The Screaming Skull

I agree with Shane Man, Screamig Skull may not be the best picture ever made or fine art, but it is a very good scary, chiller movie. All of the parts are taken by fine character actors. The black and white photography, setting and music give the whole thing an eerie atmosphere. The end is pretty scary too. Like I said, it may not be art, but it is the perfect thing to curl up on the couch on a Friday or Saturday night with a bowl of popcorn.

Despite the catch-penny title and stupid "warning" to viewers, this is a well-crafted thriller. In fact, it's a mix of thriller and horror as we can't be sure of what's behind the infernally sneaky skull. Seems poor troubled Jenni accompanies new husband Eric to his dead first wife's empty mansion. It's empty except for loony gardener Eric, who bumbles around like a gimpy zombie. Now strange sounds and happenings that surround a mysterious skull start haunting Jenni. Is it her troubled past and imagination, or maybe the loony gardener devoted to Eric's first wife, or maybe even a truly evil spirit. Old movie fans may notice echoes here of 1940's classic Hitchcock, "Rebecca".

The horror aspect as a whole is downplayed in favor of actress Webber's truly impressive performance as Jenni. In fact, she runs a gamut of emotions in convincing fashion without the self-mockery of many horror flicks. In fact, I'd give her a hooded Oscar for carrying the tricky narrative in compelling style. For guys, her traipsing around in a see-through gown also works. Outstanding too are camera-man Crosby whose b&w shadings are A-picture atmospheric, along with director Nicol who manages to blend the somewhat awkward parts pretty effectively.

I wish IMDB were able to post the movie's budget, with a cast of five and just a few sets, it couldn't be much. But they got their money's worth and so will viewers if you can get past the title and stupid warning.

This is an underrated film that seems to get more than a fair share of movie bashing. Some of this might be due to the warning at the start of the movie. Viewers are offered a free funeral if they die of fright during the showing of the movie. That offer does raise your expectations to an unrealistic level. There is no place to go from there but down. The scenes themselves are not ghastly or bloody. It isn't supposed to be that kind of a scary movie. "The Screaming Skull" is more of a psychological thriller and mystery movie. You have to remember the time this came out. Back in the late 50s, in a dark theater this was scary stuff. Compared to today's movies it's a little slow and is overshadowed by the graphic nature of modern horror films. This movie wasn't badly done. It's just a little outdated. It's still a decent movie and will probably remain popular with the movie fans of 50s horror. I think it holds its own enough that it's still a decent horror/mystery movie but it can't live up to the warning at the beginning of the movie. Watch this one remembering when it was released and forget that warning.

I can't believe the low rating this great film has gotten!

I remember watching "The Screaming Skull" on the late show (when TV actually showed decent stuff) and it scared the living hell outta me. It disappeared from TV, and of course years later having found it on video, it's not gonna scare me under the covers but it's still one of the best and most clever horror films of the 50's.

The plot is good enough - the ghost of a man's first wife haunts his new wife in their super-large house. But the film has a lot of great horror elements that work in its favor - the big house, the creepy house grounds, the grave on the grounds, the path through the woods area, the "odd" person (the gardener), the howling wind, the noisy windows, the scary painting, and much more, especially the skull that keeps on showing up all over the place.

The husband is the guy who played the husband in "50-Foot Woman" and he's just as good here. All the other actors/characters are just fine (there aren't many as the whole film takes place at the house), especially Mickey the Gardener, who loved the first wife (as a friend) and still talks to her as if she was alive.

The whole film has great horror atmosphere, one of the best instances ever of such I believe. There are many genuinely creepy scenes in the film, with the topper being the final incredible sequence, especially when the husband hears the knock on the front door. The look on his face is absolutely priceless as he goes to answer the door. Even after seeing the film so many times, when that door knocks, and the husband's face shows pure fear because he probably knows what's behind it, and he slowly goes to answer it, still gives me shudders!

It's great that "The Screaming Skull" is on DVD. This film definitely deserves a lot better than the films it often gets lumped in with.

My sister & I had searched for this movie to see it again after we had nightmares for weeks after seeing this movie some 35+ years ago. I finally founding looking in a database in a video store computer and ordered it. You have to lighten up your screen some, to see all that goes on, and parts of it are too funny now---but it's not a bad premise for a scary story, and images like the skull in the bridal gown I will never forget. I now have to find the 1973 version of this film. I'm curious also to see the double feature---the DVD has a schlocky 70's vampire movie as the 2nd feature. So seeing it this summer after waiting over 30 years for it? It wasn't that bad.