Theatre of Death

Theatre of Death is a pretty below the radar example of British horror. It rarely seems to get much of a mention and is relatively unknown. Having just seen it I have to say that this is a somewhat unfair situation. On the face of it, it is quite similar in terms of subject matter to a Hammer film. But in reality it has more in common with a super-stylish Italian flick from the period, like the kind of thing Mario Bava might have directed. The reason for this is that, while it stars Hammer regular Christopher Lee and has a horror based story, it is set in chic Paris and, more importantly, it looks absolutely gorgeous. The art direction really is rather fine, with nice décor and exceptional use of colours, especially red and black. And most significant of all is the sumptuous cinematography by Gilbert Taylor. It may be a low budget movie but it looks absolutely great and that kind of craftsmanship counts for a lot in my book.

The setting is a theatre based on the famous Grand Guignol of Paris. This was a place that put on macabre and gory plays. It operated for decades and had something of a reputation. Likewise in Theatre of Death the plays on offer are of the dark and sinister kind. We have a nice set-piece to enjoy of one such example, 'The Witches of Salem'. Lee plays the intense, sadistic theatre director and he comes under suspicion when a series of serial killings occur that have all the hallmarks of a vampire attack. From here on in several of the cast attempt to solve this mystery and get to the bottom of these gruesome murders. It all winds up with a climax in the theatre during a particularly impressively erotic voodoo dance sequence. It's a stylish ending to a great looking movie. This is a film that definitely deserves far more recognition.

1966's "Theatre of Death" was a one shot feature from Pennea Productions, issued by London Independent Producers in the UK, while Hemisphere Pictures did the honors in the US under the more lurid title "Blood Fiend." It was also one of the better entries in Gold Key's Scream Theater television package (and its sole British entry), which admittedly isn't saying much considering the low quality of its 19 cofeatures ("The Creeping Terror" or "They Saved Hitler's Brain," for example). A series of murders erupt in Paris while the Theatre de Mort showcases another season under director Phillipe Darvas (Christopher Lee), a lifetime of devotion since inheriting it from his missing father, showcasing torture, murder, disembowelment, decapitation, and sundry other horrific details purely for audience amusement (the real life theatre finally closed for good in 1962). Two recent arrivals are Nicole Chapelle (Jenny Till) and Dani Gireaux (Lelia Goldoni), who are both good friends as well as roommates, encouraged to perform a reenactment of the Salem witch trials in a demonstration that grows too intense for Dani's boyfriend Charles Marquis (Julian Glover). Nicole proves most susceptible to hypnosis, and agrees to move in with Darvas, who has yet to complete the final act of his new program, maintaining a grip of terror over his troupe in any horrific manner he sees fit (poor Dani is encouraged to jump in the river). As a police pathologist, Charles learns that the knife wounds on each victim's throat were triangular, the corpses drained of blood as if a genuine vampire were responsible. Suspicion naturally falls upon the tyrannical Darvas, but once he mysteriously disappears like his father before him authorities remain in a quandary until a cafe owner relates a strange tale of survival in the Swiss Alps, and a mother who raised her child on human blood. Between the hand held camera angles chosen by director Samuel Gallu and the picturesque cinematography of Gilbert Taylor ("A Hard Day's Night," "Star Wars"), the picture manages to hold together in Lee's absence, but as a whodunit it's a total washout, scripted by Ellis Kadison and Roger Marshall, the latter a veteran of THE AVENGERS. From spying on his guests to browbeating those who fail to meet his exacting standards, this mesmeric role is very similar to Lee's previous film, Hammer's "Rasputin - The Mad Monk," only here his character vanishes after a confrontation with Charles about the unsolved vampire-like murders in their vicinity; as the obvious focus throughout the first half, the picture clearly suffers from that point on, and the drawn out climax doesn't quite fill the gap. Leading lady Lelia Goldoni had one Hammer credit on her resume (1964's "Hysteria"), Julian Glover only a year away from a major role in Hammer's third Quatermass entry, "Five Million Years to Earth," little known Dilys Watling (as hungry starlet Heidi) going on to a memorable appearance on THE BENNY HILL SHOW in the late 1970s.

The plot centers around the cast of a Grand Guginol theatre group.Guginol refers to bloody & horrific explotative plays.The troupe is lead by the cold & cruel Darvas.(Darvas is wonderfully played by Christopher Lee).Darvas thinks nothing of ridiculing & humiliating his cast to get exactly what he wants. Seemingly he has no soul and no regard for human emotions other than acting them out.

A series of vampiric murders is tied in with the theatre group.Is Darvas more than just a Svengali? Is he a vampire? Without giving too much away cannibalism is the driving force behind the murders.Who is the killer stalking the cast?

