Web of the Spider

Rating:
Summary: Addendum: On CIRCUS OF DEATH
Review: In my review of WEB OF THE SPIDER I noted that "matters weren't clarified much by the release of Brentwood's CRICUS OF DEATH 4 DVD box set, featuring the exact same video transfer".

That is INNACURATE, folks; while I did not stopwatch time it or check the run time on my player, the Brentwood Media CIRCUS OF DEATH DVD with THE WEB OF THE SPIDER does contain material that had been excised from the same print used by Timeless Video for this release. They ARE made from equally dismal transfers, and perhaps even the same one, but bits have been sliced out of Timeless' release [i.e. Tony Franciosa wriggling on the bars of the gate after being spiked] that have been clipped off the VHS release ...

Of additional note is that I just noticed Amazon has an "R" rating and 94 minutes for their item description [as does the Timeless box], but Brentwood lists it's WEB OF THE SPIDER as "Not Rated" and provides a 102 minute running time ... I would then state that this tape is probably best suited for collectors, or those who still haven't figured out the benefits of DVD technology. Worth getting, but it is now documented that there is a better source available.

Rating:
Summary: Good "Castle of Blood" Remake
Review: Italian director Antonio Margheriti ("Horror Castle", "Seven Deaths in the Cat's Eye", "Flesh for Frankenstein", "Blood for Dracula", "Cannibal Apocalypse", etc.) directed this remake of his b/w horror classic "Castle of Blood".

In this underrated 1970 color version of the film, Klaus Kinski plays the role of Edgar Allen Poe, Anthony Franciosa plays Alan Foster and Michèle Mercier (also in Mario Bava's "Black Sabbath") plays the role of Elizabeth. The film has plenty of gothic atmosphere and spooky moments, and can easily be compared to some of Hammer's good later efforts for mood alone. If you enjoy Corman's Poe adaptations, you should also find plenty of things in this movie to enjoy.

Not as good as the original, but still worth a look. This film can also currently be found on DVD in the Circus of Death box set of 4 horror films. Hopefully this movie will get its own DVD release in widescreen soon. It could really benifit from a better presentation.

Rating:
Summary: Deserves Restoration: CALLING ANCHOR BAY ENTERTAINMENT ...
Review: Seriously; this is one of my alltime favorite films of any genre, period. I saw it way before CASTLE OF BLOOD on a late nite creature feature as a kid [I distinctly remember the little pistol and the guy with the white beard], and while I acknowledge that it IS essentially a re-hashing of BLOOD's basic story premise, the result is much more than just a technicolor remake with some more explicit violence.

I think that director Marghetti wanted to revisit the castle he had envisioned in the brilliant 1964 film, but pay more attention to the mood and substance of a moment, than break new ground or worry about "innovation". And one of the most frequent comments by WEB OF THE SPIDER [or IN THE GRIP OF THE SPIDER, as it is known overseas] detractors is that it "doesn't hold up" to CASTLE OF BLOOD. Hogwash -- they are different movies made almost a decade apart.

The leading roles in SPIDER also define the film, where in CASTLE OF BLOOD the story kind of leads a cast of those who were [pardon my upstate NY ignorance] more or less unknowns into territory that horror hadn't charted before ... WEB OF THE SPIDER comes jam-packed with subtexts if only due to the presence of it's top billed star; Klaus Kinski's Edgar Allen Poe is onscreen for perhaps 8 to 12 minutes of screentime, during which he gets tanked, trashes a chess set, growls put-downs at Tony Fransciosa, then just sort of gloomily looks up at the sky and says "They'll never believe it" ... No wonder it's initial viewers were confused; by 1972 Klaus Kinski had a significant "cult" following, and his absence from the majority of the film speaks of a jumbled agenda, and the result is kind of a jumbled narrative. Kinski's role in the story is supposed to be that of the catalyst who spark's Alan's evening of horror, but instead he has kind of an Oscar the Grouch kind of quality, popping out of his can when needed to cue the closing score.

Tony Franciosa is properly confused and does seem genuinely frightened as the unlucky Alan, becoming more and more unhinged as the climax approaches, but has too much of an "everyman" quality to really stand out. Solid work, but who is this Alan he was playing? All we know is that he is a writer and an American.

Far more interesting is the presence of Helga Line, always a personal favorite of mine and here appearing in what must have been a pretty high profile international release, and her icy, sexy demeanor just drips from the screen along with her push-up 1970's wunderbra. Just seeing her in a film is a pleasure in itself, but although her dialogue was no doubt dubbed Helga actually does some genuine acting in this film and is very effective; it is unfortunate that she never got a chance to do more work like it. Rrowrr.

Helga's role was also apparently subject to some clipping that might have earned the film a more broader audience -- another qualified comment about WEB OF THE SPIDER is that a bit more sex & some additional spatterings of blood would have given the film a bit more punch, and as it is relies upon Maghetti's use of mood and suggestion to pull the story together.

