The title refers to the death and resurrection of the character, and is not a true sequel to the 1932 Doctor X. Though both films involve a scientist seeking to replicate human body parts, in this case, blood.
This was the directorial debut for Vincent Sherman, who went on to have a great career at Warner Brothers, the studio that produced this curio. Humphrey Bogart, one of the most legendary actors in Hollywood today, was given the title role, supposedly as punishment for asking Jack Warner for more money.
I'm getting ahead of myself. When Dracula and Frankenstein proved big hits, all the major studios dabbled in horror films, of varying quality. MGM, Fox, Warner Brothers and Paramount all had releases from 1931 to 1936. But, when Great Britain banned horror films, thus cutting off the whole British Empire, Hollywood sent the ghouls back to their graveyards.
Flash forward to 1938, when a flea-pit movie house in Los Angeles began running nightly showings of Dracula and Frankenstein on a double bill. The large crowds that came to watch convinced Hollywood to try again, and a new horror cycle began, kicked off with Son of Frankenstein in 1939, the same year as Return of Doctor X.
Bogart plays the revived mad doctor with a pale complexion and a streak of white in his hair, a la Bride of Frankenstein. He was originally executed for murder, but revived by scientific means. Now, like a vampire, he needs blood to stay alive. That's where the similarity ends. He is not immortal, doesn't sleep in a coffin, doesn't turn into a bat, and does not fear the daylight. He is opposed by a dogged reporter (a staple in Warners' movies from this era) and a doctor who fears one of his colleagues knows more than he's saying.
It's amusing to note that Bogart was not the mega-star he would become as World War 2 was raging. At this point, he was a contract player, taking the roles that were given him, whether he liked them or not. And he hated this one, notably because Warners had gotten cheap and decided not to cast Boris Karloff or Bela Lugosi as originally planned. "You can't believe what this one was like," Bogart said. "I was this doctor brought back to life, and the only thing that would nourish this poor bastard was blood. If it had been Jack Warner's blood, I might not have minded as much."
From the time home video came on the market, The Return of Doctor X was not available, though Turner Classic Movies would air it on occasion. But in 2006, it was released as part of a boxed set with other non-Universal horrors including Doctor X, The Mask of Fu Manchu, Mark of the Vampire, The Devil Doll and Mad Love.
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