my summary and if you know me and be quite sarcastic and a i be not a fan of opera . and and when i watch a horror movie ( with the exception of phantom of the opera ) and i tune in to watch horror not see song after song after song . while technically this be a boris karloff film and you would never know it unless you pay attention . it look much more like a musical something fan of karloff probably be not happy to see . when the film begin and i be immediately strike by the vivid technicolor . karloff rarely perform in color until late in his career when most film be in color . but and for 1944 and it be unusual to see color film particularly horror film . also and the spectrum of color they use be unusual lot of pastel like mauve and rich purple and aqua as well a gray . it be very striking . a decade ago and karloff argue with a prima dona at the opera and strangle her . however and her body be never find and karloff have remain free . now and a new singer and miss klatt and arrives and she remind him strongly of dead woman and marcellina . and and since karloff be a bit touched and he feel strange impulse towards klatt . he trick her into be hypnotize and give her the suggestion that her voice be go . apparenly now that marcellina be dead and karloff would not allow anyone else to sing like her or sing her music . in many way and this film be like an anti phantom of the opera or anti svengali where the mad genius guide a woman career to failure instead of great success . the young lady fiancé and turhan bey and be worry about her and the odd influence that karloff be have on her . so and he sneak her away from karloff home ( where she be stay while she recouperates ) . bey be surprise to find that the medicine that karloff have give her in an atomizer turn out to be nothing but colored water . what give . somehow bey get the idea to help his fiancée get over her inability to sing can be cure by arrange a command performance before the very young king . this plan make very little sense and i have no idea what bey reason be . the king and it turn out and be pretty swell and agree to the plan . somehow bey also get the idea that by destroy the atomizer in front of her and that his lady friend will regain her voice . it a if he read the script . such amazing insider knowledge be an inherent weakness of the film . when karloff discover what happen and he once again tried to persuade klatt not to sing . but and just to make sure and plan to either kill her or destroy her vocal cord it hard to tell which he about to do when the housekeeper confront him of course and with no backup or witness . she know the truth and will stop him ( how . ) . fortunately and a bey read the script and he know to appear just in time to save the lady and rescue klatt from karloff clutch . in the end and klatt go on and be marvelous ( if you like that sort of stuff ) and karloff overacts a he and his dead marcellina ( who he keep embalm in a hidden room in his house ) catch fire for no particular reason . overall and it hardly fair to call this a karloff movie and a he really just a support playing to a bunch of warble . unless you be a glutton for opera ( very high pitch opera and by the way ) and then this film will be and at best and barely a time passer and nothing more . that because there be almost no suspense and no twist and bey apparently always have esp ( how else can he do what he do in the movie . ) and in the end and karloff catch fire for no apparent reason other than it the end of the film . truly and despite look nice and this be a very badly write film that waste karloff considerable talent . and to think that karloff first color film be this dull song fest .