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Doctor X

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TVTItem
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Doctor X
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Advertisement:propertag.cmd.push(function() { proper_display('tvtropes_mobile_ad_1'); })A 1932 mystery-horror-comedy film directed by Michael Curtiz, starring Lee Tracy, Lionel Atwill, and Fay Wray.It follows New York newspaperman Lee Taylor (Tracy) as he covers the investigation of a series of full-moon murders in which victims are strangled, cut with a scalpel, and partially cannibalized. Evidence points to the Academy of Surgical Research, where five scientists — including the director, Dr. Xavier (Atwill) — have remained to continue their research while the students are on holiday.Desperate to protect the reputation of his institution, Xavier strikes a bargain with the police: he will bring the suspects to his Long Island mansion and monitor their vital signs as they watch staged reenactments of the crimes. If he can discover the killer within 48 hours, his name and the Academy's will not be revealed to the newspapers in connection with the murders.Advertisement:propertag.cmd.push(function() { proper_display('tvtropes_mobile_ad_2'); })Lee will have nothing of this. He reports the story anyway, and secretly follows the investigation right to the mansion. Too bad Xavier's daughter, Joan (Wray), already recognizes him...Doctor X was shot in both black-and-white and Technicolor; it was one of the last films to use the two-strip Technicolor process. The color version was believed to be lost until 1978, when a print was discovered in Jack Warner's personal collection. This, in its restored form, is now considered the definitive print, and for over 30 years was the only version of the film available until an HD restoration of the black-and-white version was included on the 2021 Blu-ray release as a bonus feature.An In Name Only sequel, The Return of Dr. X, was filmed in 1939. It starred Humphrey Bogart.
 Doctor X
fetched
2023-01-18T15:11:54Z
 Doctor X
parsed
2023-01-18T15:11:55Z
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isPartOf
DBTropes
 Doctor X
sameAs
http://data.linkedmdb.org/resource/film/8516
 Doctor X
sameAs
http://dbpedia.org/resource/Doctor_X_(film)
 Doctor X / int_18d420b0
type
Lovable Coward
 Doctor X / int_18d420b0
comment
Lovable Coward: Lee.
 Doctor X / int_18d420b0
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1.0
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1.0
 Doctor X
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 Doctor X / int_1f137e42
type
Artificial Limbs
 Doctor X / int_1f137e42
comment
Artificial Limbs: Wells's hand.
 Doctor X / int_1f137e42
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1.0
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1.0
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 Doctor X / int_1f250372
type
I Need a Freaking Drink
 Doctor X / int_1f250372
comment
I Need a Freaking Drink: After the housemaid sees a bad omen in her tea leaves, she refills the teacup with gin. From a bottle she keeps under her pillow.
 Doctor X / int_1f250372
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1.0
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1.0
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 Doctor X / int_1f42a0d6
type
Scary Flashlight Face
 Doctor X / int_1f42a0d6
comment
Scary Flashlight Face: Used several times (without actual flashlight), especially when Otto is in the shot.
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featureApplicability
1.0
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1.0
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 Doctor X / int_22071825
type
I'm a Humanitarian
 Doctor X / int_22071825
comment
I'm a Humanitarian: The killer, seemingly.
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featureApplicability
1.0
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featureConfidence
1.0
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 Doctor X / int_234bd900
type
For Science!
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comment
For Science!: Part of the killer's motivation.
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featureApplicability
1.0
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1.0
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hasFeature
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 Doctor X / int_25b7257f
type
Red Right Hand
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Red Right Hand: Three of the five doctors have physical oddities that could potentially mark them as villainous: Haines wears a goatee, Rowitz has a Dueling Scar and a dark monocle, and Duke uses a wheelchair and crutches. Of the other two, Xavier is ordinary-looking and Wells's one-handedness actually exempts him from suspicion.
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1.0
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1.0
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type
Undercrank
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Undercrank: Used, fairly subtly, in the final fight scene.
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1.0
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1.0
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 Doctor X / int_337a0f4
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TrailersAlwaysLie
 Doctor X / int_337a0f4
comment
Trailers Always Lie: The original marketing depicted the film as a comedy-thriller-romance, deliberately concealing the substantial horror element.
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1.0
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Beat Still, My Heart
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Beat Still, My Heart: Wells's experiment, a heart kept alive in a jar.
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1.0
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1.0
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 Doctor X / int_3517000d
type
Mad Scientist
 Doctor X / int_3517000d
comment
Mad Scientist: All of the doctors have elements of this, but the killer embodies the trope perfectly.
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featureApplicability
1.0
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featureConfidence
1.0
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 Doctor X / int_44f6517d
type
Beach Episode
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comment
Beach Episode: Lee and Joan have a non-plot-related conversation on the beach in the middle of the film, solely to get in a bit of comic relief (from him) and Fanservice (from her).
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1.0
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1.0
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 Doctor X / int_4b65d81d
type
Bully and Wimp Pairing
 Doctor X / int_4b65d81d
comment
Bully and Wimp Pairing: The servants have shades of this. Otto is a petty sadist who takes every opportunity to scare high-strung Mamie — and then they're called on to reenact the killings together.
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1.0
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1.0
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 Doctor X / int_4ce7d3b2
type
Electric Joybuzzer
 Doctor X / int_4ce7d3b2
comment
Electric Joybuzzer: Averted. A handshake buzzer appears as a running gag (and is eventually even used as a weapon), but it's the realistic, mechanical kind.
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-1.0
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1.0
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type
Throw It In!
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comment
Throw It In: The film is full of fluffed lines and obvious ad-libbing.
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1.0
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1.0
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 Doctor X / int_5a62e8d0
type
SlidingScaleOfComedyAndHorror
 Doctor X / int_5a62e8d0
comment
Sliding Scale of Comedy and Horror: Leans heavily toward the comedic side, except during the climax.
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1.0
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1.0
