La maison ensorcelée

An underrated slice of late Sixties horror/psychedelia. It was filmed in 1968 and reminded me somewhat of The Dunwich Horror which was made around the same time and similarly attempted to update Lovecraft with setpieces inspired by the drug culture and the Summer of Love. The difference with the Crimson Cult is that it was filmed in England with a stellar cast who can actually act, unlike poor fish-out-of-water Miss Sandra Dee in Dunwich. It is a treat to see Boris Karloff and Christopher Lee trading pleasantries in their scenes. Michael Gough extracts the maximum from his small role as a pitifully unhinged factotum. Barbara Steele exudes a grandly Gothic malevolence in her scenes as Lavinia. She is probably the single most memorable presence in the film and whatever power it possesses is largely thanks to her. (Great costume, too!) The dungeon sequences are probably the best though my favorite moment in the film occurs when the innocent young man asks Karloff's sinister professor "What do you collect?" and with a friendly grin Karloff replies, "Instruments of torture!" Marvelous moment.

This movie is ridiculously difficult to find. After years of searching I located a bootlegged videotape which is in terrible condition--grainy and the colors which should be vividly over-the-top are quite washed out. Also the print lacks the original score which was quite nifty as I recall from seeing it on American television in the early 70s. There is supposed to be a laser disc version from the early 90s. It would be great if a patron who owns this would do a review of that.

The cast were the source of interest for Curse of the Crimson Altar in the first place. The film though doesn't see any of the cast at their best and doesn't do them justice. That said Curse of the Crimson Altar is far from terrible. The cinematography and settings are appropriately eerie, and the music gives a real sense of creepiness. Three members of the cast shine. Boris Karloff is even when ill and late in his career commanding and acerbic. Christopher Lee is similarly wonderful and has a character that suits him to a tee. And Barbara Steele is wonderfully wacky and sensual, her costume and make-up are a knockout. Mark Eden however is a monotonously bland lead, and Virginia Weatherell while very pretty is lacking in charisma too. Michael Gough does deserve credit for doing shifty so convincingly, sadly he's woefully underused, and that's pretty much the same with Rupert Davies. While the film doesn't look so bad visually, the special effects do look rather cheap. The script is a complete muddle, it has some amusing lines from Karloff but too much of it is cheesy and severely underwritten. The story drags quite badly and even for a short running time feels on the thin side, complete with an ending that is both under-explained and dramatically undercooked. The dream sequences did come across as hilariously weird too, and the direction is rather flat and doesn't do anything to make the film less dull and muddled. Overall, not a terrible film but a strange one, somewhat difficult to rate this time around. 5/10 Bethany Cox

Christopher Lee, Boris Karloff and Barbara Steele all in one horror flick. How can any fan of British horror from the 1960s fail to be enticed by such a top line-up?

As it happens, Curse of the Crimson Altar is actually an OK film. It was critically mauled and failed to impress at the box office, but it has some enjoyable moments if you're prepared to forgive its rather dated feel. The story is unoriginal and bland, with a young antiques dealer visiting a spooky looking house in search of his missing brother, only to uncover a witchcraft cult. But there are still plenty of moments to savour, such as some deliciously over-the-top sacrificial rituals, plus expertly acted scenes between Karloff and Lee.

The lead character played by Mark Eden (eagle-eyed viewers may remember him as nasty Alan Bradley in the British soap Coronation Street) is a crashing bore, and is nowhere near as handsome as he clearly thinks he is. However, some of the more bizarre characters in this film are really well delineated and make the film worth watching at least once.

When his brother dísappears Robert Manning: Mark Eden, pays a visit to the far country house where his brother stayed . While his host : Christopher Lee is outwardly welcoming, his niece is very agreeable with him . But Manning feels a sinister threat across the weird house due to a creepy legend of Lavinia Morley , Black Witch of Greymarsh, she is the high priestess of Evil, a monstruos fiend with an overpowering lust for blood . Terror fills the night as she stalks her prey !. The World's Masters of Terror in a New Blood-Curdler ! What obscene prayer or human sacrifice can satisfy the Devil-God ?

The Crimson Altar or Curse of the Crimson Altar is a creepy and mysterious film in which a guest at a luxurious house comes face to face with naked fear on the altar of evil . Stars three greatest terror actors : Christopher Lee , Barbara Steele , and , of course , Boris Karloff , the Master of Evil in his last and most shocking role, though he was 80 and confined to a wheelchair . Despite ads claiming this as his last film, he made four more in Mexico. Adding other prestigious actors as Rupert Davies and Michael Gough who also starred a lot of terror movies .Highlights of the movie include the scantily clad Barbara Steele in sado-masochistic sequences and a psychodelic party with body painters and strippers , in addition, the eerie and supernatural final.

The motion picture was regularly directed by Vernon Sewell, packing some flaws and gaps . He was one of the mainstays in the B niche of the British film industry and in his almost 40 years shooting made all kinds of genres as Noir , action , terror , sexploitation , spy thrillers . Filming a number of movies such as : Stricly for the Birds , Urge to Kill, Master of Choice , The Man in the Back Seat, Battle of the V-1 , Wind of Change , Rogue's Yarn, Dangerous Voyage , Soho Incident , Johnny You're Wanted , and being his last one Burke and Hare. Adding his ordinary TV works as The Human Jungle , Kraft Mystery Theater , Sailor of Fortune , Edgar Wallace TV series and The Avengers .

This movie is disappointing for numerous reasons. It's a disappointing entry within its genre, that besides is a waste of its impressive cast.

This is a late British horror movie, of the more old fashioned sort. The sort of horror that started off during the '50's and got made big by mostly the Hammer studios. The sort of horror that is not always too well written and not with the most impressive sets or budget behind it but horror with an always great atmosphere and distinctive style to it, which often made them a true pleasure to watch.

You could tell that the era was nearing its end and was more or less over already. This movie is more consistent with other British horror movies from the late '60's, which often focused on the far more psychological horror aspects, rather than old school gore and scares. It's something you could more refer to as Gothic horror. Boris Karloff actually played in quite a lot of movies like this, near the end of his career.

And this movie actually was one of last ones. He died one year after the release of it and it was also quite sad to see how he had to play his role entirely in a wheelchair because of his declining health. Still he is one of the highlights of the movie. Not too many people know it but Karloff was actually one fine, great actor, who was capable of way more than just playing the Frankenstein monster.

Of course it was also great to see him act along sides other great horror icons, such as Christopher Lee, Barbara Steele and Michael Gough. But it's not like their roles are that great really. The story is also not very consistent with any of its characters. Sometimes they disappear out of the story completely for a too long time.

And here is one of the biggest problems of the movie; its story. It's a quite messy one really, that besides is lacking in some real good tension or mystery. The movie remains barely interesting enough to keep watching, which is still mostly thanks to its compelling actors, who still of course have some great screen presence. And the real horror lover will of course still get a kick out of it, seeing the likes of Boris Karloff and Christopher Lee interacting and doing a scene together. This alone should be reason enough for them to go and watch this movie.

However let me just warn you by saying that the movie itself isn't much good really.

5/10

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