Christopher Lee receives top billing in this Gothic Italian horror film. However, despite this, you really don't see that much of him and he seems much more like a supporting player. Lee fans will no doubt be disappointed in this one--even if the ending is fairly good!
The story is about his daughter, Laura, who may or may not be the reincarnation of a long-dead Satan worshiper. There's a bit more to it than that, including a strange young visitor that comes to the manor and a researcher who is trying to either prove or disprove that Laura is this reincarnation, but it all never really seemed very compelling. THE CRYPT OF HORROR ("La Cripta e L'incubo") is an incredibly frustrating movie to watch. Again and again, it appears as if something genuinely scary is about to occur as the music swells....then nothing. Interestingly for a 1960s movie, the same occurs again and again in scenes where the two female leads appear to be headed towards some scene of overt lesbianism....and then nothing. Because of this, the audience's expectations are piqued again and again...but the scenes are allowed to fall flat--not a recipe for a successful film. The movie did create wonderful moods but the payoff never seemed to materialize. So, as a result, the film not only frustrates but never provides any sort of chills--just a rather lifeless film.
By the way, the copy I watched from "Graveyard Theater" on DVD was amazingly bad--rather blurry and obviously degraded over time. I hope that better copies are available if you do decide to see it--there was a loud hum throughout the film as well.
The story is about his daughter, Laura, who may or may not be the reincarnation of a long-dead Satan worshiper. There's a bit more to it than that, including a strange young visitor that comes to the manor and a researcher who is trying to either prove or disprove that Laura is this reincarnation, but it all never really seemed very compelling. THE CRYPT OF HORROR ("La Cripta e L'incubo") is an incredibly frustrating movie to watch. Again and again, it appears as if something genuinely scary is about to occur as the music swells....then nothing. Interestingly for a 1960s movie, the same occurs again and again in scenes where the two female leads appear to be headed towards some scene of overt lesbianism....and then nothing. Because of this, the audience's expectations are piqued again and again...but the scenes are allowed to fall flat--not a recipe for a successful film. The movie did create wonderful moods but the payoff never seemed to materialize. So, as a result, the film not only frustrates but never provides any sort of chills--just a rather lifeless film.
By the way, the copy I watched from "Graveyard Theater" on DVD was amazingly bad--rather blurry and obviously degraded over time. I hope that better copies are available if you do decide to see it--there was a loud hum throughout the film as well.