The first story is based on Poe's "Morella," but Corman and Matheson take great liberties to make the tale darker and scarier than the original. Unfortunately, the altered plot and its resolution (?) are a bit hard to follow, and it is therefore the weaker of the three plays.

The second--and best!--vignette, "The Black Cat" is actually a composite of Poe's story of the same name and his "The Cask of Amontillado." Peter Lorre hilariously hams it up as the cuckolded Montresor Herringbone, and Vincent Price is also a riot as Herringbone's nemesis, Fortunato. In spite of the humor, however, there are still plenty of chills when Lorre builds a wall around his "problems."

The final vignette, based on Poe's "The Facts in the Case of M. Valdemar," features the wonderful Basil Rathbone as the hypnotist who uses his powers to put the titular character, Valdemar (portrayed by Price), in a sort of limbo between life and death. Again, Corman and Matheson have taken liberties with the original story (e.g., making the hypnotist malevolent and self-serving), but this time it's to great effect, as Rathbone makes a delightfully devilish villain. The make-up job on Price in the final scene is pretty creepy, too, in spite of the film's low-budget effects. Good old-fashioned frights in this one.

The DVD edition of TALES OF TERROR is short on extras (trailer only)--it would've been great to have a Corman commentary on this one, which many of the other MGM releases of Corman's films DO have--but seeing this film in widescreen makes it well worth the reasonable cost. A worthy addition to any fan of classic horror.


Fine anthology   June 11, 2000
 8 out of 10 found this review helpful

Vincent Price stars in three shorts all based on Edgar Allen Poe stories. This was the first of the Roger Corman - Poe films I ever saw and it left an impact on me. Morella is the opening story and I feel it is the best and the one that is most like the rest of Corman's Poe films. Price is good at riding on the edge insanity while livng in a cob web covered house with his dead wife louning in a back room waiting to rise. Peter Lorre shows up in the Black Cat which is a combination of that story and the Cask of Amontillado. This entry is one of those horror - comedies that is very similiar to Corman's Raven. Price and Lorre both have some fine moments in this film including the dream sequence where Lorre's head is being tossed around like a ball. The Case of M.Valdemar comes last and this one has Basil Rathbone doing scientific experiments with Vincent Price with the expected ghastly results. Price has to were some gooey make-up in this one that was hot when they put it on. Price does great at playing a victim in these three different stories and there are some good people in the supporting cast. This one has the standards you expect in one of Corman's - Poe films, we have castles, corpses and killings.


Legends on parade   September 18, 2000
 8 out of 8 found this review helpful

Roger Corman directs this trilogy of terror starring Vincent Price, Peter Lorre and Basil Rathbone. Corman blends weird color schemes with a wide variety of visual effects and startling closeups to make the most of a limited budget. The script was written by Richard Matheson based on Poe's tales. With this cast, there is no reason to mention the acting other than to point out that Price is featured prominently in all three shorts and given a chance to explore his acting talent. He measures up to the task 100%, especially in the humorous drinking scenes. Lorre and Rathbone are consumate professionals who at this point in their careers were comfortable with this type of role.

The DVD itself features a crisp transfer that maintains all the bright colors and visual effects, however the only extra is the trailer. There are no audio commentaries from Corman or anyone else involved, but this is probably because the DVD is priced for sell thru.

The image of Debra Paget laying dead for twenty-five years in her bed is now immortal thanks to Famous Monsters Magazine.

Highly recommended.


Tales of tepid terror   November 3, 2002
 7 out of 18 found this review helpful

What happens when you take great actors (Vincent Price, Peter Lorre, Basil Rathbone), a great writer (Richard Matheson), great source material (E.A. Poe) and a passable director (Roger Corman) and have them make a movie? Nothing very good, as it turns out.

This movie is actually three short movies linked by Price's narration. The first story deals with a young woman who returns to the home of her father, a recluse tormented by the death of his wife; how she died is not really clear, but she is nonetheless intent on revenge. The second story - the best of the three - is a take-off on the Cask of Amontillado with Lorre as a murderous drunk. The final story has Rathbone as a mesmerist who traps Price in a state between life and death.

All three stories have potential, the first and last for horror, and the middle one for humor. Unfortunately, none of the stories are executed well, a fault that seems to lie primarily with Corman. For fans of the Poe movies of the sixties (directed primarily by Corman), this might be worth watching, but for horror fans, it is best to look elsewhere.


A wonderful horror anthology   February 5, 2004
 7 out of 9 found this review helpful

Vincent Price leads an all-star cast in this horror film. Price appears in all three segments. In the first, he plays a man named "Locke" who blames the death of his wife on his daughter who's just came back after 26 years. This is great, verbal horror sort of like a throwback to "Night Gallery" or other dramatic anthology shows, where the horror is in the character's personality and not in the graphics. only the final minutes does the story turn into what AIP movie goers expect. The second story, as has been voted by mostly all on here, is the stand-out. Peter Lorre and Joyce Jameson team up with Vincent in a re-telling of "Cask of Amontillado" but re-titled "The Black Cat". If you've heard or read the story, you pretty much know what's going to happen...the wine tasting scene is hilarious. The final segment offers Basil Rathbone and Vincent although Rathbone has the most action as Price's character, Valdemar, is bed-ridden. Rathbone plays an evil mesmerist who mentally tortures Valdemar's wife and keeps Valdemar in suspended animation you could say in an effort to kill him and run off with the wife! The segment ends with a memorable scene that isn't really sick...but it's not for the squeamish, either! It's one of Rathbone's finest roles, aside from Sherlock Holmes and the hilarious nut-case character in "Comedy of Terrors". This film came along in 1962. At 85 minutes in length, it's short for a feature-length film...but the material and the first-rate acting by everyone make it seem even SHORTER!!