The session: "Ten-Year Anniversary Celebration"
The four of us who have been in the class since the beginning (or nearly so) each pick a favorite to revisit
As always, there may be spoilers here. And the trailer may be NSFW and/or NSFL.
Week 1: Theatre of Blood (1973)
(Dave's pick)
Directed by Douglass Hickox
My Impressions Going In:
I remember this well, since we saw it just fourteen months ago.
Stung by the bad reviews he's gotten, a Shakespearian actor takes elaborate revenge on the critics.
Reaction and Other Folderol:
Despite the overall sentiment in the class, I am not a huge Vincent Price fan. He acts campy more than I'd like. But this is probably my favorite Vincent Price film (which is not to say that I've seen them all -- or even most of them).
Many of Price's movies are gothic horrors, set in castles and filmed in the late 1950's through the 1960s. And I'm just not into the feel of those movies. ToB was different. It was set and filmed in 1970s London, telling a story that was contemporary when the movie was made. So, instead of a prince or king from the 1700's, Price is playing a modern man in a modern city. It had that gritty 1970s feel that I've come to love so well, and...well, I just enjoyed it. Price's performance was as campy as ever, but somehow it fit in this movie.
As Ethan noted, ToB played like a gialo, although it's worth noting that there really wasn't any mystery. I seem to recall that giali usually leave the audience in the dark until the end. In this, the audience knows what's going on, and the thrill is in seeing the characters figure it out. And it's played with lots of humor. It wasn't subtle, but it was fun.
As a side note, Keith told us that the working title was Much Ado About Murder. I like that better than the actual title.
Ratings
Because we all saw this a year or so ago, we decided not to rerate it. That includes Bob-O who was in the class by the time Keith showed it to us. But he missed this session anyway. Feel better, Bob-O!
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