- Actors: Vincent Price, Maggie Pierce, Leona Gage, Peter Lorre, Joyce Jameson
- Directors: Roger Corman
- Writers: Edgar Allan Poe, Richard Matheson
- Producers: Roger Corman, James H. Nicholson, Samuel Z. Arkoff
- Classification: 18
- Studio: Universal
- Run Time: 89 minutes
- Average Customer Review: 4.1 out of 5 stars See all reviews (8 customer reviews)
- ASIN: B00005833K
- Amazon Bestsellers Rank: 33,524 in Video (See Top 100 in Video)
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Product Description
Amazon.co.uk Review
Tales of Terror is a trio of Edgar Allen Poe stories, starring three of horror's greats--Vincent Price, Basil Rathbone and Peter Lorre--and produced and directed by the immortal Roger Corman. The first story, "Morella", involves a girl (Debra Paget) who returns to her isolated, spooky family home to see her estranged father (Price) for the first time in 26 years. He's let the housekeeping slide a bit--cobwebs abound and, oh, yes, his dead wife is still upstairs. Peter Lorre joins the fun for "The Black Cat", a piece with comic flavour that allows Price to show his rarely seen silly side, and then it's Basil Rathbone's turn to be creepy in "The Case of M Valdemar", the tale of a mesmerist who decides to experiment with the unknown (bad idea). The movie is well paced, and makes good use of comedy without undercutting its chills. It's a rare treat to see this many masters of the genre working together and so clearly enjoying themselves. --Ali Davis
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Customer Reviews
Most Helpful Customer Reviews
8 of 8 people found the following review helpful
Format:DVD|Amazon Verified Purchase
Tales Of Terror [DVD]
with actors like these,we will never see the like again,irreplaceble.storeys a little hammy,cheesy.but who cares,as said of its time a classic with a plethora of actors sorely missing today,i liked it really..
with actors like these,we will never see the like again,irreplaceble.storeys a little hammy,cheesy.but who cares,as said of its time a classic with a plethora of actors sorely missing today,i liked it really..
27 of 29 people found the following review helpful
Format:VHS Tape
Mention Roger Corman's 1962 "Tales of Terror" and you immediately think of Vincent Price teaming up with Peter Lorre and Basil Rathbone. But for me this film owes as much to writer Richard Matheson, who adapted four Poe stories into three film vignettes. "Morella" is another one of those dark family secret stories. The title character (Leona Gage) had died in childbirth 26 years before, cursing her baby daughter. When Leonora (Maggie Pierce) comes home suffering from a fatal disease, she discovers her father Locke (Price) has been keeping mom's mummified corpse in his bedroom. "The Black Cat" also works in elements of Poe's "The Cask of Amontillado." Montressor Herringbone (Lorre) finds out his wfie Annabel (Joyce Jameson) is having an affair with Fortunato Lucresi (Price), a rather foppish wine connoisseur. Unexpectedly funny because of the comic performances of the two stars, the story is this sequence inspired Corman to make "The Raven." Finally, "The Facts in the Case of M. Valdemar," an elderly man (Vindent) whose dying days have been eased in part because of a hypnotist, Carmichael (Rathbone), whos wants to hypnotize Valdemar at the moment of death. The experiemnt succeeds, after a fashion, but Carmichael refuses to release Valdemar until his wife Helene (Debra Paget) agrees to marry him.
"Tales of Terror" is noteworthy for two particular impacts it had on horror films. The first was the emergence of anthology films that followed in its wake, such as "Dr. Terror's House of Horrors" and "Black Sabbath." The second was the revival of interest in former movie stars at American International, which would soon add Boris Karloff to their roster. The stand out segment of this film is certainly "The Black Cat," with Lorre and Price showing marvelous comic timing. Lorre takes such perverse glee in walling up his wife and Price, plus there is nothing like the macabre politeness of movie villains . There is something transcendent about watching these old Hollywood pros have fun with taking these roles so seriously, so to speak.
"Tales of Terror" is noteworthy for two particular impacts it had on horror films. The first was the emergence of anthology films that followed in its wake, such as "Dr. Terror's House of Horrors" and "Black Sabbath." The second was the revival of interest in former movie stars at American International, which would soon add Boris Karloff to their roster. The stand out segment of this film is certainly "The Black Cat," with Lorre and Price showing marvelous comic timing. Lorre takes such perverse glee in walling up his wife and Price, plus there is nothing like the macabre politeness of movie villains . There is something transcendent about watching these old Hollywood pros have fun with taking these roles so seriously, so to speak.
2 of 2 people found the following review helpful
Format:DVD
Three Poe inspired tales starring Vincent Price ( who plays in each of them), and two old horror veterans, Basil Rathbone and Peter Lorre. The first tale, 'Morella,' is the weakest in my opinion. Morella is a woman who died giving birth cursing her daughter and is now kept as a mummy by her demented husband (Price) who receives a surprise visit from their daughter with predictably dramatic and supernatural consequnces. The drama seems a bit ponderous to me and recalls similar Corman films better done (like 'The Fall of the House of Usher' or 'The Tomb of Ligeia').'The Black Cat' works as a comic horror tale nicely played by Lorre,as a drunkard who murders his wife and her dandyish wine tasting lover (Price) by walling them up in his house. Of course Price rises to the occasion in this ham fest, which also appropriates material from Poe's tale, 'The Cask of Amontillado.' The success of this comedy tale anticipates Corman's comic horror romp, 'The Raven'. The final tale, 'The case of M Valdermar' is the most authentically 'horror' one in the anthology. Basil Rathbone plays a hypnotist who persuades a dying man (Price, in what is his most restrained and effective performance in the film) to be hypnotised on his deathbed with very chilling results as he answers Rathbone's questions from the great beyond. I'd rate this DVD as a good purchase but if all three tales were as chilling as the last, the film would truly live up to its title.
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Most Recent Customer Reviews
Tales Of Terror (2003 Fox DVD) - Terrifyingly entertaining!
This is a great little portmanteau film collecting three classic Edgar Allen Poe stories (with some reworking... Read more
Published 1 month ago by Victor
Brilliant gothic horror with the Roger Corman touch
In this collection of short Poe stories, we see what happens if a man tries to live beyond death. It is scarier than you'd expect. Read more
Published 9 months ago by M. J. Jacobs
trio of terror
In 1962 Vincent Price teamed up with Roger Corman for the 4th time to star in these 3 stories from the Edgar Allan Poe collection. Read more
Published 22 months ago by Susan Belcher
I just love Vincent Price
I keep forgetting the title to this film,and so have never been able to buy it,but have at last found it.If you like Price you will love this,its one of his classic films. Read more
Published on 26 Jan 2008 by Ms. J. Walker
Fair portrayal of Poe's tales of mystery and imagination
Not the best Poe adaption by any means, but full of atmosphere with that slightly twisted angle of looking at things, you expect of Poe. Read more
Published on 10 Dec 2007 by Lou Knee
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