Confessions of an Opium Eater

If it's a completely bizarre horror flick you're after, then you can go wrong with Confessions of an Opium Eater as there is NOTHING typical about this flick, and overall it is just as much an oddity as its title suggests it is! I actually saw this film under the alternative title 'Souls for Sale', but 'Confessions of an Opium Eater' does the film far more justice. My main reason for seeing the film was because it's a Vincent Price film that I'd never come across before, and anyone seeing Confessions of an Opium Eater for the same reason won't be disappointed as this is Vincent Price as you've never seen him! Indeed, not even the usually distinctive master of the macabre can deliver the usual in this film. The plot is often confusing and doesn't always flow well, but the themes of opium induced hallucinations, Chinese human auctions and odd little midgets are usually enough to see it through and ensure that it's hard to care about the shortcomings with the plot.

The dialogue is surprisingly lyrical, and it's a huge benefit to the film that Vincent Price is on hand to deliver it. Price's voice always bodes well with dialogue like this, and that doesn't change here. Confessions of an Opium Eater was filmed in black and white, and while the cinematography looks rather cheap; it does fit the feel of the film. Vincent Price takes centre stage at almost all times, and while there are some memorable characters among the supporting cast - it is always clear that this is Price's film. The film is directed by Albert Zugsmith; and the fact that he is better known for his producing credits is hardly surprising as his direction isn't exactly inspiring...but then again, you can't expect brilliance in a B-movie picture like this one. There are a number of standout moments in the film, however, and chief among them is Price's hallucination sequence; which somehow manages to blend well with the rest of the picture. Overall, Confessions of an Opium Eater is a film that is well worth tracking down despite not being one of price's out and out best efforts, and I highly recommend it.

The only similarity this bears to Thomas De Quincy's "Confessions Of An English Opium Eater" is that both characters have the name Thomas De Quincy. The novel is an autobiography of the effects on opium on one man's life, while the film is a Vincent Price lead "Lady From Shanghai" like twisting film noir.

Price's De Quincy is a sailor, whose voice over is a Raymond Chandler meets De Quincy poetry, come to San Francisco after a long stay in "the orient", where he involves himself in the dubious world of human trafficking, particularly brides in China Town during the 1800's Tong Gang Wars. The film opens with a brutal scene involving screaming women thrown in a net like freshly caught tuna, and then a violent battle between two gangs on the beach as they try to deliver the kidnapped women to their fate.

Albert Zugsmith produced classics like "The Incredible Shrinking Man", "Written On The Wind", and "Touch Of Evil", along with directing many exploitation flicks, which this film veers into from time to time. The film is more in the Siejun Suzuki brand of wildly inventive, free wheeling pulpy expressionism, than Ed Wood kitschy ineptness. Despite the title the only scene involving opium is when Price takes some in order to get close to the women trafficking ring, and has a particularly impressive Lynchian circa Elephant-Man era hallucination scene (which is worth price of admission alone).

However the best scene comes when Price wakes up surrounded by guards and has to make a slow motion (cus he's high on opium) dash out of the den, and to the rooftops of china town. The scene is also completely silent, and truly marvelous in it's execution. I know slow motion action sequences where Greogiran chanting plays over sweat glistened A-listers shooting each other in mid air are common place now, but in Zugsmith's hands your reminded of excting an action sequence can be when it's done right. The plot is not particularly strong.

Why De Quincy is saving the girl, or what he is doing in China town at all, has many twists and turns, and leaves some gaps to be filled? But the direction, the suspense, and especially Price's performance make lines that would sound preposterous and almost Terrance Malick like in their stream of consciousness like "You wear as many masks as their are stars reflected in a gutter", sound as if he says them everyday. Such are the gifts of Price.

I was very pleased with this movie, that can be found easily on Youtube, though you might want to get a good copy to take in the fullness of Zugsmith's frames.There is a dreaminess and nightmarishness to all of the scenes, like opium was poured over a script to a lesser film, and this movie stumbled out of a smoke ridden room, rambling of dancing girls emerging from cages, crashes through windows, being swept to sea from sewer drains, and teetering on the edge of rooftops with vertigo at a snails pace, and feeling "the abbacus of fate has your number". Good times.

Seaman Vincent Price arrives in San Francisco from the Far East. He gets involved with Linda Ho, a picture bride who is to be auctioned off in the underground maze beneath Chinatown.

Nominally based on Thomas De Quincy's CONFESSIONS OF AN ENGLISH OPIUM EATER, it seems a mildly incoherent, sloppily composed movie. On the other hand, there is the implication that this is all an opium dream, which would go a ways towards explaining the lack of sense. Given that the producer-director, Albert Zugsmith, was a hard-working man who had produced movies like Orson Welles' TOUCH OF EVIL and directed SAPPHO DARLIng, I'll come down in the middle. I think he intended this to be an opium dream, but given the script by Robert Hill, the remnants of the Production Code, and his own less than stellar talents, it's not a great success. Still, it provides a chance to see a lot of Studio Era actors like ichard Loo, Phillip Ahn, and Victor Sen Yung.

OK, I've known I've wanted to see this for years, but had no idea how great it would be!!! Price is as ace as usual, but the scene is well and truly stolen by the little dwarf girl. Some more things that make the film great - The fact that all the Orientals talk in broken English, while Price fills every line with overblown emotion and literate philosophical asides, the record number of secret passages and lifts, the incredible opium trip/dream sequence (and the resulting slow-motion escape is even better)and the fact that the whole thing plays like a 30's adventure film mixed with a 60's drug film! Perfect.

Highly recommended, naturally.

Vincent Price is one of my favourite actors, always delivering no matter the material. Confessions of an Opium Eater is no exception, it is not his best film or performance by a long shot, but it is an interesting film and Price commands the film wonderfully in the way few people do. Confessions of an Opium Eater is a long way from flawless, some of the direction is uninspiring, the dialogue does have a tendency to ramble on too much and the dance numbers are very dreary. However, while the story is on the silly side, what does elevate it to a significant degree is the startling atmosphere that is evoked. When it comes to the film's highlights, they are most certainly the trippy dream sequence and the slow-motion escape scene. I did like the look of the film, slow-motion technique is not a favourite of mine but due to the subject it actually worked to give some realism. The costumes and scenery are quite nice too, as is the eerie score. Price is great, and the supporting performances are good(though few stand out as really, really impressive) especially from Linda Ho. So overall, it was an interesting and decent movie. 7/10 Bethany Cox