Foreverisacastironmess Great spooky little opening sequence, almost on-par with the one from 72's Tales From the Crypt. Okay, having four tales instead of five means that they're all long enough to be well developed and aren't over too soon, but in my opinion none of them are all that good. They're not intolerably awful, but I'm not blown away by any of them either. They all felt a little downbeat and dreary somewhere, and not as if it's the right word to use, 'innocent' as the stories of Tales From the Crypt. Also the essential elements of the classic dark irony and grisly twists seemed to be virtually absent, and that's where most of the fun comes from with anthologies for me. The idea and arc of the first story is interesting, with David Warner's character gradually being exchanged with the ghoulish Mr.Black Arts trapped within the mirror via the bloody sacrificial murders until the cycle eventually begins anew many years later when new owners finally move in who just happen to notice the dusty old mirror which has never been taken down, and "It's séance time!" Man oh man, how campy was that stupid line!? Especially when the second fella says it! The early scene is so chilling when the guy's drawn to the ghostly pier on the other side of the mirror and is approached by the mysterious stranger who looks like he's coming straight from the black mass of Jack the Ripper, and who opens his red-lined cloak to reveal the fearsome array of deadly instruments concealed within! And I've heard the term "The Ultimate" before in an old horror story that I read once. It might've been by R.Chetwynd Hayes, I can't remember. Slightly weak, but a good start. The second story attempts to take the movie to ~strange new places!~ Things were getting artsy fast, and I didn't like where they were going! I didn't enjoy at all the domestic hell situation of the irritating spineless man and his sour frump of a wife who constantly humiliated him in front of his own son! It was too harsh and bitter, I don't need to see that kind of nasty s**t when I'm watching what should be a fun anthology. David Pleasance put in a class act, although I thought he was wasted on such a sorry excuse of a story. And I just found the skulking brain-damaged character that his daughter played to be ridiculous and repulsive. Either her lines were weird or she was saying them weird, but it was like watching an alien! And at the end, when it turns out it was all for the boring kid's sake all along and she cuts the cake and there's a bit of blood, but it's not really gross or frightening because the tone of the story is too damned bizarre.. Gag, nasty fat ogre wife, ugly moon-faced girl, the story's too all over the place for me to take! I'm not too fussy about the third story either. Having it be about some kind of little demon that the audience can't see and therefore must use the imagination with is a novel concept, but it just seemed like a cheap lazy gag to me. I did like the old witchy-woman character a lot, the actress' performance was fun and entertaining, and she made it worth watching. Not good nor bad, just muddled.. Like the great Madame Orloff says "It's a bit of a ruddy mess!" The final story's my favourite as I find it the most atmospheric, and I think the idea of a terrifically ornate door being a gateway to the parlour of an ancient satanist was awesome. And I thought it was really clever how the key to destroying the "Ghost room" as the comically Captain Hook-like villain so apply described it, was by chopping up the door which caused the room to crumble in the impressively done climactic scene. I had a great time with that one, the idea was neat. It's actually the wraparound that I love the most though, such a beautifully mysterious and quaintly foreboding place, so many weird and wonderful things to see... There's a disturbing abundance of puppets and dolls. Brr.. For me the late-great Peter Cushing steals the show as the humble shop keep who's possibly more sly and sinister than he appears. I love seeing him in a rare role where he's using a northern British accent, which was very different from his own in real life, but he made it so natural and completely sincere. He's eerie without even trying to be, and I'm sure that he allows some of the people to cheat him on purpose just so they can be punished by the cursed antiques! He's never all that ominous or threatening at all, but there's still something more subtly going on there. It's an excellent performance, and for me he's the very glue that holds this decidedly uneven picture together which, though greater than the sum of its parts, is thoroughly charming and enjoyable. A very good day to you. "Nay, but I'm defenceless!"

