Tales of Terror (1962)

Director:

Roger Corman

Writers:

Edgar Allan Poe (stories) and
Richard Matheson (writer)

Release Date:

23 February 1963 (Denmark)

Genre:

Comedy | Horror | Mystery | Thriller

Tagline:

A Trilogy of Shock and Horror!

Plot:

Three stories adapted from the work of Edgar Allen Poe. A man and his daughter are reunited, but the blame for the death of his wife hangs over them...

Plot Keywords:

Betrayal | Suspended Animation | Widower | Recluse | Zombie

Cast

Vincent Price	...	Fortunato / Valdemar / Locke
Maggie Pierce	...	Lenora Locke (segment "Morella")
Leona Gage	...	Morella Locke (segment "Morella")
Edmund Cobb	...	Driver (segment "Morella")
Peter Lorre	...	Montresor Herringbone (segment "The Black Cat")
Joyce Jameson	...	Annabel Herringbone (segment "The Black Cat")
John Hackett	...	Policeman (segment "The Black Cat")
Lennie Weinrib	...	Policeman (segment "The Black Cat")
Wally Campo	...	Barman Wilkins (segment "The Black Cat")
Alan DeWitt	...	Chairman of Wine Society (segment "The Black Cat")
Basil Rathbone	...	Carmichael (segment "The Facts in the Case of M. Valdemar")
Debra Paget	...	Helene Valdemar (segment "The Facts in the Case of M. Valdemar")
David Frankham	...	Dr. Elliot James (segment "The Facts in the Case of M. Valdemar")

Also Known As:

Edgar Allan Poe's Tales of Terror (USA)
Poe's Tales of Terror

Runtime:

89 min

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Color:

Color (Pathé Colour)

Aspect Ratio:

2.35 : 1

Sound Mix:

Mono

Certification:

USA:Approved (PCA #20234) | USA:Unrated (video release) | UK:15 (video rating) (1993) | UK:X (original rating) (cut) | Argentina:13 | Sweden:15 | Australia:M

Company:

Alta Vista Productions

Trivia:

A mixture of glue, glycerin, corn starch and make-up paint was heated and then poured over Vincent Price's head to give the impression of his face melting away. The substance was so hot, that Price could only stand it for a few seconds.

Quotes:

Fortunato: For the love of God, Montresor!
Montresor Herringbone: Yes. For the love of God.

Movie Connections:

Referenced in "Tremors: The Sounds of Silence (#1.10)" (2003)

Pretty good

Another of the Roger Corman/Vincent Price films based VERY loosely on three Edgar Allan Poe tales.

The first is "Morella" where a dying girl comes to visit her father (Price) and find out why he abandoned her as a child. It has to do with her mother (Morella) and her death. Well-done but it doesn't make a lot of sense.

"The Black Cat" is about a man (Peter Lorre) finding out his wife is cheating on him with someone else (Price). It's pretty good but Lorre's acting turns it into a comedy more than a horror story.

"The Case of M. Valdemar" has an evil mesmerist (Basil Rathbone) keeping a man's spirit alive while his body wastes away. Well-done with a pretty gruesome ending.

Basically this a good anthology of horror stories. They're well-produced, well-acted and written. Just don't expect them to be anything like the Poe tales (especially "Morella"). GREAT liberties have been taken with the stories--they just use them as a starting point and build on it.

Also try to see it letter-boxed--the pan and scan TV version is pretty terrible.

I give it a 7.