Post by Nalkarj on Sept 19, 2017 0:52:29 GMT
(I originally posted this on the "horror" board, but I think it fits better here.)
One of the most curious films ever made, in my opinion.
It's an omnibus or anthology movie, telling three different, largely unconnected stories (à la the similar Dead of Night ['45].) "You Killed Elizabeth" and "Lord Mountdrago," the second and third pieces, are a whodunit and a straightforward horror tale, respectively; only the hammy presence of Orson Welles as the eponymous lead character saves the latter.
But it is the first segment, "The Picture" (dir. Wendy Toye, a wonderful talent and one of the very few British female directors working at the time--ah, and a very late edition to manfromplanetx's "International Women's Day" thread!), which has stayed with me for years after seeing the movie. (I first saw this movie when young, which may also have something to do with it.) It's absolutely terrifying, and not in that sense of "boo!" but in that it's akin to a particularly tricky kind of nightmare, in which logic and our quaint assumptions of good and evil are turned topsy-turvy.
It's difficult exactly to describe, or even to tell what makes it so scary, but it's a mood that the imagery conjures up; to bring in clichés, words do it no justice. Shades of Robert Aickman's work, perhaps.
I recommend the whole movie because it's not long, and "Lord Mountdrago" isn't bad ("...Elizabeth" is rather slow, though), but, if anything, I'm betting the segment that will stay with you is "The Picture." I've got an eerie feeling just thinking about it.
Now, I may be building it up too so now that it will disappoint, but I've looked around the Internet and found that many others felt the exact same way about the segment. If you ever get a chance, though, just see what you think. (There is a copy on YouTube, but its picture quality is very bad.)
Has anyone else seen this one? Thought the same (or differently) about "The Picture," by any chance?
One of the most curious films ever made, in my opinion.
It's an omnibus or anthology movie, telling three different, largely unconnected stories (à la the similar Dead of Night ['45].) "You Killed Elizabeth" and "Lord Mountdrago," the second and third pieces, are a whodunit and a straightforward horror tale, respectively; only the hammy presence of Orson Welles as the eponymous lead character saves the latter.
But it is the first segment, "The Picture" (dir. Wendy Toye, a wonderful talent and one of the very few British female directors working at the time--ah, and a very late edition to manfromplanetx's "International Women's Day" thread!), which has stayed with me for years after seeing the movie. (I first saw this movie when young, which may also have something to do with it.) It's absolutely terrifying, and not in that sense of "boo!" but in that it's akin to a particularly tricky kind of nightmare, in which logic and our quaint assumptions of good and evil are turned topsy-turvy.
It's difficult exactly to describe, or even to tell what makes it so scary, but it's a mood that the imagery conjures up; to bring in clichés, words do it no justice. Shades of Robert Aickman's work, perhaps.
I recommend the whole movie because it's not long, and "Lord Mountdrago" isn't bad ("...Elizabeth" is rather slow, though), but, if anything, I'm betting the segment that will stay with you is "The Picture." I've got an eerie feeling just thinking about it.
Now, I may be building it up too so now that it will disappoint, but I've looked around the Internet and found that many others felt the exact same way about the segment. If you ever get a chance, though, just see what you think. (There is a copy on YouTube, but its picture quality is very bad.)
Has anyone else seen this one? Thought the same (or differently) about "The Picture," by any chance?
