The Blancheville Monster (1963) User Reviews

Faux Corman, but not bad at all

[Laughing_Gravy · 6/10 · 27 February 2005]

I had no idea what to expect from this one, but it turned out to be Italy's response to the Roger Corman Edgar Allan Poe films, and it's actually pretty good.

In late 19th century northern France, lovely Emily De Blancheville returns to her ancestral home from finishing school to find that her brother has sacked the entire staff and all the new servants are creepy. Worse yet, her father – whom she had believed to be killed in a fire – is actually alive but hideously burned and criminally insane, and locked up in the tower. Her brother explains that there is a curse on the De Blancheville line, and their father believes that the curse can only be broken if Emily dies before her 21st birthday, which is coming up so close that they've already got the castle bedecked with festive balloons. Well, to make 89 minutes short, the father escapes and pretty soon Emily is in for a bad time of it.

What I liked about this film: It's produced by "Llama Films", which has to make a person smile. The leading ladies are all lovely, and Emily's little peekaboo nightie is extremely flattering (yeah, yeah, I know, men are pigs. Oink, oink). The location and sets are amazing, with real castles and genuine ruins (it's so cold, even indoors, that you can constantly see the actors' breath). The monster's makeup seems to be some kind of Kharis mask, Italian style. The dialog is priceless, if a tad wordy ("You will follow me, Emily. To your tomb. To your death. To die. To die. To die. To die"). Have I mentioned it was produced by Llama Films? Oh, and the brother ("Roderick", what else) is played by a guy who looks like Vincent Price. At least, in the context of this film. There are a lot of other shenanigans, with a doctor who is not what he appears, a housekeeper who is exactly what she appears, a premature burial, et al, but I don't like to give away too much of the plot. Sometimes, you have to just let the film run its course and try not to think about what it all means for months, or even years.

Mesmer-izing Italian Horror Film

[BaronBl00d · 5/10 · 20 November 2005]

A young, beautiful blonde, her best friend from college with her brother and an admirer of her blonde beauty reach "home," the stately residence of the famed and fabled Blachevilles. Upon arriving there, we meet the brother Roderick, a scary looking housekeeper that seems to possess a station way above her ranks, and a doctor that oozes something not closely related to charm. It seems that all the old servants have been let go and that the patriarch - the father- has recently died - or not? I liked this film for several reasons. If nothing else it has atmosphere. The castle used is an impressive set. The black and white cinematography accentuates the rooms of the castle, a huge family tomb, grounds swirling with fog, and a lot more. We have a huge organ being grinded out in a few scenes in classic horror classic fashion(say that fast five times). The story and the "monster" are nothing fantastic at all, but the film works because the artful direction is able to build suspense. Now, if you are the type of viewer that needs a lot of action, then you really must stay away as this film is more talking and all red herrings(in what turns out to be a not all that clever mystery of who is the Blancheville monster). There is some rather preposterous story about an ancient curse on the family that will die off when the last female(?) descendant turns 21 - utter rubbish. But it is incidental when one looks at the way the film was filmed, and the pace slowly creeps up from slower to slow and then finally fast at the end in the revelation of what has lain cloaked the whole time. This was an Italian production with lots of Spanish influence(much of the cast is Spanish). The actors are all decent and able to make you believe in them at times. This is by no means a great horror film, but it, as other reviewers have noted, is in the same vein as a Roger Corman movie of the same period or a black and white Hammer film. This is the Euro version with no big stars but a decent story and lots of mood.

Not a Bad Scary Film

[biggertuna · 6/10 · 16 January 2005]

A list of the neat elements of the film a.k.a. " Horror ", a.k.a. "The Blanchville Monster,"...1. It's Italian, 2. black and white, 3. "Horror" sneakily appears as an occult film but really a psychological horror film, and 4. the ultra-creepy background music. I watched this movie when I was a 10-year old watching it on shock theater late Saturday night. There are a few boring parts and some parts that should never been put into the film, such as Rodrigues playing the keyboards. But I'm a little prejudiced on bragging on this movie because I've never seen an Italian horror film I didn't like ( Black Sunday, Black Sabbath, Suspiria, Inferno, etc. ).

