Session: Get Some Skull, Week 3
Movie: The Screaming Skull (1973)
Directed by Gloria Monty
As always, there may be spoilers here. And the trailer may be NSFW and/or NSFL.
Plot:
After Dr. Pratt kills his wife, her skull comes back to haunt him. Horror ensues.
Reaction and Other Folderol:
The first thing I need to say is that this The Screaming Skull is not the famous 1958 film (which I have yet to see). This was a 1973 made-for-TV production. It's not exactly famous -- I couldn't find anything about it on Youtube (which is why I have just the still picture up there instead of a trailer) or Wikipedia.
Originally broadcast in color, the film seems to only be available in black and white -- in a version taken from a kinescope. Oddly, the loss of picture quality serves this interesting ghost story well -- enhancing the nightmare quality. I suspect that it wasn't as effective in the original full color crisp version that aired on TV. It also made the production feel much older. It had a 1950s feel to it.
Gloria Monty's direction was generally good, though at times (especially early on) she made the film feel like a soap opera. Which kind of makes sense given that she is best known for her work with the soaps. Vincent Gardenia and David McCallum play off each other beautifully, even if they really don't look convincingly like brothers.
This, I should note, is a nearly-forgotten gem that I likely would have never heard of if not for Keith's class.
Ratings
Me: 9.5
Bob-O: 8.7
Christina: 9.2
Dave: 9.3
Ethan: 8
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