Tales from the Crypt is a British Anthology Classic that Shows the Many Different Sides of Horror.
Written by Crypticpsych, James Lasome
January 3, 2009
Watch the Tales from the Crypt Horror Movie Trailer
Release: March 9, 1972 (U.S.)
Directed by: Freddie Francis
Written by: Johnny Craig, Al Feldstein, Bill Gaines (comic book stories Tales From The Crypt and The Vault of Horror) and Milton Subotsky (screenplay)
Starring:
Joan Collins as Joanne Clayton
Peter Cushing as Arthur Edward Grimsdyke
Roy Dotrice as Charles Gregory
Richard Greene as Ralph Jason
Ian Hendry as Carl Maitland
Patrick Magee as George Carter
In the sixties and seventies, British horror flourished from two legendary studios: Hammer (The Horror of Dracula and remakes of and sequels to Universal classics such as Frankenstein and the Mummy) and Amicus (Asylum, And Now the Screaming Starts). Both were characterized by bright colors (particularly in terms of the blood), classically styled British acting, and the heavy use of actors now recognized as genre stalwarts (Christopher Lee, Peter Cushing, Ingrid Pitt, etc.) With Tales from the Crypt, Amicus picked five stories first written in the EC Comics of the 1950s and brought them to the big screen with Tales from the Crypt years before some of them would be adapted again on HBO. All five stories are distinct from one another, each showing a different style of horror and each with its own EC-trademark twist-ending.
After a brilliant opening credits sequence sweeping through a cemetery set to the “you’ll know it when you hear it” Toccata and Fugue in D Minor by Bach the movie’s wraparound shows five people get separated from the group on a catacomb tour and find themselves in a strange dark stone room with a man in monk’s garb (Sir Ralph Richardson). The man refuses to let them leave and instead has them tell stories of how they got there.
First up, in “And All Through the House”, is the group’s lone woman, Joanne (Joan Crawford). In her story, she murders her husband (Martin Boddey) on Christmas Eve night to collect on an insurance policy. While she tries to hide her crime from the authorities and from her daughter, she
discovers that an escaped mental patient in a Santa outfit (Oliver MacGreevy) might not make things so easy.
The story is pretty tight in the first segment, taking place entirely inside of Joanne’s home. Ms. Crawford plays her role admirably well, conveying a blend of apathy about her husband, love for her daughter and general fear about the impending threat from the outside. A soundtrack made up completely of Christmas carols playing on the radio fits the story quite well, creating an interesting blend of happiness and horror. The type of horror in this episode is based in subtlety and the building tension of Joanne being caught between a rock and a hard place in the worst way possible.
In the second story, “Reflection of Death”, a man, Maitland (Ian Hendry), attempts to elope with his mistress Susan (Angie Grant) but finds himself in a fiery car crash. But is everything what it seems?
This story feels the shortest of the five adaptations in Tales from the Crypt and, as a result, feels like rushed filler. It’s also the weakest of the five as the tale is the least exciting and grabbing of them all. The short should be seen, however, because it uses innovative (for its time) P.O.V. shooting in its second half that serves to raise the story just ever so slightly above average.
The third story, “Poetic Justice”, is one of the two best in the film. Two rich men (Robin Phillips and David Markham) despise a kindly old trash collector who lives across the street named Mr. Grimsdyke (an outstanding turn by Peter Cushing). The two men decide to systematically remove everything from Grimsdyke’s life that makes him happy, from his dogs to the children he makes toys for to his job, in an attempt to force him out of their village. But what happens when they take it one step too far?
This story stands out well due to both a masterfully nasty performance by Phillips and a gentle benevolent performance from Cushing. The two opposing forces are played very well and this contrast results in a heartbreakingly tragic tale as the two rich men mercilessly torture their prey psychologically. The twist ending of this short is deliciously clever and perfectly in the spirit of the EC comics from which the tale spawned.
Fourth, we have “Wish You Were Here”. The story is a decent spin on the evergreen anthology staple, “The Monkey’s Paw”. In it, Richard Greene and Barbara Murray play Jason and Enid, a rich couple who discover they’ve lost all their money and must sell their possessions. During the appraisal of their belongings, they find a jade statue from Hong Kong purported to grant three wishes to its owner. Enid promptly wishes for lots of money… which comes to her via a life insurance policy after a great sequence where Jason is killed in a car accident involving a man in a skull mask on a motorcycle who was chasing after him. And if you know “The Monkey’s Paw”, it’s all downhill from there…
This particular choice of how this version of “Paw” plays out is very good in that the wishes aren’t quite the same as that in the short story, even taking a distinctly gory turn in the final wish. Its biggest flaw though… is that it BEATS THE VIEWER OVER THE HEAD with the fact that it’s a “Paw” adaptation. In fact, two separate characters mention the story itself, taking away quite a bit from its originality.
In the final segment of Tales from the Crypt we have “Blind Alleys”, the other of the two best. In it, Maj.
Rogers (Nigel Patrick) becomes the new superintendent of the Eldridge Home for the Blind. Under his control saving money and running the home like a military barracks rules all, to the point where the tenants are withheld heat, sufficient food, and even proper health care. Over time, the tenants rise up, led by Carter (Patrick Magee), and take their vengeance upon him.
This particular story would, as the first story was, adapted to an HBO feature; in this case as “Revenge is the Nuts”. Both feature a similar story structure and twist, though the HBO version adds a sleazy subplot with the superintendent being attracted to a new blind woman. I feel the Tales of the Crypt version works better because of both the apathy of Rogers to his wards’ plight and the way the short feels longer than some of the others and highlights the growing squalor the blind men are forced to endure. Like in “Poetic Justice”, “Blind Alleys” features an absolutely outstanding twist. The way in which the tenants take their revenge is so clever and so meticulously planned that it rivals the “death traps” of Saw and “tortures” of Hostel while only showing a single small cut of the flesh.
While “Blind Alleys” and “Poetic Justice” are easily the best two stories of the five in Tales from the Crypt, each brings something unique to the table that makes for a fulfilling viewing experience. Tales from the Crypt should be considered essential viewing for horror fans in general, but specifically fans of classic British horror, EC horror comics, and the modern HBO Tales from the Crypt adaptations. Questions or comments about Tales from the Crypt? Discuss it on The Ossuary Forums!
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