Straight Jacket (1964)

A bit of a let down as far as a William Castle flick goes. The story has it that Castle went to see What Ever Happened To Baby Jane 17 times and his dream was to make a movie with Robert Bloch (the man who wrote Hitchcock's Psycho) and Joan Crowford. Well the dream came true and the movie is called Straight Jacket.

Joan Crowford plays an axe wielding maniac who is released from an insane asylum after twenty years for the crime of hacking her husband and his lover to bits with a axe.

As the poster art boasts "Straight-Jacket vividly depicts ax murders". This is no lie. We get multiple decapitations (complete with cheesy severed heads-a-rollin) which seems to be William Castle's fascination since Homicidal (a Psycho ripoff) but the dismemberment isn't quite enough to save Straight Jacket from falling into the boring realm of uninteresting characters and a ending that is seen coming from miles away.

Straight Jacket also lacks a decent gimmick. William Castle figured that a big star like Joan Crowford was enough to sell his movie and that a gimmick was not necessary. Well guess what... We love William Castle and his silly gimmicks. We also love the fact that he makes B movies with B-grade actors. Throwing a Hollywood bag like Crowford into the mix just knocks the whole film of axis. She doesn't belong in this kind of film. I will admit that Crowford did a great job and of course stole the show. Its also almost humorous watching her go insane. It almost plays like a autobiography for the crazy self centered bitch that she was in real life but there is just something missing from this one. Its almost as if the film fails in its expected camp level and just comes off as a badly acted Hitchcock film. Could you imagine North By Northwest being played out by really bad actors with the exception of James Stewart? It would be a mess.

In the following year William Castle would direct a far superior murder mystery titled I Saw What You Did And I Know Who You Are not to be mistaken for that shitty 90's Last Summer movie. This one is really only worth a watch for Castle completest and Crowford obsessed lunatics. Everyone else should stick to the greats like The Tingler and House On Haunted Hill.

Homicidal (1961)

The director, William Castle (The king of gimmick). The film, Homicidal (Alfred Hitchcock Psycho ripoff). The gimmick, the fright break. The outcome, pure entertainment.

William Castle cashes in on the success of Hitchcock's Psycho which came out one year prior. It doesn't take a genius to figure out that Hitchcock and Castle are in two very different ranking positions so Castle does what he does best and puts on one hell of a show. Cards were handed out with the purchase of ticket that allows the movie-goer to get a full refund at the cowards corner providing they leave the theater before the films climax during the "fright break". The "fright break" interrupts the film right before the final reel with a clock that counts down 60 seconds. Naturally nobody would leave before the end of the movie and be seen in the cowards corner by their friends so Castle makes out yet again with another brilliant gimmick.

Aside from the fright break Homicidal is pretty graphic for its time and definitely surpasses Psycho as far as the blood goes. In one scene a man is stabbed repeatedly in the gut with a big kitchen knife, leaving a bloody mess for all us gore hounds to stare at. We also get a decapitation which is not much by today's standards but in 1961 definitely turned a few stomachs.

Homicidal is a bit on the slow side but is all worth the wait in the end. Castle doesn't disappoint this time around with a twist ending that was totally original for its time. I won't give the climactic twist away because William Castle warned during promotion "Do not give the ending away to Homicidal. If you do your friends will kill you and if they don't I will!"

The Tingler (1959)

My favorite of all William Castle flicks. Released the same year as House On Haunted Hill which also stared Vincent Price. The Tingler has even more wacky spectacle to offer.

Including a new gimmick. Certain chairs were rigged up to an electrical system that would shock members of the audience during key points of the film to induce a tension in the audience. The idea being to cause movie goers to jump and scream and if the movie it self can't do it, a good shock to the ass will. To think that in 1959 movie goers would spend their money to be electrocuted is interesting on its own. Today we would have wimpy, cry baby, yuppies trying to sue theater owners. William Castles form of exploitation brought an audience into something that fell somewhere in between a circus attraction and a play and his films serve as a reminder of what a theatrical experience could and should be like today.

Vincent Price plays a (You guessed it) mad scientist who discovers a living organism inside the human body that grows in size when fear is induced. He calls it The Tingler and this little thing looks like a smaller version of the monster in The Creeping Terror. However size isn't a factor here because The Tingler is quite deadly. It can shatter mans spinal collumn or choke him to death. Once Price removes The Tingler from its natural habitat, the human body, all hell breaks loose. The Tingler goes on a murderous rampage inside an old movie house. Hence the electro-chairs.

The Tingler also offers up a scene where Vincent Price takes L.S.D. Where else can we watch Price take an acid trip? Price doesn't necessarily take a trip to hell like Coffin Joe in Awakening Of The Beast but he does wrestle with a skeleton and tries his best to refrain from screaming as the walls close in on him.

"Its not a drug. Its an acid" Price uses his new tripy drug on a deaf/mute and we are treated to walking corpses, axe throwing gorillas and a colorized scene involving a corpse in a blood filled bathtub.