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 Doctor X / int_5bdcc85a
type
Disney Villain Death
 Doctor X / int_5bdcc85a
comment
Disney Villain Death: Combined, gruesomely, with Kill It with Fire.
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1.0
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1.0
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 Doctor X / int_5bdf025f
type
Instant Sedation
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Instant Sedation: In the form of knockout gas, used on Lee while he is in the room of skeletons.
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featureApplicability
1.0
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1.0
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 Doctor X / int_5f52cfcf
type
Intrepid Reporter
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Intrepid Reporter: A variation. Lee pursues his story relentlessly, but otherwise doesn't fit the character type: he's a skittish Non-Action Guy who only stays on the case because of pressure from Da Editor.
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1.0
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1.0
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 Doctor X / int_60194b82
type
Spanner in the Works
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comment
Spanner in the Works: Lee, during the second reenactment.
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1.0
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1.0
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 Doctor X / int_6b723294
type
Techno Babble
 Doctor X / int_6b723294
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Techno Babble: Xavier's explanation of the stress-detecting device:
 Doctor X / int_6b723294
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1.0
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1.0
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 Doctor X / int_89499ccf
type
Dolled-Up Installment
 Doctor X / int_89499ccf
comment
Dolled-Up Installment: The sequel, The Return of Doctor X, was based on an unrelated short story. What ties the two films together is their Applied Phlebotinum: synthetic flesh in the original and synthetic blood in the sequel.
 Doctor X / int_89499ccf
featureApplicability
1.0
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1.0
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 Doctor X / int_9099c21c
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GPS Evidence
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GPS Evidence: Police narrow the suspect pool considerably when they discover that the scalpel used in the murders must have come from the Academy of Surgical Research.
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1.0
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1.0
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 Doctor X / int_952f8f26
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Deadly Prank
 Doctor X / int_952f8f26
comment
Deadly Prank: Inverted. An Explosive Cigar saves Lee's life by startling the killer at a critical moment.
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featureApplicability
1.0
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1.0
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 Doctor X / int_a8221f1f
type
SpiritualPredecessor
 Doctor X / int_a8221f1f
comment
Spiritual Predecessor: To Mystery of the Wax Museum.
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1.0
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1.0
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 Doctor X / int_aa07ca54
type
Obfuscating Disability
 Doctor X / int_aa07ca54
comment
Obfuscating Disability: The killer embodies this trope in spirit: even though he really does have only one hand, he is able to easily produce a functional, living replacement.
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featureApplicability
1.0
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1.0
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 Doctor X / int_b01abe4f
type
Catchphrase
 Doctor X / int_b01abe4f
comment
Catchphrase: Lee's "Bad luck!"
 Doctor X / int_b01abe4f
featureApplicability
1.0
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1.0
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 Doctor X / int_c47fed84
type
Waking Up at the Morgue
 Doctor X / int_c47fed84
comment
Waking Up at the Morgue: Played with. Lee hides in the morgue by posing as a corpse, but then behaves as though he hadn't expected to be there. And where did the toe tag come from?
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featureApplicability
1.0
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1.0
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 Doctor X / int_ca81eae7
type
Hollywood Darkness
 Doctor X / int_ca81eae7
comment
Hollywood Darkness: Averted at least twice: when the lights go out during the first reenactment, and in The Tag.
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-1.0
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1.0
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 Doctor X / int_cfbbd075
type
Porn Stash
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comment
Porn Stash: Haines's magazine of "French art," hidden in a book.
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featureApplicability
1.0
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featureConfidence
1.0
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hasFeature
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 Doctor X / int_dbca2c99
type
Red Herring
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comment
Red Herring: Doctor X, X being the unknown, is likely to make viewers think the killer is Xavier, whose name starts with an X.
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featureApplicability
1.0
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1.0
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 Doctor X / int_e016e53f
type
Throwing Off the Disability
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comment
Throwing Off the Disability: Duke is briefly able to walk unaided during the first reenactment. This is immediately recognized as a temporary result of extreme stress and has no further impact on the plot. The killer restores his missing hand with artificial flesh.
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1.0
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 Doctor X / int_e0904aa4
type
No Party Like a Donner Party
 Doctor X / int_e0904aa4
comment
No Party Like a Donner Party: Implied to be part of two of the doctors' shared backstory.
 Doctor X / int_e0904aa4
featureApplicability
1.0
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1.0
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 Doctor X / int_f54a4264
type
Disability Alibi
 Doctor X / int_f54a4264
comment
Disability Alibi: Other characters determine that Wells can't be the killer because he only has one hand, which isn't consistent with the way the victims were strangled.
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1.0
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 Doctor X / int_f9f2c33
type
Running Gag
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comment
Running Gag: The hand buzzer.
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1.0
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 Doctor X / int_fd4f8299
type
Well-Intentioned Extremist
 Doctor X / int_fd4f8299
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Well-Intentioned Extremist: "I'll make a crippled world whole again!"
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1.0
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ItemName
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Doctor X

The following is a list of statements referring to the current page from other pages.

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Alternate Monochrome Version / int_784cba5f
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Beat Still, My Heart / int_784cba5f
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hasFeature
Creepy Red Herring / int_784cba5f
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Horror Comedy / int_784cba5f
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Sci-Fi Horror / int_784cba5f
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hasFeature
Spanner in the Works / int_784cba5f