A
reporter (Georges Riviere) meets Edgar Allan Poe (Montgomery Glenn) in a bar
for an interview. A lord (Raul H. Newman)
interrupts and offers the reporter a bet that can’t spend the night in his
creepy castle. When he gets there, he finds
the place inhabited by the sexy Elisabeth (Barbara Steele), who falls
immediately in love with him. Elisabeth’s
sister (Margrete Robsahm) seems jealous of her new beau, but is she really making
a play for the hapless reporter, or is she trying to save him from a fate worse
than death?
Director
Anthony M. Margheriti was trying to capitalize on the success of Mario Bava’s
Black Sunday. He apes Bava’s style
adequately enough and gives the film a healthy dose of atmosphere. Fog-drenched sets, cobwebbed hallways, and candlelit
studies abound. The scene inside the
creepy crypt is sure to give fans of Black Sunday a sense of déjà vu.
As
an exercise in style, it works, but as a horror film, it’s a little
uneven. The appearance of a skull-faced
ghoul that suddenly moves is rather effective and there’s a surprising bit of
nudity too. The assorted murders, ghosts, and supernatural happenings are a tad
on the predictable side though. (One plot
device even plays like a gothic horror variation on A Christmas Carol.) I could’ve also done without the scene where
a snake’s head is chopped off.
Steele
is easily the best thing about the movie.
She looks terrific and her sultry demeanor makes the slow passages
worthwhile. Margrete Robsahm is a solid
foil for Steele and they are especially good in the scenes where they act out
their sibling rivalry. Georges Riviere
is a bit of a dullard though, and the many sequences where looks endlessly down
hallways and staircases for Steele get repetitive.
Margheriti
later remade this as Web of the Spider.
AKA: Castle of Terror. AKA:
Long Night of Terror.
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