TrueJoshNight Truly Dreadful Film

Actuakers One of my all time favorites.

Quiet Muffin This movie tries so hard to be funny, yet it falls flat every time. Just another example of recycled ideas repackaged with women in an attempt to appeal to a certain audience.

Marva It is an exhilarating, distressing, funny and profound film, with one of the more memorable film scores in years,

sol- Obsessed with the unlikely possibility of being buried alive just like his cataleptic father was, a celebrated artist dedicates all his spare time to building a tomb that he can escape from should such an event ever occur in this Edgar Allan Poe adaptation from Roger Corman. With Poe and Corman's name on the project, it seems easy to label 'Premature Burial' as a horror film, but it is much more a psychological thriller and character study of a paranoid individual. Ray Milland is both intense and empathetic to watch as his obsession takes full swing with his escapable tomb nothing short of spectacular when he eventually shows it off. There are some spooky moments also though, and while the film has a tad too much fake fog and fake spider webs for its own good, the whistling of two gravediggers provides a lot of genuine chills in lieu of a traditional music score. All that said and done, what ultimately happens to Milland, despite his preparation, it is a touch too easy to predict, and while there is a thought-provoking twist thrown into the mix, it vexingly subtracts from what is otherwise a great study of paranoia. Many have complained about Milland being cast over Corman stalwart Vincent Price, but Milland is just as effective here as in the better known 'X', and a solid supporting cast including Heather Angel and Alan Napier certainly helps.

GL84 Following his wife's return from a trip away, she begins to notice her husbands' growing concern and fascination with the concept of being buried alive has consumed him to the point of madness and tries in vain to find a solution while he remains convinced of his beliefs.This here was a decent enough if slightly flawed effort. What this one gets right is the exact same elements that have always worked so well before in the other Corman/Poe films in the striking atmosphere present here that effectively takes the Gothic setting to it's fullest. Taking place at their usually large, elaborate mansions with the main fixings to be found in these types of efforts with the grandiose layout, usually large spacious rooms and decorations that keep the flow and flair of the decrepit mansions of the genre, and along with the moss-overgrown columns and fog-laden grounds that permeate the house makes for a grand setting that perfectly fits in this kind of Gothic effort. The different settings here, from the gnarled trees fitting around the cemetery outside or the fool-proof mausoleum he built for himself makes for a series of great set-piece settings here with these being added nicely to the film's atmospheric ideals and allowing for some creepy scenes throughout here, from his feverish search deeper and deeper into the cemetery to find the cause of the nightmarish whistling the tune that's befallen his nightmares for years, the nightmare hallucination he has letting his escape fantasy come to fruition of escaping from the coffin inside the tomb or the futile search through the house for the infamous whistling once again. As well, there's the usual fun to be had in the finale where he leads them into the burial crypt that triggers the final charge which lets this one let it's main plot get worked out rather nicely in a series of chilling and truly suspenseful series of scenes that are far better than anything else in the rest of the film. These here are what make this work, although it does have a few flaws here. The biggest factor here is the fact that there's just no real action to be had here which comes from the rather dull, plodding pace featured which doesn't have a whole lot to do throughout here. For the majority of the film this one concerns itself with the very idea of his condition grating on everyone rather than actually doing anything, and with his affliction growing worse all it concerns itself with is his delusional ramblings and misplaced paranoia that just ends up doing nothing of any real interest and turning him into an utterly unlikable bore with his constant blathering about the condition. Not only does this not really produce any action but it just makes the film pretty boring as a result, which also makes for the finale being quite bland as well without the high-energy action of the usual burning-down-the-house finish that most of the others really used. These here are what hold this one back.Today's Rating/PG: Violence.

mamalv I am not a big fan of horror movies, but watched this one because of the great Ray Milland. Since others have reviewed that Vincent Price would have been a better choice, I disagree completely. Milland gives a wonderful portrayal of a man living a nightmarish preoccupation with death. His father, he believes was buried alive, and he is afraid he will follow the same terrible fate. Milland still has the looks to be believable as the newly married man, with a younger woman so so in love with him, or is she? The movie may be somewhat like GASLIGHT, where Charles Boyer is slowly driving Ingrid Bergman insane. The dimly lit home the caverns beneath, and the foggy woods where the bodies are buried, are a cinematic wonder. They almost look dreamlike as I would suppose that Corman had in mind. This is certainly one of Corman's best, mostly because of Milland's performance.

Spikeopath The third in Roger Corman's cycle of Edgar Allan Poe adaptations sees Charles Beaumont & Ray Russell on script duties and Ray Milland star. The story follows Milland's cataleptic Guy Carrell, whose fear of being buried alive like his father drives him to build a tomb that should ensure against such a disaster occurring...Pulpy, Gothic and at times silly, The Premature Burial is still very much a nice slice of Corman pie. Some critics have bemoaned the lack of AIP mainstay Vincent Price for this one, yet that's unfair on Milland who does some neat work as he blends lunacy with sympathy to great effect. Though the plotting lacks any imagination, since it's obvious from the get go that poor Guy is going to find his nightmare become a reality, this frees up Corman to conjure up as much atmosphere as possible. Backed up by Floyd Crosby's sumptuous Eastman colour photography (in Panavision too), Corman is able to craft some genuinely macabre moments. The appearance of genre babe Hazel Court is a pleasing bonus and the set design coming from old sharp eye himself, Daniel Haller, rounds the film out as a pretty effective piece.Nice creepy use of Molly Malone too! 6.5/10