Watch Tales from the Crypt For Free

Best movie of this year hands down!

Yawn. Poorly Filmed Snooze Fest.

I gave it a 7.5 out of 10

Blistering performances.

This 1972 Amicus film is a portmanteau film made in the early seventies that is way better than the sum of its parts. The linking story in which the five main characters are revealed to be already dead and are about to be consigned to Hell is hardly in the Dead of Night class and although he was a great actor Sir Ralph Richardson isn't particularly good as the Crypt Keeper either. All five of the dramas have flaws such as unconvincing blood, poor special effects and all except perhaps the last, Blind Alleys, are underdone in terms of plot with the second,Reflection of Death, featuring the ever reliable Ian Hendry being particularly flimsy. But this is a smashing horror compendium that is directed with real flair by master cinematographer Freddie Francis with at least one great scary moment in each tale. Joan Collins features in the first story- ...And All Through The House- and fortunately she isn't given many words to speak as the scheming killer hoist by her own petard and the lack of dialogue throughout her vignette sets the tone for the film as Francis lets the pictures tell the stories. The two best tales are the third , Poetic Justice, starring the great Peter Cushing as a kindly dustman bullied by a grasping neighbour (the finale to this tale is one that made me smile as I watched it through the cracks in my fingers) and the final segment, Blind Alleys in which a cruel, complacent Nigel Patrick gets his comeuppance in as gruesome a way as you can imagine. This final tale features the brilliant Patrick Magee- always a reassuringly malevolent presence-at his most menacing. The weakest tale is probably the fourth, Wish You Were Here, but even it is all carried off with great panache. And I have always had a soft spot for Barbara Murray. The acting is mostly pretty good in this film and the scary moments are authentically scary. Of course it is cheap -at times the exterior shots look like something out of a public information film - and Tales From The Crypt is not exactly Citizen Kane or even The Shining. But if you want to while a way 100 minutes on a gloomy Friday evening you can do worse than going down into this crypt.

Yet another anthology film from the seventies! This one has Ralph Richardson and Peter Cushing in it, plus a rather young Joan Collins. Just like Vault of Horror, a random assortment of people find themselves trapped in a sinister location, only this time they've got the creepy Ralph Richardson holding them captive and making them flashback to their respective stories. Much Englishness ensues from a time seemingly where most men knocked back a brandy or sherry while read the FT in front of the fire.Joan finds herself trapped in her house at Christmas with the body of her husband, whom she's murdered, and an escaped lunatic dressed as Santa trying to get in. Another guy recalls what happened when he left his wife (er, this doesn't have too much substance to it). There's a 'monkey's paw' type tale with a gory ending, Peter Cushing (as a good guy) gets to become a zombie in one story and Patrick Magee simmers with rage as a blind guy going head to head with a military administrator which ends on a Saw-like note.At first I thought things were moving rather slow, but the stories get better as the film progresses, with people being chopped up while remaining alive, people having their hearts removed and Patrick Magee's excellent performance as the raging blind guy. It's no classic, but the acting talent on display is rather groovy, as well as the cheeseball ending speech, delivered indeed by a Knight of the Realm.Definitely worth a watch, but maybe next time it could be you (raises sinister eyebrow).

Tales From The Crypt features a good cast, 5 quirky stories, only 3 of which work well but are briskly told, and excellent (as usual) direction from Freddie Francis. Producer Milton Subotsky gained the rights to produce an adaption of the E.C. comic from WIlliam B Gaines' stable. And they would follow this a year later with Vault Of Horror, which is also an enjoyable if far from perfect portmanteau movie.Best of this bunch for me are the stories featuring Joan Collins, Peter Cushing and Patrick Magee. Cushing in particular is movingly effective as Arthur Grimsdyke - it must be the only time in his career he played a dustman! The wonderfully sepulchral Magee lends his considerable acting chops to the final tale of the residents of a home for the blind turning on its parsimonious superintendent. Both these stories are agreeably nasty, and the theme is bad people getting their comeuppance in various equally nasty ways.Richard Greene's story is an acknowledged re-tread of The Monkey's Paw, but is too brief to be effective. And Ian Hendry's turn as a husband leaving his wife and kids for his mistress is rather poor, but doesn't really detract from the movie in general.Perhaps not quite as good as The House That Dripped Blood or From Beyond The Grave this is still a watchable and occasionally (suprising, considering Amicus usually shied away from such things) gruesome film, Well worth a blue-ray issuance!