callanvass Four short stories from this horror anthology, by Amicus. They are all based around an old antique dealer (Cushing) Each time a customer buys something from the antique shop, things seem to go wrong. I'll review the stories for youStory 1. Edward Charlton (Warner) lies to the antique dealer, gets a very old mirror for virtually nothing, compared to what it is really worth. Edward finds out that a supernatural presence resides in the mirror. He cajoles Edward into luring people into Edward's apartment, to feed his hunger for human blood, so he can walk in broad daylight. This was an excellent story to start things off. Not only was it suspenseful, but brimming with creativity. It keeps you engrossed throughout, managing to be unpredictable as well. I can't forget the great ending either. I only had one question. Why on earth would any woman wanna go out with a creepy looking guy like David Warner? Warner was very good in the lead though. 3./5Story 2.A disgraced husband, Christopher Lowe (Ian Bennen) has to deal with a domineering wife and a blasé lifestyle. Meanwhile, A former war veteran (Donald Pleasence) sells shoe laces, matches, other minor essentials to make a living. Christopher engages in conversation with a street beggar, Jim Underwood, becoming friends in the process. Things get out of hand when Christopher steals a medal of honor from the antique shop to impress Jim. Underwood. The situation grows weirder when Christopher encounters Jim's eerie daughter (Angela Pleasence) , who offers to murder his domineering wife. This was a very clever tale. It's also a sad story about overbearing pride. I empathized with Christopher's character a little bit. The performances are top-notch, with Donald Pleasence shining as per usual. But it's Angela Pleasence that makes the biggest impression with one of the creepiest performances you'll ever see in your life. Stay far away from me! There is a fantastic twist ending as well that I didn't see coming4/5Story 3. Reggie Warren (Ian Carmichael) steals a snuff box from the antique shop. Later, he boards a train, only to encounter a bizarre medium named Madame Orlov, who tells him he has an invisible spirit called The Elemental on his shoulder. Reggie tells her to desist and shrugs it off. Reggie's wife starts being hit and strangled, letting the wife think Reggie is abusing her. Reggie is force to acquiesce and call Madame Orlov to get rid of it. This one is a bit silly, but fairly entertaining nonetheless. I dug that it tried to let us use our imagination, but seeing The Elemental could have done this episode wonders. In all honesty, it felt a tad phony. Margaret Leighton is fantastic as the outlandish medium, having fun in her gleefully OTT performance. The end twist is predictable, but fitting. This isn't a horror story, more of a black comedy. 2.5/5Story 4. William Seaton (Ian Ogilvy) buys an ancient door to replace one of the other ones. He keeps getting interrupted by a blue filled room opening sporadically when he least expects it. It turns out, there is a ghost room occupied by a sorcerer that collects souls. This was by far the weakest of the lot. The blue lighting in the room is impressive, but the story was rather bland. The sorcerer is especially unimpressive. In lieu of ending things with a bang, they end with a whimper. 2/5The wraparound story features a huge twist with the antique dealer (Peter Cushing) It was pretty decent, albeit, unspectacularOverallDespite that the last two stories aren't as good as the first two, this anthology is very much worth your while. It's very entertaining, suspenseful, and a great way to pass 90 or so minutes. Check it out 7.8/10

AaronCapenBanner Kevin Connor directed this anthology film, the last in a series from Amicus studios. Four stories adapted from author R. Chetwynd Hayes and starring Peter Cushing as an antique shop owner who sells items with supernatural curses to deserving customers: 'The Gate Crasher' - A mirror with an evil inhabitant drives a man to murder for sinister reasons. 'An Act Of Kindness' - An unhappily married man becomes involved with a charity case who has a dutiful daughter. 'The Elemental' - A mischievous spirit has attached itself to a married couple, and a medium tries to help. 'The Door' - An old door contains a great evil that must be closed forever. Superb film with a wonderfully atmospheric opening and score, a fine cast(especially a most droll performance by Cushing) and a strong set of stories, especially the first and last, which are quite memorable and effective. A gem, and quite underrated.

ferbs54 "From Beyond the Grave" (1973) is one of seven horror anthology pictures released by Hammer rival Amicus over an eight-year period. The last of the bunch, it had been preceded by "Dr. Terror's House of Horrors," "Torture Garden," "The House That Dripped Blood," "Asylum," "Tales From the Crypt" and "Vault of Horror." This time around, the tales are based on the works of British author R. Chetwynd-Hayes (1919-2001), and the obligatory framing story takes place in a seedy antique shop called Temptations, Ltd. ("Offers you cannot resist"). Thus, we follow the fates of four customers who, in one way or another, try to pull "fast ones" with the shop's proprietor, played by the great Peter Cushing. In "The Gatecrasher," one of the best of the quartet, a man (David Warner) buys an antique mirror that houses a blood-lusting demon of sorts. Director Kevin Connor gives this segment some surreal and disorienting touches, some effective shock cuts, and one great swivel shot around a seance table. Impressive work! In "An Act of Kindness," a henpecked husband (Ian Bannen), seeking escape from his termagant wife (Diana Dors, in full bloat), befriends a street peddler and his daughter (real-life father and daughter Donald and Angela Pleasence), only to find that the pair has a hidden agenda or two. This tale features a rather otherworldly performance by Ms. Angela, especially while singing the creepiest little dirge you've ever heard! In "The Elemental," Margaret Leighton plays what must be the wackiest British psychic since Margaret Rutherford's Madame Arcati in "Blithe Spirit" (1945). She helps a middle-aged couple (Ian Carmichael and Nyree Dawn Porter) rid their home of the titular nasty...or does she? Leighton's memorable performance is surely the keynote of this amusing segment. Finally, in "The Door," a man (Ian Ogilvy) purchases an antique, beautifully carved door to put on his stationery bureau, only to find that the portal leads him to the lair of a sorcerer who had schemed in "the 22nd year of Charles II" (that would be 1682). This section turns quite unsettling indeed, especially when we discover that the ancient sorcerer is still alive and well and thirsting for souls. In all, a very entertaining quartet of chillers, to close out this wonderful Amicus series. Hint for savvy marketers: A boxed DVD set of all seven would be a dream purchase for all horror fans!