Scott LeBrun Robert Flemyng is the title character, Dr. Bernard Hichcock, a doctor / surgeon in 19th century London. His wife Margaret (Maria Teresa Vianello) dies under suspicious circumstances, and years later, Bernard marries younger woman Cynthia (a radiant Barbara Steele). She begins to see and hear strange things, and one of the questions that the story asks is whether Cynthias' visions are real or imagined. Certainly Cynthia starts to suspect her husband of something sinister. Bernards' colleague Dr. Kurt Lowe (Silvano Tranquilli) cares for her and starts wondering about Bernard himself.Written by Ernesto Gastaldi, and directed by Mario Bavas' mentor Riccardo Freda, "The Horrible Dr. Hichcock" is fairly engrossing as a mystery, with the two of them being as vague as possible as to what Bernards' intentions are. All we know that is Bernard has a particular kink as part of his personality; this viewer won't mention it here. That helps to give a bit of a lift to what is ultimately a pretty routine story. But the story isn't the principal attraction. It's Fredas' stylized presentation, and the performances of the cast. This is a handsomely produced, suspenseful, atmospheric film, enhanced by a good soundtrack by Roman Vlad. Freda downplays elements such as sex and gore, making his film of more interest to more traditional genre lovers. It's also well paced, clocking in at a mere 77 minutes. (There is a longer, international cut running about 11 minutes longer.)Flemyng is effective in his subtlety when it comes to his villainy. You're not quite sure what to make of him. Tranquilli is an utter stiff, but Vianello is fine as the wife, and American actress Harriet Medin, a familiar face in Italian genre cinema during this time, also comes off well as the loyal maid. Still, "The Horrible Dr. Hichcock" truly belongs to the lovely young Ms. Steele, who's got some of the most expressive eyes one will ever see. We've seen her score in villainous roles herself, and here she shows that she can also be a sympathetic heroine.Not really a great film in this viewers' humble opinion, but it still provides fine entertainment for any fan of Italian horror.Followed by "The Ghost".Six out of 10.

christopher-underwood A pretty wild ride, this one, after a rather uncomfortable and disturbing start as the first coffin is interfered with. Robert Flemyng is effective as the horrible doctor but I bet he used to leave this one off his CV. Between the worrying start and the breakneck finale there is really not that much happening but we are sustained by the grisly nature of the goings on, majestic photography and, of course, the equally majestic, Barbara Steele. I read somewhere that it was reckoned this was Steele's greatest performance and, on reflection, I think that may be so. Certainly she has a lot to do and continually looks as worried as she is beautiful. Strangely, her two most impressive scenes are both shot through glass. There is a terrifying moment when she and we see a ghost in the garden, through her window and then towards the end the amazing shots of her in the coffin through the small glass window. Not a great story but this works from beginning to end, nevertheless.

