VALUTAZIONE IMDb
5,4/10
2723
LA TUA VALUTAZIONE
Aggiungi una trama nella tua linguaIn England, an American car salesman ends-up spending a stormy night at the mysterious and deadly mansion of a client's family.In England, an American car salesman ends-up spending a stormy night at the mysterious and deadly mansion of a client's family.In England, an American car salesman ends-up spending a stormy night at the mysterious and deadly mansion of a client's family.
- Premi
- 1 candidatura in totale
John Adams
- Casino Patron
- (non citato nei titoli originali)
Charles Addams
- Hand in Title Sequence
- (non citato nei titoli originali)
Jack Arrow
- Casino Employee
- (non citato nei titoli originali)
Jim Brady
- Casino Patron
- (non citato nei titoli originali)
Joyce Everson
- Casino Patron
- (non citato nei titoli originali)
Angela Kay
- Casino Patron
- (non citato nei titoli originali)
Aileen Lewis
- Casino Patron
- (non citato nei titoli originali)
Recensioni in evidenza
This film is definitely worth a higher rating, although of it's time, it is funny, not side-splitting or laugh-out-loud, but quaint in it's way, and Fenella Fielding is always worth watching - not quite up to 'Carry On Screaming', but as delectable and sexy as ever...
And in the final scenes, she most certainly says "Daddy" and NOT "Danny", as suggested in Goofs.
And in the final scenes, she most certainly says "Daddy" and NOT "Danny", as suggested in Goofs.
Owing little to either James Whale's 1932 chiller, or to J.B. Priestly's original source novel, "Benighted", THE OLD DARK HOUSE is a small, off-beat and pleasantly daffy scare-comedy, a change-of-pace for director William Castle. Filmed and set in England, Tom Poston stars as a hapless American who, on a visit to a curious roommate's even curiouser family home, is caught up in a murderous merry-go-round of mayhem, nursery rhymes, love and (very possibly) the end of the world (including an Ark!). British stalwarts Robert Morley, Joyce Grenfell, Mervyn Johns, and Peter Bull have a charming good time playing the various members of the Femm family, along with Janette Scott and an unforgettably slinky Fenella Fielding as romantic interests. None of the usual Castle gimmicks for this release--just a bit of eccentricity and a pleasant, creepy, multi-murder mystery, with a puzzle to solve, a couple of surprises, and some good solid chuckles.
A note to fans of Charles Addams--the film's poster and its main titles contain some choice Addams artwork.
An additional note: the film was shot in color, but released in a very faintly tinted black-and-white version. The color version of the film was only seen on subsequent television release.
This movie really does deserve a DVD release, not only for its place in the William Castle canon, but for the performances and the fun.
A note to fans of Charles Addams--the film's poster and its main titles contain some choice Addams artwork.
An additional note: the film was shot in color, but released in a very faintly tinted black-and-white version. The color version of the film was only seen on subsequent television release.
This movie really does deserve a DVD release, not only for its place in the William Castle canon, but for the performances and the fun.
The Old Dark House does not provide the gore and R-rated material seen in today's horror movies but it does reflect a more simple time when comedy and horror could be matched while maintaining a family rating.
As a child I saw The Old Dark House over one hundred times, I remember being on the edge of my chair during the entire movie every single sitting.If only the local television stations would be able to air this movie, a new generation of viewers could enjoy, The Old Dark House.
The film may be the last of the "old age" comedies that were popular during that time. Tom Poston does a good job of not only showing fear but does so in comedy style to allow us, the viewers, to use our imagination.
While The Old Dark House may not live up to today's standards, it was a "movie of the day" in 1963.
As a child I saw The Old Dark House over one hundred times, I remember being on the edge of my chair during the entire movie every single sitting.If only the local television stations would be able to air this movie, a new generation of viewers could enjoy, The Old Dark House.
The film may be the last of the "old age" comedies that were popular during that time. Tom Poston does a good job of not only showing fear but does so in comedy style to allow us, the viewers, to use our imagination.
While The Old Dark House may not live up to today's standards, it was a "movie of the day" in 1963.