Somewhat slow, short on horror, but eerie.

[rixrex · 17 May 2006]

This "pretty good" Corman-styled quasi-Poe entry complete with Vincent Price lookalike, and red herrings, is a little too plodding for it's own good and needs some more frequent and stronger moments of horror to make it to the "very good" level. The same can be said of the Corman-Poe films and such, yet they had great indelible scare moments, fabulous art direction in color and Vincent Price to keep them interesting. This looks like a late night spook show staple from the 60s and 70s, and is fine as such, except I saw it without commercials. I kept thinking it would be better if I'd watched it on an old B&W 20" portable TV on a wire-rack TV stand with potato chips and soda, and a chair with lumpy cushion on a chilly and windy October night just to get into the period.

Horror: Oh no no no no

[Platypuschow · 2/10 · 11 November 2018]

Horror otherwise known as The Blancheville Monster is an outstandingly dated horror movie even for its time and one of the most muddled I've possibly ever seen.

It tells the confused story of a woman who returns to her family home to discover lies, a hideously deformed man and a plot of which she is at the heart.

It looks quite poor for it's time and manages to sound even worse. The echo on the recording is unforgivably bad and damages the movie to a ridiculous extent.

The plot itself as mentioned is muddled, it makes very little sense and to make matters worse is about as engaging as a giant frisky porcupine.

The early sixties were awash with horror movies, there is plenty of choice and this certainly wouldn't be a logical one.

The Good:

Nothing springs to mind

The Bad:

Dreadful audio quality

Embarassingly poor script

Things I Learnt From This Movie:

At some point someone gave thumbs up to that audio track

Black haired women = Evil, blonde haired women = Good.

A revelation!

[BrentCarleton · 7/10 · 13 July 2007]

Though it has somehow or other managed to escape all the standard reference books, this film is a real and unheralded discovery--a visually distinguished and absorbing Gothic thriller, halfway between Bava country and the Mexican gothics like "The Witch's Mirror".

"Blancheville Monster" where have you been hiding? Right off the bat, we are treated to a deliciously evocative visual opening--a wintry, bare tree ridden country road, awash with an icy looking rain, beyond which stands the distant castle on the mountain.

Ann Radcliffe would be well pleased! And the film keeps on delivering: two attractive female leads, a mysterious and scarred man locked in a tower room, frequent thunder and lightning, and all the necessary accoutrements of remote castle Gothic, from flickering torches to doleful turns on the family harpsichord.

The countryside in which the film is shot has the desolate beauty of a November day, and strongly suggests the Brittany in which the film is set, (though not shot). In this sense, some of the landscapes resemble those in Bresson's "Diary of a Country Priest." Devotees of the genre are herewith advised to seek this out. It's far more deserving than some of its over-hyped relatives.

Death by exposition!

[chaypher · 3/10 · 29 March 2014]

Emily, a now nubile maiden, returns to her Brittany family castle after spending her college-years away in England. In tow are her equally nubile best friend Alice and Alice's charming brother John, who is dating Emily. Upon arrival, they meet Rodrigue Emily's morose brother who is now in charge of the family's estate after their father's tragic death in a fire. Also there are a shady housekeeper and family doctor, who fancies Alice but Alice appears more interested in Rodrigue.

After some atmospheric scenes of Alice wandering around the castle in her nightie, Rodrigue drops a bombshell by confessing that he lied about the Count's death and that he survived although horribly scarred. And then as an after-thought adds that he escaped their care and has run off into the woods. Then he also reveals that, due to a supposed family curse which condemns the family name unless all female descendants die before they are 21(!), the Count is hell-bent on seeing to it that Emily doesn't see her 21st birthday (which happens to be in 5 days)!

