Review for Dr. Terror's House of Horror - Widescreen Edition

I love these so-called 'portmanteau' horrors. Four of five tales of terror, weaved together by some thin strand of common narrative. Curiously, until RomComs adopted the idea ('Love Actually') they remained the exclusive property of the horror genre with its long tradition of spooky story-telling.
This wonderful Amicus outing can sit proudly on the shelf next to 'Tales from the Crypt', 'Tales of Terror', 'Twice-Told Tales', 'The House that Dripped Blood', 'Asylum' and 'Vault of Horror'.


Amicus movies are often confused with Hammer Horrors mainly because cast and crew freely flitted between the two, often filming on the same lots (Bray and Shepperton). If there is anything to distinguish the two brands then it may be just that Amicus tended to set their horrors in contemporary settings, whilst Hammer (with a few notable exceptions) preferred the Victorian age.


This new release of 'Dr. Terror' will please those who missed out on the Amicus box-set (the one shaped like a coffin which takes pride of place in my collection) and who possibly missed out on a previously issued disc which was a cropped full-frame transfer (yeuch!).

This is typical Amicus fare with Peter Cushing playing the role of the mysterious 'Dr. Terror' who climbs aboard a train and sits in a compartment with four others - and despite this being a budget production, it's quite a line up. Christopher Lee, Donald Sutherland, Michael Gough, Roy Castle and a surprising cameo from Alan 'Fluff' Freeman. ('Not 'Arf Pop-pickers').


Each stranger has their fortune told via Dr. Terror's Tarot cards and each has a terrible fate in store.

The first of the four tales (and the weakest of the four as it transpires) features a Neil McCallum returning to the Scottish highlands to his family roots. Things start to get a bit spooky and he investigates an ancient tomb in an attempt to discover the ancestral home's dark secrets. Every full moon there's howling to be heard, and McCallum becomes determined to rid his family of an ancient curse by putting a silver bullet into the supposed werewolf.


The second tale features Alan Freeman, who plays a young husband returning to home after a holiday with his new young wife. Before long, they suspect that a particular plant in their garden is dangerous, having strangled the pet dog and having attacked Mr. Freeman during an attempt to cut it down to size. Before long the experts are called in but it becomes apparent that the plant may not want any of them to leave the house. Despite some very hokey effects (the plant being pulled about on transparent wiring ala Thunderbirds) it's a most amusing tale.


Next up, Jazz trumpeter (and later star of 'Record Breakers') Roy Castle. Castle's jazz band are fed up with the London scene and when they get offered a stint in Haiti they grab the chance. Once in Haiti (or a jungle festooned Studio B at Bray) they meet up with Kenny Lynch who warns Castle to avoid the local voodoo outings. Naturally, Castle ignores him and is soon trippin' to the amazing voodoo drum beats, daddy-o. He decides to 'borrow' one of these for his own group but soon discovers that the voodoo gods don't take kindly to folk ripping them off.


Next up, Lee plays an obnoxious art critic who, when publicly lambasting an artist's work, is asked to view a new up and coming artists work which he immediately proclaims to be the work of genius. When he (and the crowd around him) is invited to meet the artist it turns out to be a chimpanzee. (Yes - this is a re-treading of the reactionary view of abstract art, beloved of films of the period). Humiliated, Lee's character sets out to wreak murderous revenge on the artist who humiliated him so publicly. All goes to plan until Lee is mercilessly pursued by a disembodied hand which refuses to be destroyed despite being stabbed, burned and thrown in a river. Despite traces of Poe's Tell-Tale Heart, this is the most effective of the tales and really a lot of fun with Lee doing excellently as the guilt-ridden art critic.


Finally we come to Donald Sutherland, who has just married a beautiful French lady, Jennifer Jayne and who has taken a position as a rural doctor. But soon, all his patients are looking a bit anaemic.
The movie culminates with a final twist involving all the travellers.


It's a must-buy for Hammer fans who love this style (late 60's horror that amuses and entertains far more than it frightens) so, despite the lack of any extras, is recommended.