stewart7864-672-662500
Joined Apr 2013
Welcome to the new profile
Our updates are still in development. While the previous version of the profile is no longer accessible, we're actively working on improvements, and some of the missing features will be returning soon! Stay tuned for their return. In the meantime, the Ratings Analysis is still available on our iOS and Android apps, found on the profile page. To view your Rating Distribution(s) by Year and Genre, please refer to our new Help guide.
Badges2
To learn how to earn badges, go to the badges help page.
Reviews8
stewart7864-672-662500's rating
Opening scene... shoot out, lone cop out in the open vs 6 criminals behind van. Cop wins setting the tone for this comedy. Very much in the Leslie Nielson school of Comedy..Airplane, Police Squad, except the comedy isn't quite as telegraphed giving the impression it's played straight. But it's intentionally hammed up and full of deliberate cliche. A strange film indeed but it is quite funny.
An amateur cast support the brilliant Gwendoline Watford playing Usher's sister. Nevertheless the stilted acting ( Watford excepted) just adds to the overall menace and weirdness of this adaptation. High on atmosphere and with some outstanding scenes but obviously hampered by a low budget and plot adaptation of Poe's classic. Watford's solo piano performance is one of the highlights( she was a professional pianist and may have been performed live). Also watch out for the clever play on wall shadows. The hag mounting the main stairs and more impressive Watford in silhouette lighting the candle stick and blowing out the taper after her piano performance. A more impressive play on a silhouette on the wall you could not get from 100 takes in a modern film. Simply outstanding cinematography.
The film was a huge success when it got belately released in 1950 and is said to have been the forerunner to the later Hammer Horror films. It was certificated with a (then) rare H certificate ( adult's only).