The rest of the plot entails, by now the mandatory girls in transparent nighties wandering around the corridors and castle grounds and fainting a lot; Rodrigue brooding in his tower and belting out creepy tunes on his organ; Emily being in some sort of hysterical fugue; John being the hero, determined to capture the Count and trying to figure out what is going on (aren't we all!); the doctor spending more energy trying to win over Alice's affections than work it all out; the shady housekeeper being shady some more; and the Count himself trying to lead his daughter to her death.When the inevitable twist comes, you are hardly surprised at that point and beyond caring too much and the whole thing ends really jovially cheesy, despite all the hardship experienced not 10 minutes before!

Make no mistake, this is a poor effort from a writing point of view; the script is undiluted clichéd trite. The over-complex premise is pointless and brings the film to a juddering halt anytime anything has to be explained by exposition. This film almost entirely fails to entertain at all. Only the good use of the castle and grounds, and the moody lighting bring an atmospheric quality which any Gothic horror has to have. It appears they shot the whole thing on location; in some scenes you can see mist coming from the actors' mouths as they speak. And judging by Emily's nipples, it must have been pretty chilly!!!

Another interesting Italian horror

[soquel_josh · 7/10 · 18 January 2008]

I sought out this little gem after reading about it in Tim Lucas' bio of Mario Bava. Lucas believes the effects in this 1962 b/w strongly resemble Bava's technical flourishes. I sought out this title for this reason, but also because I collect films of the era containing the word 'monster' in the title. I also have a growing appreciation for Gothic Italian horror and mystery. After snapping it up on Amazon for about five bucks including postage, I am pleased to announce that it was well worth my time and effort.

There is a lot to like about this movie, including an eerie score and loads of captivating locations and sets; the crumbling abbey is reminiscent of Universal's "Dracula" but much more realistic and effectively photographed. Moments of the film seem over the top, and overcooked, but it stands up well for its time overall. This is especially desirable to those of us who recall the old Shock Theatre days of television, and enjoy Italian Gothic horror of the 60s.

Not so Enchanting

[Hitchcoc · 4/10 · 11 January 2007]

I did like that it was in black and white. It had a nice feel. Unfortunately, once the people arrive, there's not much acting and not much to recommend this film. Apparently, there is an old man being kept in a tower. He has met with some catastrophe which has left him disfigured. Throw in a mesmerist (hypnotist) and some really Victorian women who respond with great emotion (well, one, anyway), a couple of really weird guys on the make (honestly, I think these people deserve each other, a plot to keep the good name of the family and the property, and some strange goings on (we never know who is who), and this is what you get. The methods for hypnotism are so far fetched, we have to take their word for them. There is a silly ending. The biggest mess is the fact that despite the women being in constant danger, no one really looks out for them. It doesn't fulfill its promise very well.

Guide me to my tomb, daddy...

[Coventry · 7/10 · 3 July 2006]

The opening sequences show both titles ("Horror" and "The Blancheville Monster") neatly after each other, as if the distributors couldn't really decide which of the two was better and/or more appropriate. They should have just called it "The Blancheville Horror"... Problem solved! Anyway, that was totally irrelevant. I'm more and more becoming a fan of director Alberto De Martino! He's been making good horror movies consistently from the early 60's until the mid 80's, yet he never received the respect and appreciation that other Italian directors did. This stylish and severely underrated picture came out alongside loads of other Gothic horror movies and, although not as brilliant as, say, "Black Sunday" or "Kill Baby…Kill", it's a hugely atmospheric and powerfully compelling chill-tale with an overall decent script and convincing set pieces. Only a couple of days prior to her 21st birthday, a beautiful girl travels back to her wealthy father's castle, accompanied by her new lover and best friend. Upon arrival, her brother informs her about the tragic incident that supposedly killed her father and how he got madly obsessed with the legend of the Blancheville family curse. But the new arrivals notice that there are a lot more strange things going on. Why have all the servants been replaced? Why is the brother so nervous about the girl's upcoming birthday? And, most of all, who or what produces those creepy screams at night in the castle's darkest tower? "The Blancheville Monster" offers pretty much all the elements you're looking for in good Gothic horror, including eerie thunderstorms, scary black-caped monsters, ominous vaults and tight costumes that supply the female cast members with impressive cleavage. De Martino does a great directing job, spreading the suspense equally throughout the whole film and the finale – albeit not too hard to predict – is formidably tense. Unlike any of Mario Bava's Gothic horror movies, "The Blancheville Monster" will not haunt your nightmares, but for fans of classic horror it's definitely worth seeing.

