Homicidal

William Castle's 1950s camp classics 'The Tingler' and 'House On Haunted Hill' are lots of fun, and highly recommended to all horror fans with a strong sense of the absurd. I expected 'Homicidal' to be a similarly silly but entertaining affair, especially as it was also written by Robb White, but was quite surprised at just how dark and effective it was. Apart from Castle's typically hammy introduction, and the "fright break" towards the climax (a not too dissimilar idea to the one Gaspar Noe used several years ago in his shocking 'I Stand Alone'!), 'Homicidal' is nowhere near as gimmicky and tongue in cheek as most of Castle's best known movies. Maybe that is why it is rarely mentioned when his work is discussed. Too bad, to me it is one of his most interesting and effective shockers. While obviously inspired by 'Psycho', and made on a shoe-string budget with variable acting, I was quite impressed by it. The opening sequence is memorable - a beautiful blonde (Jean Arliss) checks in to a swanky hotel, and offers a shocked bellhop cash to marry her, assuring him that the marriage will be annulled immediately after the event. He is puzzled but agrees, and at the ceremony the next day the mysterious blonde quite unexpectedly murders the JP! We then follow her to a house where she looks after an elderly woman (Eugenie Leontovich) who is mute and confined to a wheelchair after a stroke. The old woman is obviously terrified of her, but is unable to convey this to any visitors to the house. Pretty soon we meet the other characters, and learn of a $10 million inheritance, and things start to get real interesting... I won't elaborate any further for fear of spoiling the plot. The major twist will no doubt be guessed by the viewer fairly quickly but there are still some surprises and shocks in store. Arliss (actually Joan Marshall) gives an intriguing performance. Why she didn't go on to bigger and better things after this is beyond me. I urge fans of Castle's better known movies to check out this little gem. I really enjoyed it and highly recommend it to all fans of b-grade thrillers and horror movies.

This is yet another classic from William Castle, the king of the gimmicks. The gimmick used for this film, often compared with "Psycho", was the idea of a "Fright Break" during which the viewer has 30 seconds to determine if they want to see the 'terrifying' conclusion to the film. When released in theaters initially, there was a separate section that patrons could go to during the "Fright Break". Gimmicks aside this is a very well crafted, often goofy, and quite effective little thriller. The murders, acting, and storyline are all over the top and everyone in the movie puts on quite an effective performance. Standing out in her role as Emily is Jean Arliss. It seems that Emily is quite disturbed as the movie opens with an alarming murder sequence. The story goes downhill from there and, just when you think you have all of the answers, the film changes the questions! The ending is very shocking for first time viewers and yet this is the kind of film that also gets more and more entertaining with each additional viewing. Highly recommended for horror fans, even though it's often compared with "Psycho" I feel that the film stands out on it's own and it's ending is actually more effective than Hitchcock's. Watch this movie, you won't regret it!

Universally bombed by the critics--but they miss the point. This was classic Saturday matinee fare--and it was quite effective back in 1961. William Castle put his special touch on it and produced a quite entertaining, if campy take-off on a more famous varietal. OK, the acting was rather bland, perhaps to be expected from Glenn Corbett and Pat Breslin and a lesser known cast, but Jean Arless stole the show, with kudos also to Eugenie Leontovitch. This wasn't the best of the Castle fare, that award belonging to "Mr. Sardonicus" easily, but there were enough scares and suspenseful moments in "Homicidal" to titillate the adolescent (as I was then) in all of us TRUE horror film buffs.

perhaps this little gem was overlooked as a rip off of "Psycho"...but let's face it, no one could scare you back then except William Castle. He may have had his campy films and maybe he was no Hitchcock. But Castle's films reached into the "real lives" of people. Audiences could relate to his characters more than Hitchcock's. (unless any of you have ever been chased by a crop duster,in that case, i stand corrected) Homicidal is quite the shocker. The performances are better than the title would suggest, the end is not one to be missed. I personally think William Castle was a genius overlooked as a gimmick director. His films have never failed to make me jump (My jaw dropped at the end of Strait Jacket)and i've always felt he was the best horror film director of his time. For a movie from 1961, one of the decades of camp, it'll have the same affect on you as anything current. Castle was awesome.

I fell in love with horror at an early age and before my parents bought a VCR I had to stay up and watch these movies on late night TV, I have very fond memories of doing so. I must have been 12 or so when I watched Homicidal for the first time and I'm not afraid to admit that it made the hairs on the back of my neck stand up and sent shivers down my spine. I have just re-watched it, this time on Blu-Ray, sadly it did not have the same scare effect but I still found it to be a good watch. Made just one year after Hitchcock's masterpiece "Psycho" this was an early entry in the popular 1960's and 70's psycho thrillers, indeed one could say that these and Italian Giallo would later mould what we call "slasher" movies. The psycho here is a young attractive blonde woman called Emily who is nurse to a mute and crippled old lady in a large Californian house. Emily's murderous habit is revealed early in the film when she stabs to death a man, very graphic for the time. The movie is now rated 12 in the UK, this first killing is the only gory point to be fair and the rest of the film is pretty tame. Jean Arless plays Emily, a 30 year old rather unconvincingly playing a 20 year old. The film was made by William Castle, king of the gimmicks, Homicidal is perhaps best know for its 45 second "Fright Break" just before the finale. In 1974 Amicus films had a "guess the werewolf" break in their "The Beast Must Die". So Homicidal wasn't as scary as I first remembered it to be but it is still a good psycho, gender bending thriller that comes not only with a fright break but also an introduction by Castle himself and looks great in black and white.