"An out-pouring of the Cesspools of Hollywood!... How any normal person could have thought that the horrible syphilitic play could have made an entertaining picture... is beyond comprehension."
Harrison's Reports

"Of course, there is a school of motion picture thought that regards the Browning-Chaney romantic ugliness as a sin against the fine wholesomeness inherent in the art of cinema. To this observatory, however, it has always seemed that the films were so disgustingly healthy in their outlook that the trace of perversity in the works directed by, say, Browning and von Stroheim was enormously refreshing."
Richard Watts, Jr., New York Herald Tribune

"A grim, ingenious, but somewhat artificial tale... It is played by an especially good cast."
The New York Times

"After years of acting [Chaney] appears in his best photoplay since The Unholy Three (1925) which, if you recall, was his very best."
New York Sun

"Flint is a part that calls for some real acting. Mr. Chaney is superb, and West of Zanzibar is the best vehicle he has had in several years."
The New York Review

"Staged by Tod Browning, the picture is gruesome, almost terrible in its atmosphere, but it will rank with Chaney's best among those who seek horror thrills."
Zit's Theatrical Newspaper

"It's an interesting movie, gruesome and bizarre enough to please the most exacting Chaney fans. Witchcraft, superstition, horror and powerful dramatic suspense, repulsive make-up and a walloping story, fit it perfectly to the Chaney talents."
New York Mirror