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Surgeons of Horror

~ Dissecting horror films

Surgeons of Horror

Tag Archives: amicus productions

Retrospective: Tales From The Crypt (1972)

07 Monday Mar 2022

Posted by surgeons of horror in retrospective

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amicus productions, angela blake, freddie francis, ian hendry, joan collins, milton subotsky, nigel patrick, Patrick Magee, peter cushing, ralph richardson, robin phillips, tales from the crypt, the crypt keeper

During the early 50s, EC Comics ran a successful horror series known as Tales From the Crypt of which 27 issues were produced on a bi-monthly basis. When co-founder of Amicus Productions, Milton Subotsky came into the position of securing the rights to produce a movie-length feature based on the comics he loved as a kid, he didn’t hesitate.

For me, criminally, I would blur the lines of recollection between this and Creepshow, both franchises having a crypt keeper / the creep taking on hosting or segway duties. It’s iconic status however was not lost on me and for those who have followed my writings or musings through the Surgeons of Horror podcast may know, I’m a huge fan of Peter Cushing’s work, especially with the Hammer Horror scene. Here he teams up with director Freddie Francis, who has been attached to films by both Hammer and Amicus in their history, and another creative with whom I admire. Francis does incredibly well with the 5 segmented stories, all drawn from the TFTC archives. And Cushing actually turned down the initial role offered to him from the script, which was part of The Monkey’s Paw inspired tale, “Wish You Were Here”, instead taking on the role of Grimsdyke in “Poetic Justice”.

The segments are weaved together with 5 souls trapped in a state of purgatory to face up to their evil deeds, by The Crypt Keeper (Ralph Richardson). One by one we witness these individuals recount their tales which lead to their death, from Joan Collins as Joanne Clayton in “…And All Through The House” in a Christmas inspired murder of a woman killing her husband and trying to hide the evidence form her daughter only to be sprung from a psychotic killer on the loose dressed as Santa.

Then there’s “Reflection of Death” where Carl Maitland (Ian Hendry) tries to run away from his family life with his lover, Susan (Angela Blake) only to crash in his car and be taken on a living nightmare where he believes he survived, only to find out that this is far from the truth. This is followed by the aforementioned segment with Cushing, where he plays the loveable, elderly figure Grimsdyke, who is the subject of jealousy by his neighbour James (Robin Phillips) believing him to be a waste of space, and bringing down the neighbourhood. When he takes action to strip down Grimsdyke’s life to bare minimum, he doesn’t expect the repercussions that occur beyond the grave.

The fourth segment, “Wish You Were Here” as stated before is heavily inspired by The Monkey’s Paw and the ramifications when you are not careful or specific about what you wish for when presented with three wishes. The last segment, “Blind Alleys” has Nigel Patrick as a self-entitled Major who gets his razor sharp comeuppance in a dog-eat-dog world where he attempts to rule the roost over the occupants in a home for the blind. The residents also include Patrick Magee hamming it up as always.

There’s a certain appeal to this anthology movie that lures you into each tale. Yes there are some obvious flaws but these can be forgiven for the atmosphere created by the creative team and the actors that give substance to the tales from the crypt.

  • Saul Muerte

Retrospective: The House That Dripped Blood (1971)

01 Thursday Apr 2021

Posted by surgeons of horror in retrospective

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amicus, amicus productions, christopher lee, denholm elliott, ingrid pitt, jon pertwee, joss ackland, peter cushing, robert bloch, the house that dripped blood

It seems crazy to me that as a Brit and lover of Horror, that I am only now writing my first article on an Amicus Productions, a company that became notorious over their 15 year span between the early 60s and late 70s, and much like their counterpart Hammer Horror, boasted Peter Cushing and Christopher Lee as their key stars.

The House That Dripped Blood which celebrates its 50th Anniversary this year, was released at the height of their success not only lays claim to these fine British actors but also stars fellow actors Denholm Elliott, Ingrit Pitt, and Jon Pertwee.
To top it off, the four stories that make up the anthology in this film were originally penned by Robert Bloch (Psycho). 

Each of the tales are strung together by Inspector Holloway from Scotland Yard who is investigating the disappearance of film star Paul Henderson (Pertwee) from the titular house, which harbours some strange events over the years.

The first tale, Method For Murder sees Denholm Elliot as a horror writer, Charles who moves into the country abode with his wife Alice.  Whilst there, Charles throws himself into his work where he comes up with a menacing psychopath Dominic. When he starts to see visions of the murderous strangler, Charles begins to question his sanity. Is Dominic really a figment of his imagination or part of Charles’ split personality manifested to enact his inner and darkest thoughts.

The second tale, Waxworks stars Cushing as a recently retired stockbroker, Philip who stumbles upon a wax museum in his local town that contains a mannequin that strikes an uncanny resemblance to a woman that he once loved.
Philip automatically senses that there is something evil about the museum and swears never to return, but when his friend Neville (Joss Ackland when he had hair) arrives, both find themselves drawn once again into the spiritual domain and its maniacal owner, Grayson (Wolfe Morris).

By the third tale, Sweets to the Sweet featuring Christopher Lee as a widower, John, comes around, it is obvious that there is something untoward about the house and the power it has over its occupants. John is typically reserved and apparently over protective of his daughter, Jane. When a former teacher Ann moves in to be the young girl’s Governess, she at first suspects John of cruel and malicious treatment, but it soon becomes clear that there is more to Jane than meets the eye.

The last tale, The Cloak comes full circle and picks up with Paul Henderson (Pertwee) a brash and unlikable actor, who believes that he is above all those around him. Unhappy with the set design and costume department of his low budget feature, Paul takes it upon himself to get his own costume, namely a vampire cloak. The cloak though contains a dark energy though that slowly turns its wearer into a creature of the night. 

At first I was a little unsure of the anthological approach to the movie but each of the stories involved are solid and compact, held together by fantastical elements and strengthened by a bloody good cast. They may stretch into the melodramatic, but I for one enjoyed every minute of it, especially its conclusion and the breaking down of the fourth wall.

  • Saul Muerte

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