This clocks in at above average. There are plenty of red herrings but the cast plays it gamely.Everyone has secrets to hide,some more terrible than others. The ending is a bit of a twist.You could do worse than to watch this one.

Christopher Lee and Julian Glover head the cast in a story about a pushy and overbearing theatre director obsessed with the macabre. Mwahahaha, etc. The eye candy is provided by Jenny Till and Lelia Goldoni (who lately died, God rest her), but the sexiest moment is provided by whoever that dancing lady is pretending to be a tribal African about to sacrifice a victim. Not to worry, it's all part of the guignol, my dears. Lee is the sinister director, Glover is his antagonist of sorts, a surgeon with a damaged hand, looking out for the lady he is romantically pursuing (Goldoni). Our doc also has police connections, so he's able to follow the case of a serial, vampiric murderer at large in Paris. Could the murders and the theatre's productions be connected somehow?

Good performances all round, but it's never particularly scary and the fact that they're French characters (mostly) being played by Brits as if this version of Paris was somewhere in London, well, it doesn't lend itself to versimilitude. In all honesty the plot is pure tosh, though I'll admit I saw a plot synopsis before viewing that did rather give the game away. I won't spoil it for you.

Best line in the movie: "If you find the outside world too tough there's always the asylum, and if that doesn't work, the river." How's that for cold?

Pigalle slums, Paris , there takes place severals murders . As police are baffled by a series of mysterious killings . Meanwhile, new Theatre director Phillipe Darvas (the great Christopher Lee , still performing), son of the old director, vows to dedicate his life to the Theatre, as did his father. At the opening night cast party, patroness Mme Angelique (Evelyn Laye) requests that Darvas give a preview of coming attractions, so Darvas asks Dani Gireaux (Lelia Goldoni) and newcomer Nicole Chapelle (Jenny Till who receives an "introducing" credit) to play a scene from 'The Witches of Salem'. But Dani's sweetheart , Dr. Charles Marquis (Julian Glover), interrupts the scene . Once again occur murders , each bearing a trace of Vampirism , being main suspect Darvas . The picture is based on a real Theatre known as the Grand Guignol ,it was a Theatre in the Pigalle area of Paris . From its opening in 1897 until its closing in 1962, it specialized in naturalistic horror shows. Its name is often used as a general term for graphic, amoral horror entertainment . A genre popular whose founder was Oscar Méténier was the Grand Guignol's and original director. Under his direction, the theater produced plays about a class of people who were not considered appropriate subjects in other venues: prostitutes, criminals, street urchins, and others at the lower end of Paris's social echelon. At the Grand Guignol, patrons would see five or six plays, all in a style that attempted to be brutally true to the theatre's naturalistic ideals. The plays were in a variety of styles, but the most popular and best known were the horror plays, featuring a distinctly bleak worldview as well as notably gory special effects in their notoriously bloody climaxes . Some of the horror came from the nature of the crimes shown, which often had very little reason behind them and in which the evildoers were rarely punished or defeated. To heighten the effect, the horror plays were often alternated with comedies . Paula Maxa was one of the Grand Guignol's best-known performers. From 1917 to the 1930s, she performed most frequently as a victim and was known as "the most assassinated woman in the world". During her career at the Grand Guignol, Maxa's characters were murdered more than 10,000 times in at least 60 different ways and raped at least 3,000 times .

Terror , killing , suspense , well-planned intrigue and mayhem make up the principal ingredients of the Theatre De Morte . This exciting , bizarre film contains tension , thriller , drama , mystery , plot twists and shocks , including decent scares with tense terror sequences especially in its final part , in a creepy denouement . The movie is intriguing and some moment brilliant, and the players are quite reliable . Eerie movie builds taut by showing virtually well staged killings , adequate theatre settings , unsettling score and evocative cinematography . Although is sometimes slow moving , overlong and stagy , however is entertaining for continuous suspense . Sinister , mysterious atmosphere is nicely photographed by magnificent cameraman Gilbert Taylor , and standing out the scenarios with luxurious images . Suspenseful and frightening soundtrack heightens the suspense .

This flick displays genuine chills , thrilling events , mystery and dark atmosphere and a twisted finale , being skillfully proceeded by Samuel Gallu . Director Sam Gallu, who once sang tenor for Toscanini, and star Chris Lee hurled snatches of arias at each other between takes. Sam Gallu was a craftsman who founded his own production company, Gally Productions, in the 1950's , his Productions included "Border Patrol" and "The Blue Angel¨ . He wrote , produced and directed a few movies such as ¨Arthur , Arthur¡¨ , ¨The limbo lime¨ , ¨The man outside¨ and this , ¨Theatre of death¨ that resulted to be his best movie . Rating : 6.5/10 . The movie will appeal to Christopher Lee fans .