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20 of 22 people found the following review helpful
Format:DVD
England, the 16th century. Wicked Lord and corrupt magistrate Edward Whitman(Vincent Price) beats the fear of God into any villagers who follow the 'old religion'. He goes too far by massacaring members of a coven of witches led by Oona, but he spares her life, to teach her a lesson. Oona invokes a curse upon Whitman and his family. Soon an ancient creature born of fire is sent to destroy the Whitman family
Okay, the story is a bit of a mess. However its a highly enjoyable, atmospheric mess, and whilst many scenes seem to have been added for the sole purpose of baring the breasts of various female actresses, once we get into the 'curse' part of the story it finds a steely determination to keep the narrative flowing smoothly.
Vincent Price is in very fine form. Patrick Mower is also very good as 'son of the forest' Roderick. Theres fine support also from Stephan Chase who gives a great exercise in lip smacking villiany as Whitman's caddish son Sean, and theres a nice cameo from Hugh Griffith as cowardly gravedigger Mickey.
If that wasnt enough to convince you to buy this, then how about Terry Gilliam's wonderful Pythonesque opening titles(almost worth the price of admission on their own), a rousing music score by Les Baxter and it also looks great, courtesy of John Coquillion's superb cinematography. Another point of interest is that this film seems to take the side of the witches, as Whitman's brood are a thoroughly despicable bunch, and the witches reluctantly take action only when provoked.
The only real negative is the lack of decent extras, but this is an Optimum releasse of a Brit Horror, so I shouldnt have expected any different. I suppose we should all be grateful that at least one company is releasing them at all.
Great fun. 4 out of 5
Okay, the story is a bit of a mess. However its a highly enjoyable, atmospheric mess, and whilst many scenes seem to have been added for the sole purpose of baring the breasts of various female actresses, once we get into the 'curse' part of the story it finds a steely determination to keep the narrative flowing smoothly.
Vincent Price is in very fine form. Patrick Mower is also very good as 'son of the forest' Roderick. Theres fine support also from Stephan Chase who gives a great exercise in lip smacking villiany as Whitman's caddish son Sean, and theres a nice cameo from Hugh Griffith as cowardly gravedigger Mickey.
If that wasnt enough to convince you to buy this, then how about Terry Gilliam's wonderful Pythonesque opening titles(almost worth the price of admission on their own), a rousing music score by Les Baxter and it also looks great, courtesy of John Coquillion's superb cinematography. Another point of interest is that this film seems to take the side of the witches, as Whitman's brood are a thoroughly despicable bunch, and the witches reluctantly take action only when provoked.
The only real negative is the lack of decent extras, but this is an Optimum releasse of a Brit Horror, so I shouldnt have expected any different. I suppose we should all be grateful that at least one company is releasing them at all.
Great fun. 4 out of 5
16 of 24 people found the following review helpful
Format:DVD
Gordon Hessler's delirious "Murders in the Rue Morgue" is a must-see for all lovers of macabre, bizarre movies, and it has haunted me since I first saw it during its very limited British release in 1971. The plotline is closer to "Phantom of the Opera" than the two previous Hollywood versions of Poe's celebrated tale. In 1880's Paris a theatre company staging a "grand guignol" adaptation of Poe's story is plagued by a series of grisly murders. The victims were all members of the company ten years earlier, when a leading actor (Herbert Lom) was horribly disfigured by acid in an on-stage accident - or was it? In the present, the beautiful leading lady (Christine Kauffman) is troubled by a recurring nightmare in which she is menaced by a hooded figure in the mansion which was her childhood home.Meanwhile the local police chief (Adolfo Celi)suspects that her actor-manager husband (Jason Robards Jr.) is withholding information which links murders in the past and present.
The convoluted plot interweaves past, present, illusion, reality, dream and theatre; this is by far the most audacious of American International Picture's series of Poe adaptations. It was all shot on location in Toledo, Spain,which accounts for the very different look it has to Hessler's previous horror movies for AIP, which were all shot in England.
On the debit side, some of the dialogue has to be heard to be disbelieved, and Jason Robard's performance is unrelievedly dour. Vincent Price, where were you when they needed you? Post-production interference by the studio resulted in a heavily cut release print which rendered much of the plot meaningless, but thankfully the new D.V.D. issue gives us restores much of Hessler's final cut,and contains ten minutes of previously "lost" footage.
How many contemporary horror movies are as rich in ideas and levels of interpretation as this? Much credit must go to screenwriter Chris Wicking, a true original who was rarely trusted with a sole screenwriting credit -here he's working on a treatment by American hack Henry Slesar- but whose work in the genre stands out from the depressingly formulaic norms of British cinema. This is a fine D.V.D.issue, with the welcome bonus of a fifteen minute introduction by the director.
Thank you, M.G.M.
The convoluted plot interweaves past, present, illusion, reality, dream and theatre; this is by far the most audacious of American International Picture's series of Poe adaptations. It was all shot on location in Toledo, Spain,which accounts for the very different look it has to Hessler's previous horror movies for AIP, which were all shot in England.
On the debit side, some of the dialogue has to be heard to be disbelieved, and Jason Robard's performance is unrelievedly dour. Vincent Price, where were you when they needed you? Post-production interference by the studio resulted in a heavily cut release print which rendered much of the plot meaningless, but thankfully the new D.V.D. issue gives us restores much of Hessler's final cut,and contains ten minutes of previously "lost" footage.
How many contemporary horror movies are as rich in ideas and levels of interpretation as this? Much credit must go to screenwriter Chris Wicking, a true original who was rarely trusted with a sole screenwriting credit -here he's working on a treatment by American hack Henry Slesar- but whose work in the genre stands out from the depressingly formulaic norms of British cinema. This is a fine D.V.D.issue, with the welcome bonus of a fifteen minute introduction by the director.
Thank you, M.G.M.
5 of 8 people found the following review helpful
Format:DVD|Amazon Verified Purchase
Elizabethanish England, local coven, Vincent Price.
What more needs to be said?
Patrick Mower is good, a long way from his current Emmerdale incarnation. Vincent price is a bit over the top as usual and Hilary Dwyer is once again the buxom love interest. There's a fair amount of gratuitous nudity but basically it's a simple tale of local folk oppressed by evil Lord and then getting their own back quite effectively.
As another reviewer commented there are no extras butthen that allows you to conventrate on the film. Not in the same league as Witchfinder General or Blood on Satan's Claw, but if you like those I think you'll like this offering too.
What more needs to be said?
Patrick Mower is good, a long way from his current Emmerdale incarnation. Vincent price is a bit over the top as usual and Hilary Dwyer is once again the buxom love interest. There's a fair amount of gratuitous nudity but basically it's a simple tale of local folk oppressed by evil Lord and then getting their own back quite effectively.
As another reviewer commented there are no extras butthen that allows you to conventrate on the film. Not in the same league as Witchfinder General or Blood on Satan's Claw, but if you like those I think you'll like this offering too.
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Most Recent Customer Reviews
OMG! This Sucks.
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Many years have passed since I saw this and I had forgotten how deeply unpleasant it is. The writers and director seem to be voyeuristic misogynists, with rape torture and... Read more
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Mediocre product
I first saw this film when it was released in the early seventies. It was in the typical Roger Corman style of American International productions of the time. Read more
Published on 11 Oct 2009 by Dr. W. Onyeama
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