The Tingler is the perfect remedy for anyone who likes cheesy monster movies from the 50's. Its filled with visible wires and continuity but that just makes it all the more fun. Vincent Price does a excellent job in this one and with his acting the viewer can almost take this ridiculous scenario seriously.

I have not been lucky enough to catch this one in a theater yet but I await the day that I get my asshole shocked with an audience who can enjoy the finer things in life. Electric chairs and monster madness! The Tingler is a must see and must own for William Castle fans.

13 Ghosts (1960)

William Castle is famous for his gimmicks and his fun, silly brand of horror films. Sure their cheesy but their still fun. This one is about a family who inherit a house haunted by (yes, you guessed it) 13 Ghosts.

The ghosts can only be seen through the special "Ghost Viewer Glasses" Which were of course also handed out in theaters during the "Illusion-O" screenings. Some of the ghosts look pretty cool. We have a zombie-looking corpse running around. Then thers a decapitated ghost and we even have lion roaming around the house.
Aside from the 13 Ghost's, the house also has a large sum of money hidden somewhere within it. A handsome, manipulative, murderer wants to get his hands on the money before the ghosts get to him.

13 Ghosts offers up cheesy f/x, flying axes, the good old falling chandelier gag, the worlds biggest 3-D glasses, repetitive stairway banister sliding, a wicked witch, flying milk containers, kids with bull whips, murderous beds, head eating lions and 13 silly transparent ghosts.

Cheesy or not, I'll take the original 1960 version any day over that Hollywood remake that came out in the 2000's. William Castles films live on forever in the hearts of countless fans while the unimaginative waste of time remake is virtually forgotten in 10 years.

House On Haunted Hill (1959)

I first saw this one when I was a little kid with my father. It had a pretty big impact on me along with all the other horror films my father showed me, Night Of The Living Dead, The Exorcist, The Invisible Man and even the incredibly cheesy Night Of The Lepus. Over the years I have seen all these films so many times but tonight was the first time I have ever seen House On Haunted Hill colorized. Usually I can dig colorized movies almost as a sort of novelty. I usually prefer the original B&W version but I have to admit, tonight I saw this movie with completely different eyes. The colorization was done really well and it brought so much life to the castle. It was pretty amazing seeing the decapitated heads and the rat melting away in the vat of acid. Fans of this movie should take a look at this one in color if the chance comes. I already have about five copies of this movie since its in every public domain pack that you can get your hands on for about 50 cents but now I feel like I need one more copy.

Vincent Price is excellent as usual in the amazingly ultra-goofy haunted house flick. He plays a very wealthy man who invites five people to spend the night in the haunted castle. If the people make it all night they will receive ten thousand dollars each. According to legend the castle has a long history of murder. In one scene one of the guests explains that a murder was committed in almost every room in the house at one period of time or another. With this in mind each guest is given a small coffin with a handgun inside it. Once the guests are armed they are given free reign to the house. Its not long before they are visited by floating ghosts and walking skeletons. There are hangings and decapitated heads. Certain rooms seem to be booby trapped with falling chandeliers and vats of acid in the floor. The guests start to lose their cool and its not long before everyone loses their trust for one another. The guests attempt to drug, poison, shoot and stab each other.
House On Haunted Hill is a classic from the king of gimmick William Castle and those who love the original really need to see the colorized version if not for anything else at least just a change of pace. Its well worth the watch and way better then that crappy Hollywood remake. Even Emergo would find this version interesting.

Zotz! (1962)

William Castle changes it up at the height of his gimmick career and does a comedy. Its a weird comedy about a man who is given a coin that holds a strange power from an ancient civilization. Are you guys ready for this? Its the power of a word... Zotz! The back of the coin has an inscription explaining the three powers that come with the holder of the coin and the word Zotz! Rule number one, The extension of the index finger pointed in a persons general direction will cause sudden pain. In other words if I hold the coin and point at you, you will fall over in sudden pain. Rule number two, the word Zotz causes temporary "retardation" to anything in site. For example if I hold the coin and look at you and say the word Zotz! Out loud, you will move and speak in slow motion. The third rule is the most dangerous, he who holds the coin has the power to destroy anything in sight. All he has to do is point at someone or something and say the magic word at the same time and it will cause sudden death.
What a strange concept for a comedy. Eventually the coin causes all sorts of trouble. The Mafia the government and the military all want their hands on Zotz! There is a really cool scene towards the end where our main character is dodging bullets and jumps from a sky scraper in slow motion (thanks to Zotz!). Theres also a funny Three Stooges bit in there with some mice thrown into a diner party. William Castle fans will also get a laugh out of the Drive-In scene where a couple go see Homicidal.
Zotz! was a change of pace for me a step away from horror and trash film for a moment and a fun time with a strange comedy from the king of gimmick.