One would expect a collaboration between the American director William Castle and the British production studios Hammer to result in a terrific must-see film, considering they were both horror genre giants in their respective continents during the early sixties. Castle became world famous and appreciated thanks to his morbidly themed but nevertheless light-headed Gothic horror spectacles ("House on Haunted Hill", "Mr. Sardonicus", "13 Ghosts"
), and on the other side of the Atlantic Ocean, Hammer studios boomed with the gruesome re-imaging of the legendary Universal classics from the thirties ("Dracula", "The Mummy", "Frankenstein"
). Knowing this, "The Old Dark House" seems to be the ideal marriage, since it's more or less a remake of the underrated 1932 Universal masterpiece and a great opportunity for a director like Castle to showcase his creativity. Strangely enough, however, the film is somewhat of a disappointment and it's only rescued from inglorious mediocrity thanks to a handful of nice gags and an entertaining final act; including a surprising plot-twist and an exciting race against the clock – literally! The rest of the film clumsily bounces back and forth between talkative mystery and immature comedy. Please don't get me wrong, "The Old Dark House" is never boring and I still prefer it over most of the soulless horror junk being released nowadays, but I simply expected a little bit more
American car salesman Tom Penderel drives out to the god-forsaken British countryside in order to deliver a car at the request of his odd pal Caspar Femm. The two share an apartment, but they never see each other since Caspar always mysteriously vanishes before midnight. When he arrives at the sinister Femm country estate, he learns that all the eccentric family members are obliged to stay at the house and gather at midnight, or otherwise they lose the rights to their part of the inheritance of their notorious ancestor (a pirate). Synchronous with Tom's arrival, the family members are being killed off one by one. Tom should leave while, but he fell for the charming cousin Cecily and the remaining Femms suspect him to be the killer. "The Old Dark House" begins delightfully, with animated opening credits by none other than Charles Addams – the creator of the immortal blackly comical series "The Addams Family – and brings forward several great Gothic aspects, like a moody old castle and never-ending thunderstorms. Some of the supportive characters are also uniquely bizarre, like the crazy uncle who's building an arc or the grandmother that doesn't stop knitting, but overall the film isn't absurd or spooky enough. The actual "horror" footage in the film is limited, a few inventive death scenes and a laughably inept moment with a stuffed hyena.
Zotz!.. another William Castle and Tom Poston lighthearted dark adventure for all ages. Amusing quips and snappy banter abound. There are some plot contrivances (typically par for the Castle course). The Old Dark House would surely have been better suited for black and white film stock as the milieu is inherently sinister. That being said the full color palette does tend to heighten the humor elements of the story as Poston's pink puppy dog cheeks remind us of how sweet and naive a witless hero can be. However, the chromatic compromise confounds establishment of mood and thus character motivation. A third of the duration of the film passes prior to the formation of a real clue about the plot (which according to other reviewers holds little sway in the realm of fidelity to the original Priestly story or Whale film from the thirties). The staging/blocking and mobile framing are not constructed with any technical finesse or creative flair. I tend to find that Castle's best directing efforts are inspired by higher quality scripts he works with. For Castle, when the storytelling stammers his direction staggers and his authorial voice goes mute. There are shades of this crutch in The Old Dark House. Similar to Zotz!, Poston plays a character that reminds one of Leonid Gaidai's Shurik character - fumbling and bumbling through the simplest of tasks, getting himself into trouble way over his head, and gallantly dodging sexy, seductive women who throw themselves at him bosom to face. If you wanted to probe and plumb this film for some deeper value, try a psychoanalytic approach (either Freud or Lacan will do). Personally, I wouldn't bother... but you never know. As it stands, this is an amusing film that is best watched while doing something more important.
Lo sapevi?
- QuizBoris Karloff, who played the sinister butler Morgan in Il castello maledetto (1932), was offered a role in this one as well, but turned it down because he didn't like the script and considered it too biased towards comedy instead of horror.
- BlooperWhen Jasper claims his mother "never spent a penny!", the dubbed word we hear is 'penny', yet the word he clearly says with his mouth is 'shilling', probably because American audiences would not understand what a 'shilling' is.
- Citazioni
Agatha Femm: [Knitting] I capture time and space in my stitches. Sometimes I wonder what would happen if I stopped.
Tom Penderel: Happen? To you?
Agatha Femm: No, no. To the world.
- Curiosità sui creditiDuring the opening credits, "Produced and directed by William Castle" is followed by "Directed by William Castle."
- Versioni alternativeThis film was filmed in Eastmancolor, however it was released in American theaters in black and white. Color prints were released to American television, however.
- ConnessioniFeatured in Fright Night Theater: Christmas Show! (2012)
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Dettagli
- Data di uscita
- Paesi di origine
- Sito ufficiale
- Lingua
- Celebre anche come
- The Old Dark House
- Luoghi delle riprese
- Oakley Court, Windsor Road, Oakley Green, Windsor, Berkshire, Inghilterra, Regno Unito(exteriors used for "Femm Hall")
- Aziende produttrici
- Vedi altri crediti dell’azienda su IMDbPro
- Tempo di esecuzione1 ora 26 minuti
- Colore
- Proporzioni
- 1.85 : 1
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By what name was Il castello maledetto (1963) officially released in India in English?
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