During the golden age of British horror, Hammer may have been the top ranking studio, but Amicus were the kings of the anthology horror. Also known as Portmanteau horrors, these films usually included four or five tales, all held together by a framing device. The individual stories themselves were all tales with a moral centre – those who did bad things, always ended up paying for their wrongs – and more often than not there would be a final twist in the entire tale itself. Atmosphere, setting and sinister music played a huge part in the Amicus experience.
Founded by Americans Milton Subotsky and Max J. Rosenberg, the studio gathered together the cream of British acting talent for many of their productions, often worked with Psycho writer Robert Bloch, and based many of their tales on the stories found in the EC horror comics of the fifties.
Before embarking on the path of horror the studio produced many small budget science fiction films, notably including the Doctor Who films Doctor Who and The Daleks and Daleks – Invasion Earth 2150 AD.
This post initially started as a stroll through of some of the most memorable segments within anthology horror films, but as my scaled down shortlist ended up with only one that didn’t belong to the stable of Amicus, a rethink was in order.
So here, I bring you some of the best tales from the Vaults of Subotsky and Rosenberg…
1. Blind Alleys (Tales From The Crypt) 1972
“I promise you, I will do this job to the best of my abilities.”
A particularly nasty tale of just desserts, where Nigel Patrick plays Major Rogers, ex-soldier and new director of a home for the blind. His arrival sees huge cuts in the budget for heating and food, so while he and his precious dog live in luxury, his charges shiver and struggle to survive in worsening conditions. When one of their number dies, the lights go out for Rogers – and horrific punishment awaits.
This tale remains one of the best in probably the greatest collection Amicus ever produced.
2. Drawn and Quartered (Vault of Horror) 1973
“That’s the way of the world. You buy cheap, you sell dear.”
An absolute classic, starring Tom Baker as an artist wronged by dealers and critics. Living in Haiti, he seeks the help of a local vodoun priest, who blesses him with the ability to work magic via the medium of his paintings. They become like flat, 2D voodoo dolls, if you will. Returning to London he plans to take revenge by painting his enemies. All it takes is a slight alteration to seal their fate. He rips the hands from one portrait, resulting in a horrific guillotine accident. By placing a small red dot on the head of another, he forces the subject to blow his own brains out. But wait, what’s that you say? He also has a fully finished self-portrait at home? Oh hell…
3. Disembodied Hand (Doctor Terror’s House of Horrors) 1965
“Ah, now.This is much more like it. Clearly the work of an artist of considerable genius.”
Christopher Lee plays art critic Franklyn Marsh, outspoken with his opinions and dismissive of those he sees as inferior artists. Marsh rubbishes the work of painter Eric Landor (Michael Gough), who retaliates by humiliating Marsh in front of his admirers. Landor puts the work of a chimpanzee in a gallery, only for Marsh to gush praise upon the pieces. Marsh fumes, and takes drastic revenge by smashing his car into Landor as he leaves the gallery, causing the severance of his right hand. Nasty. The title of the segment gives away what happens next, with said disembodied – and seemingly indestructible – hand coming back for some supernatural shenanigans and fitting revenge…
Lee is an absolute marvel in this tale, with his reactions to the hand and self-strangulation maybe serving as a precursor to the hell faced by Bruce Campbell in Evil Dead II.
4. Wish You Were Here? (Tales From The Crypt) 1972
“Only one more wish. Only one. I mustn’t waste it.”
A variation on horror classic The Monkey’s Paw, Barbara Murray plays the wife of businessman Ralph Jason (Richard Greene) who has in her possession a figurine said to grant wishes. With her husband’s company on the verge of collapse, she wishes for money, which comes in the form of a massive insurance payment after Ralph dies in an accident. Heartbroken, she turns to the figurine again.
If there’s one lesson to be learned from this segment, it is NEVER BE EMBALMED.
5. Method For Murder (The House That Dripped Blood) 1971
“Richard? Who is Richard? I’M Dominic!”
Denholm Elliott plays horror writer Charles Hillyer, retreating to the country with his wife to work on his latest novel. Delving deeper into the psyche of his homicidal-maniac main character, Hillyer begins to feel a strange presence is in the house with him. Could his fictional creation have taken on a life of its own? Not all is as it first seems in this creepy tale, with some excellent tension-building sequences.
A terrible state of affairs for all involved, I’m sure you’ll agree, but who will be next in our list to meet an untimely end? Perhaps another five classic actors of stage and screen making rather unwise decisions?