Horror interesting enough to keep your attention

[mike1964 · 5/10 · 11 August 2001]

This 1962 import is a semi-gothic haunted house movie that rates about average. Story is about a college girl who travels back to her home (castle) with her best friend and best friend's brother. When she arrives, she finds the staff has completely changed. Her brother tells her that their father died in a fire. The bother looks rather sinister and frequently plays moody songs on the piano.

We are introduced to a strange doctor and a beautiful, but odd housekeeper. We finally find out that the girl's father is not dead, just horribly mutilated from the fire. We are told the father is deranged and believes in the old family curse which says that the daughter must die before age 21.

The father escapes and then most of the rest of the movie throws suspicion onto all the other cast members as the daughter walks around in a trance. Pretty eerie throughout and in the end the daughter is buried alive. I won't spoil the ending, but you'll probably guess what's going on before the climax of the film.

A Good Gothic Italian Horror - My Style of Horror Film

[Rainey-Dawn · 8/10 · 19 October 2016]

A very atmospheric Gothic styled horror - it's right up my alleyway! This this is the kind of horror that sends shivers up and down my spine: madness, twisting plot, fog, big old castle, revenge, murder, coffins, cobwebs, creaking noises etc... it's subtle horror mixed with a bit of a mystery that kept me highly entertained! To me, the film had the feeling or look of a 60s B&W TV Show or made for TV movie rather than something that played on the large screen at the picture shows - yet that seemed to add to the film rather than take away from it. OH expect to hear things like "he's wanting to murder you" followed by the Da-dumb music like the old TV mystery or horror shows - it's not just the look & overall feel of the film but the music that adds to the TV show feeling when watching.

Very good movie! I recommend to fans of Hammer, Amicus and other classic horror film studios and to those that like the older mysteries.

8/10

Gothic horror brings on genuine frights.

[mark.waltz · 7/10 · 8 March 2016]

There are no vampires, witches or ghosts, but the horror in this genuinely creepy Italian grande guignol are impossible to deny. Better than many others of the same themes, this is still equally chilling, only missing the presence of Barbara Steele, even though there is a role in this that seems to have been written for her.

Every element that makes films of this type so intriguing is there, and while it is said to have been influenced by the stories of Edgar Allan Poe, there is enough in it to make it seem fresh and filled with its own ideas. An old family curse is said to be out to kill the daughter of a recently deceased count. Allegedly, her surviving past the age of 21 will end their reign, so her father is rumored to still be alive and determined to kill her.

While it was pretty obvious to me what was going on, it is fun watching everything unfold. The blonde girls are the heroines, while the beautiful brunette housekeeper is assumed to be evil. This is one worth re-watching, a rare quality of the many films in this genre which are often too laughable to believe.

The Blandville Monster

[vegeta3986 · 3/10 · 25 September 2009]

This movie was one thing. extraordinarily bland. movie number 27 on the countdown of 50 Chilling Classics and once again, a bore. Well, at least it wasn't as painful as the last one on the list. But oh well, i guess i better tell you what it's about.