Great film this, loved it the first time I ever saw it. There's something very special and rare in the macabre yet fun spirit of it that without sounding too weird I hope, makes me feel kind of peaceful. 'At home!' It was so cool to learn that without this, my favourite anthology ever Creepshow, would've never happened, nor a certain excellent HBO television series, so horror fans the world over have more to thank this picture for than they know! The opening sequence so perfectly sets the tone with the ancient graveyard with the overgrowth and the well-trod dirt path winding through the tombs. It's enchantingly Gothic and just beautiful to me, so grand and foreboding... Okay, so the first story's really good, I love the contrast between a ruthless murderess and the classic peace and tranquility of a Christmas atmosphere which soon becomes malevolent. But I personally find it one of the weaker stories as it's over in a flash, with just not enough to it for me to really get into it. It's beautifully shot for being on practically a single set the whole time. The bold and shocking 70's decor is monstrous! And my, were they ever hopeless at blood back then. It's too bright! And I don't know what she was so worried about, Santa only wanted to get in so he could give her a nice back rub! I infinitely prefer the TV episode, I find it superior in every way. I find the second story the scariest because the whole idea of repeating eternity is a damn nightmarish and chilling concept to me. It's so eerie and surreal the way it's already happening before it's even happening - like a bizarre horrific paradox, it begins where it ends and ends where it begins! I love the strange tension and mystery of why everyone he meets recoils in horror. It doesn't hurt the overall effect, but I find it a bit of a letdown when the "Reflection" is finally revealed as the makeup looks pretty rubbish, and for me the bland bloke's scream makes for a laugh. It's still a scary enough climax though, he's dead and doomed forever to the hellish torment of an endless nightmare, all because he so selfishly chose to betray and abandon his family. Hell is repetition... The excellent "Poetic Justice" is probably my favourite story, as I find it the most well put together and emotionally involving. Peter Cushing is wonderful, his Arthur Grimsdyke is so kind and vulnerable, and his slow destruction at the hands of the evil-spirited little man next door is simply heartbreaking to watch. Always such damn cruel 'opportunists' in life who are always willing to twist the knife in someone's side a little more in their worst days. He gets his just desserts, but the tale certainly promises nothing of hope in any way. Did you ever dream you'd see a zombie Peter Cushing? I love the fantastic sequence where the Grimsdyke zombie slowly tears itself out of the cold ground and makes its ghastly way into the unsuspecting young man's parlour... Such macabre magic! And what a brilliant touch to stick in there with the zombie hand placing itself on the desk right next to the iron ornamental hand! And the heart was still beating - fantastic! Cushing was a pleasure to watch, and may he rest in peace. The average take on the Monkey's Paw is I reckon the worst one. It doesn't drag or anything, but I find it a mite too campy, and I can't stand the red-headed lady's performance, she was so into it and over-the-top.. She should have wished that she wasn't so bloody stupid.. Like with the big face reveal of Reflection, the face of I think what's supposed to be the grim spectre of death on a motorbike in the rear-view mirror looks like complete s**t, you can easily tell it's just a guy in a mask. He was like the original Ghost Rider! It was a mad sick idea to end it with, but that one left a lot to be desired I thought. I found his poorly-looped screaming hilariously corny! Perhaps a wood chipper might've done the trick? And finally Blind Alleys was another excellent and well-acted tale, the performances of Magee and Patrick help make the story as effective as it is, and an otherwise crazy setup believable. As the longest story it's definitely a slow-burner, but I find it gripping and atmospheric as the tension builds as the man who behaves as if he's the warden of a prison is practically letting the 'helpless' inmates wither and die. Some of the visuals are superbly inventive, such as the razor-blade walls, which were a stroke of dark genius. That part always has me grimacing and on edge. The 'Major' was a nasty, bull-headed, unreasonable jerk, he had it coming! It's quite the awesome revelation at the end when the hour of their judgement has come... I think it's open to interpretation whether or not they were dead all along. Ralph Richardson was amazing as the spooky old monk who's basically there to read them their last rites. He may be called "Crypt Keeper", but he's actually more similar to the character of the Vault Keeper from the original comics than anything else. I enjoyed his more reserved approach, I think it created a nice aura of ominous mystery. And the way he delivers the final lines right at the audience is perfect and makes the ending one to remember. He breaks the fourth wall, and he does it with such pathos and passion! There's no real violence and gore in the film but who needs it? Far more meaningful and effective to use one's own mind to fill in the blanks of what's not seen! A great classic and among the very best of its gruesome ilk. Pleasant screams!!!