Trilogy of Terror

Three stories interwoven together and starred by the great Karen Black. All of them are filled with mystery , suspense , terror , grisly killings , twisted events and horrible happenings. The first, : ¨Julie¨about a college student infatuated with his teacher , as she is blackmailed by one of her pupils for a past indiscretion in which she played an unwilling part, but then things go wrong , and she turns the tables on him the first chance she gets . The second, ¨Millicent and Therese" a paranoid tale of two sisters - one good girl , the other bad girl , only their doctor who visits from time to time knows the real thing behind the scenario . And the the final story : ¨Amelia¨, equally starred by Karen Black in a solo terror story monologue concerning a woman who buys an African Zuni fetish , it results to be actually a Native American voodoo doll that comes to life and pursues and attacks on her own flat . An electrifying experience - you won't believe your eyes !

A vintage , bizarre horror film financed from producer/director Dan Curtis and written by prestigious writer Richard Matheson , formed by three episodes ¨Julie¨, ¨Millicent and Therese" and ¨Amelia¨, with full of creepy events , chills , surprises , thrills and horrifying scens . These tense terror stories all of which stars Karen Black in four different roles playing tormented women : a sexually-repressed college teacher who is blackmailed by a pupil , a reclusive woman who lives with her amoral twin sister and a woman who's terrorized after buying a doll that chases and mistreats her . It deals with three entertaining and chilling segments ; all of them competently performed by Karen Black , accompanied by a familiar cast , such as : Gregory Harrison , John Karlen and George Gaynes of ¨Police Academy¨franchise .

These three horror anthology stories of tormented women being compellingly directed and in limited budget , as shooting was completed in a few weeks . Being financed by the notorious producer/directed by Dan Curtis at his best . Curtis created the series about Kolchak or Night Stalker (1972) , in fact in first segment the starring appears at a drive-in theater where can be seen showing the movie "The Night Stalker", this is an in-joke reference to filmmaker himself . Dan was a good writer, producer and director of TV series , working from the 60s . Curtis was a specialist in terror genre as proved in ¨Dark shadows¨, ¨Trilogy of terror¨, ¨Night Stalker¨, or ¨Scream of wolf , ¨Night Strangler¨¨ and successful wartime series filmmaker as ¨Winds of war¨ and ¨War and remembrance¨ , among others . Trilogy of Terror(1975) rating : 6.5/10 . Better than average horror movie. THe flick will appeal to terror enthusiasts and Karen Black fans .

I don't remember the first two films but I must have seen them when the trilogy was shown on UK television in the 70s. The one that stuck with me, in fact terrified me, was the third one of the trilogy, Amelia. It's come up now to my mind from an article in the Guardian and I would never have known the name of it unless I'd read that article.

I was watching at my parents' house after they had gone to bed. I honestly didn't know what I was letting myself in for. That doll made me genuinely frightened. Whoever, in the props department, conceived of it was an evil genius. The way it moved, chasing its victim through her flat was perfect, as was the terrible noise it made.

I met some friends the next day who shared a flat. They had also watched the film and afterwards all slept in the same bedroom together as they had been so freaked out. I'm glad I hadn't been the only one to have been utterly spooked. I admit that when I went to bed, I was worried that that horrifying doll would come charging out from under a cupboard or out of a wardrobe.

I can still feel the frisson of terror forty five years later. It's one that I shall never forget.

Dan Curtis directs this made for television anthology of three stories written by horror-meister Richard Mathseon. Matheson wrote the teleplay for the third story "Prey," while Richard F. Nolan(writer of Logan's Run and much more) did so for the first two stories. All of the stories star Karen Black in the lead and the stories are titled with the female names "Julie," "Millicent and Therese," and "Amelia." All three stories are to varying degrees effective. I really enjoyed the first story about a college student who seduces his seemingly coy college professor only to see things differently later. Curtis plays with his audience and shows scenes from The Night Stalker at a drive-in theater. Look for a very young Gregory Harrison at this episode's close. The second story has two sisters who hate each other finally settle their differences..in a very unique way. George Gaynes helps out in this episode as a doctor. The story works because of its acting even though I knew what was going to happen long before it did. Karen Black really gets to show her acting range in this one, and as Therese she is one real knockout. Easily the best of the trio is the third story of a woman bringing a Zuni fetish doll home only to somehow become the prey of this one-to-two foot doll. The special effects here might seem campy by today's standards but when this came out they were truly frightening...and still powerful I think today. The doll looks very scary and attacks with quite an intense ferocity. This story should put you on the edge of your seat, and is very different in tone and style to the first two. Trilogy of Terror is a good, fun-filled romp through the works of one of our best authors...Richard Matheson.

I first saw this movie in '75 when I was 12 years old, along with my 9 year old sister. To this day, we both will never forget that last segment entitled "Amelia"! The entire movie itself is definitely done in the true, classic made-for-TV 70s flicks, but in and of itself is worth watching if you are interested in the horror genre and specifically from a hallmark standpoint. The movie consists of 3 different stories (hence "trilogy") and they all star Karen Black. The first segment is a clever piece about an uptight literature professor at a college who dons a bun hairdo and looks impenetrable on a personal level. However, her true vocation, so to speak, comes to light and we see there is much more to her than meets the eye. The second segment is your classic....well, I won't give it away. Good enough story, although somewhat lacking in suspense. The last story is the one that scared the pants off of me when I was a kid. Mind you, if you ever watch it, take a kid's point of view into account, but even as an adult, it has its moments! Very frightening for its time, and very original in plot. The ending scene is totally awesome. Take into account that this movie was 1975, so there are no computer graphics to assist in realism. I won't tell what happens in that last segment, but suffice it to say that it took my sister and I literally *months* before we'd get out of bed at night without running like mad across the floor! Karen Black does an outstanding job in all her roles.

In the 1970s, it was understood and accepted that some leading actors and actresses looked a little different from the box-office stars (they didn't just stand out to get attention, often they were embracing their own idiosyncrasies). Karen Black probably didn't intend to go mainstream, though her supporting performance in 1970's "Five Easy Pieces" was embraced by the counterculture and netted her an Oscar nomination. She's an offbeat actress who performs without vanity. Headlining this three-tiered TV-movie, Black plays plays four fascinating women, and her somewhat exotic cadence and her slightly-zonked overall manner gives the shuddery material an extra layer. Written by Richard Matheson and William F. Nolan, from Matheson's original stories, this "Trilogy" is well-cast and well-directed by Dan Curtis, who delivers some memorable moments--and the proof is that horror fans still refer to the film today. Curtis and Black really seemed to click, as the director quickly and efficiently zips through three creep-outs about complex ladies: "Julie", a dowdy teacher with nice legs who has naughty little minds in her classroom wondering what she's really like; "Millicent and Therese", two completely opposite sisters who live together; and "Amelia", a single woman who fights off the attack of a Zuni fetish doll in her apartment. This third chapter has incredible point-of-view camerawork as the enraged doll with sharp teeth swoops around furniture trying to get at his prey (he's at once comical and horrifying). The first two segments are psychological suspense studies of women holding power over men, while the finale turns the tables and makes woman the victim. The movie has a modest budget (it fit nicely on the tube) and might not have been considered so remarkable without the efforts of Curtis and Black. This was a scream-team made in horror heaven. **1/2 from ****