This girl comes back from college with her two friends, (both from America)and they return to the house to find that since she's been away so long, all the staff has changed and her brother is there to welcome her back. it was said that her father, owner of the blanchville estate died in a fire. During this, she falls in love with the American guy, but during the night she's visited by her supposedly dead father who tells her to go to a tomb and die.

We find out this is because there is a prophecy on an old tombstone that says if she's allowed to live to 21, then the blanchville estate will collapse. Supposedly the father isn't dead and he's a burned crazy guy running around trying to hypnotize the girl to walk into a tomb. Something i don't understand about this movie is the fact that, if he wants to kill her, why doesn't he just....oh i don't know, stab her while she's sleeping? and for that matter, why'd he wait until 2 days before she turned 21 to kill her? that doesn't make any sense! Long story short, nobody trusts anybody, they all run around like chicken's with their heads cut off, they think the girl died, so they put her in a coffin behind solid granite which she later....leaves. i don't know how because they never showed it, but she kind of just ignores being trapped and decides to come out. Turns out the killer isn't her father, but her brother in a halloween mask. and then he backs up and falls into a well because he fails...at everything.

for being a horror movie, this movie has a whopping body count of TWO. whoo boy. watch out! This movie takes too long to do anything, is quite dull, and you really don't care for ANY of these characters. If i had to watch it again, i wouldn't explode, but i wouldn't pop it in for fun anytime soon. The Blanchville monster gets 3 bad black and white looking effects, out of 10.

Adequate Gothic horror

[lor_ · 21 January 2024]

One of my sci-fi/horror/fantasy reviews written 50 years ago: Directed by Alberto De Martino; Produced by Alberto Aguilera. An Italian-Spanish co-production, released in America by American-International TV. Screenplay by Giovanni Grimaldi and Bruno Corbucci, from Edgar Allan Poe's story: "The Fall of the House of Usher"; Photography by Alejandro Ulloa; Edited by Otelo Colangeli; Music by Carlo Franci. Starring: Gerard Tichy, Leo Anchoriz, Ombretta Colli, Helga Line and Iron Eory.

For once, De Martino's direction is okay as he painstakingly trots out all the Gothic cliches intact in an atmospheric depiction of the traditional "Young girl come to the ancestral moldy castle" tale. In addition, a record "girls in white nightgowns" action is practically set.

Slow moving Italian Gothic, heavily influenced by the Corman/Poe cycle

[Leofwine_draca · 5/10 · 25 November 2015]

Italian cinema has a long history of ripping off successful movies and this Italian/Spanish co-production is no exception. Cashing in on the success of Roger Corman's Edgar Allan Poe movies with Vincent Price, this movie – purporting to be from Poe himself – relies heavily on the plot ingredients and atmosphere found in the Corman flicks. The setting is an old dark castle, the plot involves genetic madness and disfiguration, and everything that goes on is steeped in mystery and suspense. There's even a supporting character, the doctor, who's been made up to look a lot like Vincent price! Sadly, as with most rip-offs, THE BLANCHEVILLE MONSTER is an inferior product and it lacks the genuine originality found in other Italian Gothic movies from the same period: CASTLE OF BLOOD, TERROR OF DR HICHCOCK, BLACK Sunday are just a few I could name. That's why you'll almost never hear this film mentioned in the same breath as the others. The main problem is that BLANCHEVILLE tries too hard, and the stodgy script doesn't help. When it tries to be scary, it ends up being boring, and there just isn't enough of the slim storyline to pad out a whole movie, even with the crew's best efforts.

The film does boast some fine moments, and these are mainly down to director Albert De Martino, a mainstay of the genre for a good 20/30 years. Scenes of the heroine being pursued through a dead wood by a deformed killer are superbly creepy, and the whole buried alive aspect of the plot is handled effectively – it's just a shame it takes an hour and ten minutes to get there! The cast can't be faulted, either, with a very good turn from Gerard Tichy in the Vincent Price role – the sinister older brother who has dark secrets of his own. Okay, so Ombretta Colli isn't much of an actress, but she's pretty and in a visual film like this that counts for something. I have to say that I preferred Helga Line (HORROR EXPRESS), here appearing in an early role as a scheming villainess. With good black-and-white visuals and some great scare scenes, THE BLANCHEVILLE MONSTER could have been up there with the other films of this period. Instead, it's a merely adequate flick that might well be just too damned slow for modern tastes.

