Vincent Price: MGM Scream Legends Collection (The Abominable Dr. Phibes / Tales of Terror / Theater of Blood / Madhouse / Witchfinder General / Dr. Phibes Rises Again / Twice Told Tales)

 

 

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Horror master Vincent Price in the early 1960s turned out a plethora of movies for the American International Pictures team of James Nicholson(father of Jack)and Samuel Arkoff;like Tales of Terror,A Comedy of Terrors,The Raven,The Pit and the Pendulum,etc,etc.Except for a couple of films in /68 Price remained off the big screen,instead concentrating more on TV work like appearances on Hollywood Squares and his well known turn as Egghead on Batman.But in 1971 Price came back with a "vengeance" in The Abominable Dr Phibes;and vengeance was the basis for the entire plot.
The movie concerned one Dr Phibes who was terribly injured/disfigured in a car accident on his way back to see his wife who had died suddenly during an operation.It was believed by everyone that Phibes had died in that car wreck and he vowed vengeance on the 10 people who in some way had had a hand in her death.He invoked the ancient Hebrew plague of the pharoahs on them all,which spoke of ten terrible deaths by such things as locusts,rats,boils,etc.He is aided in his killings throughout by a pretty but deadly nymph by the name of Vulnavia.Police inspector Trout(Peter Jeffrie)and chief Waverly(John Gator)always seem to be a step or two shy of Phibes most of the time.When they finally manage to catch up to the next victim while he's still breathing,they still lose him when he gets killed right before their eyes.Things are getting down to the last and that victim,Dr.Vesalius(Joseph Cotton),has his son kidnapped by Dr Phibes as bait to lure him into his trap.He has the son pinned to a bed,above which are tubes that acid will soon flow from if Dr Vesalius can't get the key to free him in time;the key being INSIDE of his son! Vesalius works feverishly and frees him just in the nick of time.Phibes thinking he has triumphed is seen in the final moments of the film inside a large sarcophagus beside his wife.He drains his own blood and replaces it with embalming fluid,and the lid closes shut....fade out.
The Return of Dr Phibes from 1972 sees Dr Phibes returned to the living three years after he went to sleep by a special conjunction of the moon.He now seeks to take his beloved to Egypt where in a special tomb he has previously uncovered and prepared,there lies the healing and life giving properties of the water running through it.When he looks for the papyrus map he left in his safe upstairs he finds,to his chagrin,that his house has been destroyed and the map taken from the safe.He learns that a Dr.Beiderbeck has taken it and he is now using the information contained there on to also find that special tomb for his own purposes.Just as the professor leaves for Egypt Phibes invades his home and kills the man who was left behind to guard it.Inspector Trout and Chief Waverly are back again and they smell a rat;both believe the modus operandi of the killer is the same as Phibes.They follow Beiderbeck,his wife and the rest of his group to Egypt.Phibes gets thoroughly ensconced in his tomb only to have Beiderbeck breathing down his neck.This won't do,so he sets out to cull down the group which seeks to disrupt his plans in his usual fiendish ways.Near the end of the film Phibes has kidnapped Beiderbecks' wife and has her in a chamber tied down to a bed of wood with water rapidly coming in.It is here we learn what brought Beiderbeck to Egypt.It seems he needs the restorative water of the underground river as much as Phibes because it is just such water that has kept him alive for many,many years.It is now a choice between his wife and himself.He gives Phibes an important key he stole from him which opens the gate to the river and he returns to release his wife.He rushes back and tries to follow Phibes' boat but the gate closes just as he reaches it.Beiderbeck then rapidly ages before our eyes.Phibes rows away from the camera as it fades to black.
Both of these films were WELL attended in their day and made good money for their makers.They are both quite campy,especially the first one,(Phibes is a former doctor and concert organist!?)as every character is like a caricature;it's as if you are looking at a cheap dime novel unfolding before your eyes.And there is always some tongue in cheek humour along the way to keep it light.But with the stellar cast there to pull it off and especially with the main stars' "priceless" role,it could do nothing but succeed.Veteran actor Joseph Cotton does a bang up job as Dr Vesalius,British comic Terry Thomas was on hand for both of the films,famous British actor Peter Cushing appeared in the second film,Robert Quarry as Beiderbeck in the second film also starred as the lead in the Count Yorga Vampire films,and Peter Jeffries as Inspector Trout,was well known in later years as a staple on British television and in films.
Technically speaking The Abominable Dr Phibes is the best print out of the two,as it is very clean and crisp.Dr Phibes Rises Again exhibits alot of dirt and other irregularities and looks slightly faded in a few scenes but generally it is pretty crisp.Both are in their lovely widescreen ratios of 1:85:1.
In concluding I must admit I am not as totally wild about these films as I was when I first saw them upon their release,but there will always be a certain something about these pictures I will always enjoy and I think most of it stems from Vincent Prices' work in them.He was one of those rare breed of actors that didn't have to talk much to get their point across.He could emote with the best of them and I've always said that if he had been around during films' golden age of "silent" films, he would have easily conquered that medium hands down.
The beauty of these films also was while the entire premise was to scare and creep you out,the level it was played on(i.e,campy-seriousness/horror with a blend of humour and tongue in cheek)precluded any real deep intense emotions within the viewer;as opposed to the intensity of a film like The Haunting(1963),played straight and designed to scare.So when a victim met their demise the campiness acted like a shock absorber.It is what made these films the successes they were at box offices around the world.
So invite Dr Phibes into your home for some light and enjoyable kills,thrills and chills.And hey,the price is certainly right.

If you like the Colombo TV series, you might also like the Phibes movies, as well as Theatre of Blood and Madhouse.

The Edgar Allen Poe stories are well done, and reflect well on Poe. Although many Vincent Price movies are often somewhat campy, The Witchfinder General is more serious: there is nothing cute and charming about this Price character. The set design and cinematography of this particular movie are above average for a Price film. The Witchfinder General deserves to be seen more often.

This collection of Price films is good value for the money.

Voici un coffret absolument essentiel pour tous fans de cinéma d'horreur.
Tous les titres sur ce coffret sont de purs délices. Vincent Price est inimitable et inégalable quand vient le temps de combiner horreur et humour noir et personnages emportés dans leurs délires de grandeur.

Compléter ce coffret par les quelques adaptations restantes de Edgard Alan Poe par Roger Corman et vous aurez un excellent cocktail de plaisir concentré à porté de main!

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