Witchfinder General 666 Riccardo Freda's L'ORRIBILE SEGRETO DELL DR. HICHCOCK aka. THE HORRIBLE DR. HICHCOCK(1962) was only the third Gothic Horror film starring the wonderful genre-goddess Barbara Steele, the first two being two masterpieces, Mario Bava's LA MASCHERA DEL DEMONIO (BLACK Sunday/THE MASK OF Satan) of 1960 and Roger Corman's PIT AND THE PENDULUM in which she starred alongside fellow Horror-deity Vincent Price. While this is not one of the most notable among the nine Italian Horror films starring the divine Miss Steele it is yet another creepy must-see for fans of Italian Gothic Horror and Barbara Steele in particular.In 1885, Doctor Hichcock (Robert Flemyng) leaves London after accidentally killing his wife with an overdose of an anesthetic. He returns several years later with his new wife Cynthia (Barbara Steele). It soon becomes clear that the Doctor has necrophiliac tendencies and that his weakness for anesthetics has to do with his own perverted desires...Director Riccardo Freda was one of the pioneers of Italian Horror cinema, having directed the first post-WW2 Italian Gothic Horror film I VAMPIRI (1956), which was, in fact, finished by the ultimate Italian Horror director Mario Bava (my personal choice for the greatest Horror director of all-time). While Freda's Gothic Horror films are very good they don't quite reach the quality of those by the incomparable Mario Bava and Antonio Margheriti, in my opinion.The most convincing reason to watch the film is, of course, Barbara Steele, who simply is the greatest Horror actress of all time in the humble opinion of yours truly. It is regrettable, however, that her role is restricted to that of the damsel in distress here. She played double-roles in many of her Italian Horror films (LA MASCHERA DEL DEMONIO, I LUNGHI CAPPELLI DELLA MORTE, AMANTI D'OLTRETOMBA, UN ANGELO PER SATANA) in which she combined the innocent and pure evil, and was always brilliant in doing so. In some other Italian Horror films her characters always had something mysterious and eerie about them. Not so in L'ORRIBILE DR. HICHCOCK, in which she has the role of a pure scream-queen. Personally I would have rather seen her as the villainess. However, she is still great and stunningly beautiful and her performance alone makes the film worthwhile.Another great aspect is the thick Gothic atmosphere which is created by the typically great use of camera-angles, darkness and shadows, the superbly creepy set pieces in an eerie old mansion and a nice, eerie score. Cinema does not get more elegant than Italian Gothic Horror from the 60s, and this film is yet another example for that. The film's theme of perversion and necrophilia is typical for early 60s Italian Gothic Horror, which wasn't yet quite as explicit as the Gialli and Horror films of the late 60s and 70s but was already thematically exploring the perverse and controversial.For quite some time, DR. HICHCOCK was the last Italian Horror film with Barbara Steele that I had yet to see. Freda made a sort-of sequel to this film one year later with LO SPETTRO (1963), which easily surpasses this one as it is even more atmospheric and Barbara Steele's role is way more sinister and macabre. Overall L'ORRIBILE SEGRETO DEL DR. HICHCOCK is not one of the highlights of Italian Gothic Horror but it is definitely a must-see for my fellow fans of the Genre and the wonderful Barbara Steele. For absolutely essential Italian Gothic Horror masterpieces starring Barbara Steele, watch Bava's LA MASCHERA DEL DEMONIO and Antonio Margheriti's DANZA MACABRA (CASTLE OF BLOOD, 1964).

John Bender THE TERROR OF DR.HICHCOCK (L'ORRIBILE SEGRETO DEL DR.HICHCOCK is a masterpiece! It seems I have come to appreciate this picture more with each viewing. Whereas NIGHTMARE CASTLE is focused on generating an atmosphere of ugliness and treachery capped with a satisfying supernatural pay-off, HICHCOCK goes for more and immerses the viewer in a suffocating fog of loathsomeness and horror. Robert Flemyng as Bernard Hichcock is marvelous. He perfectly calibrates his performance so as to expose his character's slow descent into unbridled derangement. The film opens with Hichcock practicing necrophilia, but we soon see that the Doctor, while obviously demented, is quite capable of protecting the secret of his awful desires. But, as the story unfolds, it becomes apparent that his abominable passions are slowly overtaking his intellect and his ability to maintain the appearance of normality. Much of the film's horror stems from this powerful presentation of the insidious and irresistibly intensifying nature of sexual psychosis. It also seems this film holds the ultimate moment of horror in Barbara Steele's exceptional career as a genre actress. The scene as her character, Cynthia, wakes from a drugged sleep is stunning. Cynthia finds herself strapped to a cot and watches as her husband materializes out of the darkness and menacingly advances upon her. To her full horror she stares wide-eyed as Hichcock's face distorts into a misshapen, glowing red mask of malignancy and evil. This magnificent shot was achieved with the use of surrealistic, nightmarish lighting and facial bladders attached to Flemyng's face, which, as they were slowly inflated, dreadfully perverted the actor's features.One of the major contributing factors to this film's impact is the sumptuous score by Roman Vlad. Vlad produced a lush tapestry of fully-formed themes and motifs. Most noticeable is the superb piano concerto elegantly performed by Hichcock's first wife, the ill-fated Margherita Hichcock. Simultaneously beautiful and unsettling, I have no qualms about favorably comparing Vlad's fine effort with that other exalted "gothic horror film" composition for solo piano, James Bernard's Vampire Rhapsody from KISS OF THE VAMPIRE. Vlad also composed what I will call Hichcock's Theme; a superlative example of emblematic impressionism. The piece effectively advances a fresh orchestral paraphrase for things dark and depraved, and does so without being prosaic or overwrought. Oddly, Vlad refrained from employing any of these principal themes in the opening titles. THE TERROR OF DR.HICHCOCK is just as shocking today as it was 40 years ago. Don't miss it!