Fun atmospheric horror film

[preppy-3 · 7/10 · 19 June 2014]

This is a dubbed Italian horror film that takes place in 1884 France. Emily has just come home to the huge spooky family castle after finishing school. With her are her fiancé John Taylor and his sister Alice. At home she discovers her father has died and her brother is in charge with all new servants and a suspicious doctor. Then there are screams in the night, a disfigured monster roaming about and a family curse that threatens Emily.

It doesn't make a whole lot of sense but it works. This is they type of horror film they used to show late at night on local TV stations. There's no nudity, sex or swearing and very minor blood and no gore. It takes place in a beautiful and very eerie castle drenched with atmosphere. The black and white photography only helps and there are even a few dark and stormy nights thrown in! This isn't really scary but it is lots of fun. The kind of horror movie to watch late at night with the lights off and some popcorn handy. I give it a 7.

I didn't find too much going for this film.

[ChuckStraub · 4/10 · 16 April 2004]

The Blancheville Monster is as much of a mystery movie as it is a horror film. It actually had more going for it as a mystery movie rather than a horror movie but even there I considered it second rate. The problem with this 1964 Italian movie is that I didn't think it was too good at either. The characters weren't interesting and the movie seemed to drag. Although this is a horror film, I didn't find it very scary. It was somewhat interesting but not enough for me to give it a good recommendation. There are times that it was even boring. To sum it all up, I'd have to say that I wouldn't go out of my way to watch this one. There are a lot of better ones out there. This should be in the lower half of the list.

Occasionally atmospheric Italian Gothic

[Red-Barracuda · 6/10 · 1 February 2010]

The Blancheville Monster is a decent Italian Gothic entry. It's true that it is a little plodding and uneventful, however, it's occasionally eerie and stylish. The story is about a badly disfigured count who visits his daughter by night, attempting to induce her into committing suicide to revoke an old family curse. Frankly, the story is absolutely ridiculous, I mean couldn't the count just kill his daughter rather than embark on his moonlit walks with her to the family mausoleum? Well, yes, however, these spooky encounters do actually provide the film with its best Gothic imagery. These scenes, set in the dead of night, with the sleepwalking daughter being followed a few paces behind by the black-clad, monstrous count through the ruins to the family tomb, are very striking. So really, plot inconsistencies have to be weighed against this. Although I do have a little problem with the final confrontation where the daughter escapes from her entombed situation without even a hint of how this came to be. Nevertheless, these observations aside, The Blancheville Monster is not bad. The location is well used and there is some decent photography to accentuate this. If you are a fan of 60's Italian Gothic then it's really one to check out.

A dead-ringer, no way!

[catfish-er · 5/10 · 27 July 2010]

I am working my way through the Chilling Classics 50 Movie Pack Collection and THE BLANCHEVILLE MONSTER is the fourth movie on disk 7. Slogging through 50 movies is sometimes more work than it is fun; but, overall I like the collection.

After watching some fair-to-mediocre 70s horror on the disk (from PANIC, which I rated 3 stars) to MESSIAH OF EVIL, which I rated 7 stars), this movie, which was released in the early 1960s was quite a jarring change of pace.

The opening sequence, with its foreboding castle, neatly framed by brush in the foreground so struck me as Coman-esquire that I had to go back to see who the director was. Not Roger Corman; but, this movie really feels like one of his films! I love ALL of the Poe stories that he did with Vincent Price (and, worked for years to collect all the DVDs), so I really settled in for a treat.

