Raptus - O Diabólico Dr. Hichcock

The plot ,which could be considered a horror "Rebecca" ,complete with the late wife who haunts the maleficent mansion,the unpleasant governess,in Mrs Denvers ' mold .One can also find the movie too slow-moving,but it does not matter.

The wonderful scenery (this house is a splendor) , the clever lightings , the superb colors make it a winner ;add the presence of Barbara Steele ,par excellence the Goth girl , an Edgar Poe atmosphere ,and a fancy for necrophilia ,and you get a must for horror buffs.

The Horrible Dr. Hichcock (1962)

*** (out of 4)

Dr. Hitchcock (Robert Flemyng) administers a drug to his beautiful wife but he accidentally gives her too much, which causes her to overdose and die. The pain causes him to leave him home but years later he returns with his new wife Cynthia (Barbara Steele). It doesn't take too long for the new wife to start seeing and hearing mysterious things, which could be the dead wife.

THE HORRIBLE DR. HITCHCOCK is a pretty good horror film from director Riccardo Freda who skips out on blood or graphic violence and instead delivers atmosphere and some great performances. The film became a pretty big hit when it was originally released and it continued to gain new fans as it showed up on American television. There are two different versions out there with the original Italian version running twelve-minutes longer than the American cut but it's the American version that is currently available on Blu-ray and is what I watched.

For the most part this is a pretty good film that works perfectly in that "old dark house" way where we're given an innocent woman put into a dangerous situation and we're not quite sure what's going on. Is she losing her mind? Is her new husband playing sinister tricks? Has the dead wife returned? These are the questions that are asked throughout the picture and Freda keeps the film moving at a nice pace. There's no question that it's a well-made film that contains some beautiful cinematography as well as a nice music score. Freda builds up a very good and rich atmosphere that carries the picture to the end.

Another major plus is the fact that the performances were so good. Flemyng is very good in the role of the husband because he plays it so perfectly down the middle that you can never tell what he's up to. Then you've got Steele who once again delivers a great performance as the wife who finds herself seeing ghosts and other strange objects. THE HORRIBLE DR. HITCHCOCK isn't a flawless movie but it's certainly an entertaining one.

This minor but interesting entry in the Italian Gothic/horror genre is a first in that no film had ever dealt before with the subject of necrophilia. Set in London in 1885, Robert Flemyng portrays Dr. Bernard Hichcock who kills off his first wife, digs her up for a little body worship, then marries the ever-ravishing Barbara Steele. Harriet White Medin is perfect as the spooky housekeeper with an ample supply of nasty secrets and protectress of the demented doctor. Flemyng, Steele & White Medin are quite a terror-ific trio and this flick is lots of fun. Beware of the truncated, rather mutilated American version known as THE HORRIBLE DR. HICHCOCK. The dictatorial director Riccardo Freda was responsible for making this film on a bet in just a few days but it doesn't show. HICHCOCK benefits from superb Technicolor and some nice locales and art direction. Even the castle mascot is a black cat named Jess-Belle. Required viewing for all fans of Barbara Steele as it is among her best Italian work. Freda was only equal or better with his work on I VAMPIRI and CALTIKI, IL MOSTRO IMMORTALE.

London, 1885. Respected Dr. Hichcock (Robert Flemyng) has had a rough day at work. He goes home to his wife Margarets' (Teresa Fitzgerald) piano recital. She plays badly enough for friends to whisper comments. After she's through playing, she pleads a headache and the attendees quickly leave. The doctor then mixes up a medicine to knock out the Mrs., so he can have sex with her as though she was dead. A few days later, the doctor puts too much barbiturate into his formula and kills his wife for real. After her funeral, he leaves London for twelve years.

Fast forward to 1897. The doctor has married Cynthia (Barbara Steele), who was a mental patient of his and has no idea of his past. They return to London and Hichcock's old house. Strange events start to happen.

The film looks expensive and fussily Victorian. Director Riccardo Freda has all of the music a note or so off key, to suggest things aren't right in the characters minds and that things aren't as placid as they may seem. The film utilizes most of the old cliches successfully; a dark and stormy night, a window banging, a piano playing by itself, etc. The film owes a lot to Alfred Hitchcock, and steals some ideas from his films. There's even a direct copy of one of his most famous shots, the glass of milk from "Suspicion" (1941).

Steele was a underrated actress, and is at her best here. Flemyng is good as a man struggling not to become totally crazy.

Gorgeously filmed, totally insane Gothic pastiche from Riccardo Freda holds its marvelously overwrought tone through to the fiery climax. At the center of it is Barbara Steele's Cynthia, the neurotic second wife of the eponymous Dr. Hichcock, who, from the second she arrives in her husband's creaky and apparently haunted mansion, is picturesquely threatened by the hostile maid, by a mysterious figure in white, purported to be the maid's sister, and by her own increasingly mad husband, who was already predisposed to pseudo-necrophilia, but who really starts to tip over the brink as he begins to believe his first wife has come back from the grave. It's all both lavish and ludicrous, and profits from Steele's incredible screen presence and the weight of its own images. Spectacular use of color, as well. Essential viewing.