IMDb RATING
5.4/10
2.6K
YOUR RATING
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.In England, an American car salesman ends-up spending a stormy night at the mysterious and deadly mansion of a client's family.
- Awards
- 1 nomination
John Adams
- Casino Patron
- (uncredited)
Charles Addams
- Hand in Title Sequence
- (uncredited)
Jack Arrow
- Casino Employee
- (uncredited)
Jim Brady
- Casino Patron
- (uncredited)
Joyce Everson
- Casino Patron
- (uncredited)
Angela Kay
- Casino Patron
- (uncredited)
Aileen Lewis
- Casino Patron
- (uncredited)
- Director
- Writers
- All cast & crew
- Production, box office & more at IMDbPro
Storyline
Did you know
- TriviaThe drawings in the title sequence were by Charles Addams, whose whole career was inspired by the 1932 version of The Old Dark House (1932) (of which this is a remake). This is The Addams Family Charles Addams. Creator of the whole film and TV series.
- GoofsWhen 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.
- Quotes
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.
- Crazy creditsDuring the opening credits, "Produced and directed by William Castle" is followed by "Directed by William Castle."
- Alternate versionsThis film was filmed in Eastmancolor, however it was released in American theaters in black and white. Color prints were released to American television, however.
- ConnectionsFeatured in Fright Night Theater: Christmas Show! (2012)
Featured review
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.
- LobotomousMonk
- Feb 24, 2013
- Permalink
Details
- Release date
- Countries of origin
- Official site
- Language
- Also known as
- Das alte finstere Haus
- Filming locations
- Oakley Court, Windsor Road, Oakley Green, Windsor, Berkshire, England, UK(exteriors used for "Femm Hall")
- Production companies
- See more company credits at IMDbPro
- Runtime1 hour 26 minutes
- Color
- Aspect ratio
- 1.85 : 1
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