And what a story it is ... WEB OF THE SPIDER, just like the earlier film, is one of the best "ghost story" films ever made. It's not just a haunted house or haunted castle movie, it is a film about these people who are forever condemned to relive their violent deaths and claim new lives -- truly a Poe like sense of utter macabre, with zero hope of ever seeing daylight.

My advice? Watch this movie alone, in the dark, and all the way through without stopping -- of help might be the CIRCUS OF DEATH 2 disc DVD set by Brentwood Media that also features the same version of the film sold here on VHS ... let the story take you where it will, and the effect of the film will hit you afterwards as you realize how the various storylines all fit together and lead to a conclusion that is just too inevitable to be anything other than Poe.

AND A WORD TO OUR GOOD FRIENDS AT ANCHOR BAY ENTERTAINMENT -- this would be a good one for you folks to look into ... a "restored", uncensored international version in a nice letterboxed format with proper color tinting would result in a movie that a whole generation of horror fans have been urged NOT to take too seriously might recognize as being the triumph of cinematic vision that WEB OF THE SPIDER really is.

I'd give it 5 stars but the transfer print on both the VHS and CIRCUS OF DEATH set is really atrocious ... Get busy, AB.

Rating:
Summary: Low Budget European Import.
Review: The only thing more amusing than a cheap domestic horror flick is an imported variety. The unwary viewer must accept Klaus Kinski (of all people) as Edgar Allan Poe. Then we have clean-shaven Tony Franciosa, wearing togs from the 1970s, as the 1840s guy who accepts the inevitable challenge to spend the night in the haunted castle. You get the idea. The film is weird rather than scary. Ghosts abound, but they don't jump out and say, "Boo!" The haunting wraiths have other things in mind. The picture begins to resemble a gothic romance, in places. At least it tries to be different. On the plus side, we can award points for effective atmosphere. The film might be considered as camp entertainment, but we aren't sure that the Italian filmmaker had purposeful satire in mind. The entertainment is strictly for die-hard fans of schlock horror flicks. (This reviewer is a master of this type of foolishness). In that context, it is worth collecting. Others beware. ;-)

Rating:
Summary: Low Budget European Import.
Review: The only thing more amusing than a cheap domestic horror flick is an imported variety. The unwary viewer must accept Klaus Kinski (of all people) as Edgar Allan Poe. Then we have clean-shaven Tony Franciosa, wearing togs from the 1970s, as the 1840s guy who accepts the inevitable challenge to spend the night in the haunted castle. You get the idea. The film is weird rather than scary. Ghosts abound, but they don't jump out and say, "Boo!" The haunting wraiths have other things in mind. The picture begins to resemble a gothic romance, in places. At least it tries to be different. On the plus side, we can award points for effective atmosphere. The film might be considered as camp entertainment, but we aren't sure that the Italian filmmaker had purposeful satire in mind. The entertainment is strictly for die-hard fans of schlock horror flicks. (This reviewer is a master of this type of foolishness). In that context, it is worth collecting. Others beware. ;-)

Rating:
Summary: An outstanding, extraordinarily creepy masterpiece
Review: The plot to Web of Spider sounds a little hokey; a writer/journalist journeys to London to meet and interview Edgar Allan Poe, and he ends up spending a night in a haunted castle. I understand that this 1972 film is a remake of the black and white classic Castle of Blood, but having not yet seen the first film I can not compare the two. All I can say is that this is an extraordinarily, genuinely creepy movie. The inclusion of Edgar Allan Poe (played somewhat questionably by Klaus Kinski) is really quite unnecessary as the adventures at the castle more than stand on their own two feet. For his part, however, Poe claims that all of his stories are based on true events, and he has a new story in waiting when the American journalist Alan Foster (Tony Franciosa) accepts Lord Blackwood's bet that he cannot spend a full night in his haunted castle. I won't say much about what happens over the course of this strange night, except to say that it is far from just your typical haunted house story. The first ten or fifteen minutes of Alan's exploration of the house were really and truly creepy, on a level that had me engaging in my own dialogue with Foster. I remember saying "don't go in there" and "nothing good will come of this" several times. Years of sating my compulsion for horror in all its forms has all but atrophied my "spooks" nerve, but this movie dug way down and hit that nerve several times, much to my uncomfortable delight. I even sort of jumped once, and that is unheard of.

I don't feel the movie was very predictable, either, and that is another reason I enjoyed it so much. I'm not saying it's difficult to see the ultimate conclusion coming, but I for one was never completely sure how things would play out until the very end. The Gothic look and feel to the movie is outstanding, really, and the cast (aside from Kinski) is superb. Michele Mercier is particularly captivating in her role. I would praise the other cast members one by one, for the effectiveness of this movie is a direct byproduct of their outstanding work, but I really do not want to risk giving away one single thing about the night's events. If you enjoy old school horror, especially of a richly Gothic variety, Web of the Spider is just what the doctor ordered. I hesitate to make a claim as bold as this, but, at least for the time being, this is the best, most deliciously creepy haunted house movie I have ever seen.