Le train des épouvantes

First of the spate of British portmanteau horror films which sprung up in the 1960's/early 70's (there had of course been 'Dead of Night' much earlier).

Five men in a train carriage have their tarot cards read by the mysterious Dr Schreck, all concluding in the same manner - their death. Ranks above many of the similar films which followed by having classic horror themes in the stories - werewolves, voodoo, severed hand, killer plant and vampires. Film also has well above average cast and a tone which remains sombre right up to the bleak ending. That said we do have the one comic relief story, which as usual is by far the weakest - here we have Roy Castle as a jazz musician getting caught up in voodoo.

It is the framing story in these horror anthologies which often make or break the entire film, and in 'Dr Terror's ....' it is excellent with Cushing having a real tone of menace as the quietly spoken, sinister Dr Schreck, as the action switches back to the increasingly claustrophobic train carriage.

At a time when Hammer's standards were beginning to slip, Amicus provided an important rival which ensured the British horror output remained interesting and inventive for quite some time.

Five passengers are in a cabin of the train to Bradley, when a sixth one asks whether he may join them in their cabin. He introduces himself as the tarot cards reader Dr. Schreck, a.k.a. Dr. Terror (Peter Cushing), who can tell the future of those who tap his cards deck three times. The first passenger to tap is the architect Jim Dawson (Neil McCallum), who is traveling to an island to renovate the house that belonged to his family that Mrs. Deirdre Biddulph (Ursula Howells) bought from him. He will learn that there is a werewolf in the house. Bill Rogers (Alan Freeman), who is traveling on vacation to meet his wife and daughter, taps the deck and learns that an intelligent creeper vine will threat their lives at his summer house. Then the musician Biff Bailey (Roy Castle) taps the deck and learns that he will bring a voodoo song from his tour in Caribe with creepy consequences. Then the snobbish and arrogant art critic Franklyn Marsh (Christopher Lee) learns that the artist Eric Landor (Michael Gough) will expose his arrogance and Franklyn will revenge with tragic consequences. Last, Dr. Bob Carroll (Donald Sutherland) taps the deck and learns that he will discover a secret about his fiancée Nicolle Carroll (Jennifer Jayne), who has just moved to a small town in New England to live with him, and his colleague Dr. Blake (Max Adrian). Further, they find their fate and who the mysterious fortune teller Dr. Terror is.

"Dr. Terror's House of Horrors" is a great anthology from Amicus Productions with five short stories. "Werewolf", "Creeping Vine", "Voodoo", "Disembodied Hand" and "Vampire" are great segments. Peter Cushing, Christopher Lee and Donald Sutherland are part of the cast and synonym of a great entertainment for fans of British horror films from the 60's. My vote is seven.

Title (Brazil): "As Profecias do Dr. Terror" ("The Prophecies of Dr. Terror")

Note: On 27 September 2022, I saw this film again.

I simply admire those 60's and early 70's English horror movies from Amicus.They're so charming and fun to watch(albeit sometimes goofy)that I really appreciate this kind of entertainment.Christopher Lee is excellent as usual and the rest of the cast is also splendid.The film contains five rather weird stories.The best one-The Disembodied Hand involves an art critic,who is terrorized by a severed hand.By today's standards "Doctor Terror's House of Horrors" isn't very scary or violent,but it features some really creepy scenes.All in all this is simply a must-see for fans of the English horror.My rating:7/10.

I thoroughly enjoyed this film. It has the wonderful atmosphere, photography and pacing that is sorely missed in today's films.

It is also nice to see a horror film where the cast look and act like adults, instead of a bunch of high school kids.

My favorite segments are Werewolf and Voodoo, though I did enjoy seeing Jennifer Jayne (Trollenberg Terror) in Vampire.

For those who do not understand the title, the reason the film is called Dr. Terror's House of Horrors is because, in the film, Dr. Shreck refers to his tarot card deck as his "house of horrors".

Now where can a discerning viewer find a film in which Donald Sutherland is billed below Roy Castle, Alan Freeman and Kenny Lynch? Why, in Dr. Terror's House of Horrors no less!

So, see Neil McCallum do battle with the fiendish dog of death! Wince as Christopher Lee meets the world's most tactless ambulance driver! Marvel at Mr Sutherland as he does battle with a plastic bat on a (very) visible wire! Quake as Alan 'Fluff' Freeman works his catchphrase into the dialogue!

Still a lot more fun than any amount of British 'Lock, Stock...' tributes/rip-offs.