After learning from her brother that their father perished, when the old Abbey burned, a young woman returns to her family estate from a London University. She is confronted with a completely new household staff, which raises her suspicions. Luckily, she has her best friend (and her friend's brother) in tow, to help moderate the madness visited upon the family.

The dark family secret (not if you read the DVD jacket) is that her father has been horribly disfigured; and, is living in one of the castle's towers. He believes that his daughter must die before her 21st birthday, to prevent the spread of the family curse.

Things unfold in a fairly matter-of-fact manner; and, there is very little suspense to build. The three antagonists, the brother, the housekeeper and the doctor, are obviously in on the cover-up. The great reveal comes when the family prophecy is disclosed by Rodrigue (the brother) to Emily (the sister). However, this is highly objectionable, as it is purportedly carved on the headstone of the family tomb! Did she never look there?!?

Many minutes later everything is resolved, as so often happens in these types of fils. However, I don't want to give it all away. But, there are some interesting dream sequences interspersed among the drawn-out dialog heavy scenes, which do little to move the story forward. As I mentioned the cinematography is very much like Roger Corman, albeit not quite as rich, or as artfully done. The score is fine, sometimes a little heavy; but, not distracting.

And, finally, to at least three other posters, however, I'd like to say that maybe with the right lighting and camera angle, Gerard Tichy could pass for a Vincent Price look-a-like. But, a dead-ringer, no way!

Attractive and acceptable Italian/Spanish Gothic about an old family curse

[ma-cortes · 6/10 · 14 February 2021]

This is an early Italian Gothic concerning the Blancheville family , as the daughter, Ombrella Colli, of an insane count returns her home to pay a visit, being accompanied by her boyfriend : John Taylor and his sister : Iran Eory. At the mansion they are received by a doctor : Leo Anchoriz, the grumpy housekeeper : Helga Line, the butler : Paco Moran and finally her brother : Gerard Tichy. But this count is turned nutty, fearing his daughter will fall victim of an ancient curse that has plagued his family throughout centuries, the reason for he wants to kill her and to be sacrified to fullfil the eerie legend.

A terror movie with chills, thrills, creepy scenes and plot twists. Interesting script from Giovanni Grimaldi, Bruno Corbucci, Natividad Zaro, being freely inspired on Edgar Allan Poe novels as The fall of the House of Usher . The plot is plenty of surprises, terror moments , ghastly atmosphere with thunder and lightning, twists and turns. One of the first Italian horror, this time in co-production with Spain, that's why it is full of Spanish actors as Leo Anchoriz, Iran Eory, Gerard Tichy, Paco Moran, Helga Line, while the Italian ones are the unknown Ombrella Colli under pseudonym Joan Hills and Matterasi as John Taylor.

This coproduction is financed by Spanish producers : Alberto Aguilera, Natividad Zaro and Italian as Italo Zingarelli. It displays an evocative cinematography with gloomy atmosphere by prestigious cameraman Alejandro Ulloa who photographed the classic Horroe Express . Shot on location in San Martin de Valdeiglesias (Madrid) where several terror films have been filmed, specially Paul Naschy/Waldemar Daninski movies. Furthermore, thrilling and frightening musical score by Carlo Franci and uncredited Piccillo. The motion picture was well directed by Alberto de Martino. He was a prolific artisan who wrote and directed during the 60s, 70s, 80s ordinary genres of the Italian B series as Peplum : Invincible Glatiator, Triumph of Hercules, Seven Spartans. Eurospy : Operation Lady Chaplin, Upperseven, OK Connery . Macaroni Combat : Dirty Heroes. Thriller, Giallo and Poliziesco : The insatiables, The Counselor, Rome versus Chicago, Puma Man , The Killer is on the Phone, Magnum special for Tony Saitta . Spaghetti Western : Django shoots first, 7th Cavalry, 100 000 dollars per Ringo. Terror : Antichrist , Holocaust 2000 and Horror.

