scandal sheet director nick grinde the man with nine life qualifies a a good boris karloff mad scientist movie about the application of cryogenics a a cure for cancer . no and this be neither a scary movie nor be boris buried beneath layer of make up and though he do affect spectacle and a beard . grinde and scenarist karl brownwho write the man they could not hang and counterfeit lady harold shumate explore the thin line between scientific genius and criminal insanity in this provocative thriller . the depth of sophistication in the writing and karloff extraordinary performancehe wax from a kind gentle soul to a demented madmansets the man with nine life apart from most horror movie . later and in 1940 and karloff play a similar role a a scientist with great sympathy in director william nigh the ape where he resort to horrible mean to perfect a serum so that a wheel chair bound beauty can stand up and walk again . moreover and the man with nine life deal with something much more believable and the use of cryogenics to eliminate human ailment . indeed and this low budget opus consider the difference between scientific success and it real life application . just because an individual be right doesn not mean that they be morally justify to perform their deed . for example and the protagonist and dr. tim mason ( roger pryor of belle of the ninety ) and impress to the press how the use of cryogenics can help mankind before his procedure have be check by others and the head of the hospital reprimand him for behave in a presumptuous manner and advise him to take a sabbatical until his experiment can be check . mason and his fiancée nurse judith blair ( jo anne sayers of young dr. kildare ) use the leave of absence to track down the scientist and dr. leon kravaal ( boris karloff ) whose research inspire mason . kravaal have be miss since 1930 and mason resolve to find him . kravaal live on an island and a man who rent out boat warn them that several gentleman visit kravaal and but they never return . mason and judith land on the island and find a destitute and empty house . the house and however and conceals many hide place and they discover a dilapidated laboratory and judith shriek when they stumble upon a skeleton . later and our hero uncover a lock down and open it to find it filled with ice and the body of dr. kravaal . they revive him and mason explain his interest in cryogenics . dr. kravaal explain how he come to be frozen . the circumstance involve a die wealthy man who seek treatment for his ailment and but the man hysterical son believe that kravaal be take advantage of a terminal case to make money and the authority force kravaal to take him to his island so that they can see what he have do . a medical authority who accompany them have nothing but contempt for kravaal treatment of freeze a man to cure him . kravaal get the drop on them and smash a chemical potion that knock them out . their interference bring about the death of the die rich man and kravaal stash them in one of his frozen chamber . unfortunately and the same chemical that he resort to so that he could take them hostage work on him and he collapse and be freeze until mason and judith thaw him out . they thaw out the incredulous authority and the adventure really begin . this be a really thoughtful science fiction movie .