The session: "Despicable Despots Month! Don't Go in the Dungeon!"
This month we creep through castles and find the skeletons hidden in the closets
As always, there may be spoilers here. And the trailer may be NSFW and/or NSFL.
Week 1: The Black Castle (1952)
Directed by Nathan Juran
My Impressions Going In:
I'd never heard of this.
An English gentleman travels to Austria to investigate his friends' death. And he does this, fully suspecting that his host has killed them (and plans to kill him).
Reaction and Other Folderol:
There really is a lot to like here.
Boris Karloff was great (as usual). And the castle...that was the true star of this film. It lent an eerie atmosphere and contributed to the whole moody feel of the movie. Especially noteworthy was the dungeon with the shimmering lights reflecting off its walls. And I loved the alligators.
The story itself is reasonably engaging, though it does slow down at points. It's kind of a little murder mystery. The subplot of the count's mistreated wife added a bit of complexity to things, and helped with suspense. I give the movie points for an exciting ending which I didn't see coming.
But when it comes down to it, this was another gothic horror-in-a-castle movie. I've been coming to the conclusion they're just not my thing. Despite all the great things in this movie, it failed to grab me.
So, in the end I was kind of torn about how to rate this. It was a good film for what it was trying to be. But it's something that I'm just not that into.
Ratings
Me: 8
Bob-O: 9.4
Christina: 9.3
Dave: 9.8
Ethan: 9.5
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