning and character actor Lon Chaney Jr who had first worked together in 1921 on a thriller, Outside the Law, and again in 1925 on The Unholy Three, both for MGM. Meanwhile, Chaney returned to Universal Pictures for one of his most memorable roles, The movie's storyline began approximately five years after a death had occurred in a haunted house. Inspector Burke of Scotland Yard had become convinced that the death was a murder, not an accident or suicide. He had two suspects, one a friend and the other a nephew of the deceased. He suggested to them that the murder was done by a vampire. The inspector, played by Chaney, then assumed the role of a vampire, for which he had prepared his own elaborate makeup. His actions as the vampire forced the guilty party to reveal his guilt at which time Chaney revealed his double identity. Although all the major elements of the vampire legend were incorporated into the film, in the end, of course, the vampire was explained away as a masquerade. The movie mixed the horror and mystery genres, but in the end was a mystery movie. It was one of Chaney's last movies and one of the last silent horror films before the major studios moved into sound. Chaney had died by the time Browning remade London After Midnight as a talkie in 1935 under the title Mark of the Vampire. In the latter version, the Chaney part was divided between Bela Lugosi (the vampire) and Lionel Atwill (the inspector). Because the prints of London After Midnight have been lost for many years, the film has assumed a somewhat mythical status as a classic Chaney picture, in spite of the rather poor reception of Mark of the Vampire. Stills from the picture indicate that Chaney did his usual fine job of weird and grotesque makeup, but there was no way to appraise Browning's directorial skills on the movie. Recently, rumors have circulated that prints of London After Midnight have been discovered and that it might be made available again in the near future. One leading gothic rock band paid homage to the movie by adopting it as the name of their band. London After Midnight was founded by Sean Brennan in 1987.
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"London After Midnight: Revelations in Black." Ghastly 2 (1992): 9-12.