Poe? Horror!

[BandSAboutMovies · 5/10 · 22 October 2022]

Released in Italy as Horror, this film's script by Gianni Grimaldi and Bruno Corbucci was said to be based on the works of Edgar Allan Poe. Sure, there are some parts of The Fall of the House of Usher, A Tale of the Ragged Mountains and Some Words with a Mummy, but it's as much a true Poe as the films of Roger Corman.

It was directed by Alberto De Martino who I celebrate for so many of his remake remix rip-off movies like OK Connery, The Antichrist and Holocaust 2000. Outside of those movies, he also made the wild giallo cop movie hybrid Strange Shadows In an Empty Room. It won't sell you on this movie if I told you that he said that it was "a little film of no importance."

Emilie De Blancheville (Ombretta Colli, who would one day become the President of Milan) has returned to her family's ancestral home only to learn that everything has changed. Her father, the Count Blancheville, has become disfigured and gone mad, locked in a tower. Her brother Rodéric (Gérard Tichy) has taken over the home and rules over his servants with an iron fist after, well, all the old help has been killed. And now, the Count is loose and sure that if his daughter is killed before his 21st birthday, the curse on the Blancheville family will end. And oh yes - there's also a cold and evil housekeeper known as Miss Eleonore played by Helga Liné.

AIP sold this to American TV, so if you watched horror shows from the 60s to the 80s, there's a good chance you've seen this. However, you haven't seen it look as good as it does in the new Arrow box set.

Quintessential Italian Gothic spectacle

[mart-45 · 10/10 · 30 September 2021]

Probably not a great masterpiece per se, but there's something here that so beautifully captures the essence of the era and the genre. Now that the 1080p release is available (in Italian, subs are available on opensubs), be sure to watch this one and not a washed out third generation bootleg copy in English on Youtube. You will be amazed by the richness of the black and white texture and delicate detailes in lighting and composition. I'm giving this film a 10 because the current score of 5.1 doesn't do it right!

Atmospheric, slow-moving, but perfectly watchable Italian Gothic.

[Prichards12345 · 7/10 · 18 August 2017]

This movie went out in its native Italy as 'Edgar Allan Poe's Horror', and although not based on any particular story by Poe Fall of The House of Usher very much springs to mind. It is, of course, heavily influenced by the Roger Corman Poe films, complete with nightie-clad women exploring dark corridors with candelabra in hand.

The central mystery is no great shakes, as it's pretty obvious who the killer is from the start, but it's the atmosphere and reasonably good acting you will remember. The Doctor is well-played by Leo Anchoriz, and there's the welcome spectacle of Helga Line as the icy housekeeper, in exactly the sort of role Gale Sondergaard played so well. The midnight walk of our threatened heroine is creepily effective. We also have a James Bernard-style music score that is very well done.

Only real problem is the terrible English dubbing. I would like to see this in the original Italian with English subtitles. Must check and see if there's a DVD out there.

Your worst nightmare, Uncle Fester

[bkoganbing · 5/10 · 16 May 2011]

The Blancheville Monster adapted from an Edgar Allan Poe story would have needed the touch of Vincent Price to truly make this a classic. As it is the film is like a home town group theater production of a the same story.

It's an Italian production of a British couple with an American brother and sister visiting a sinister French château in Brittany. Can't get more international than that, but Poe liked to vary his story locations, he was not a chauvinistic American just as Jules Verne was not chauvinistic Frenchman.

The younger sister of the Marquess of Blancheville is the subject of some frightening experiences because a family curse has said one female in the family must die before the age of 21 to insure long life for the rest. More than that I can't say, but these things do take on a life of their own at times.

Although the producers didn't mean it as the Addams Family was a few years in the future, it didn't help to have one of the living nightmares of the dead father of the surviving Blancheville brother and sister look like Uncle Fester.

It's not a bad film, but I do wish these things were exclusively the property of Vincent Price.