Everything you want to know about Roger Corman‘s The Terror but were afraid to ask regarding this latest Film Masters restoration is all nicely packed into a documentary and essay included in this home video release. It’s out just in time for this film’s anniversary! What’s presented is a very clean and upgraded colour pallette to highlight this gothic work.
And to complete the analysis, it includes a bonus HD print of The Little Shop of Horrors. As a fan of the musical, to watch it in its original form made me appreciate both works! There are moments of dialogue that laid the seeds to songs like “Suddenly Seymore,” and “Dentist!”
However, this latest is all about Corman’s homage to Edgar Allan Poe. Nearly every frame pays tribute to what defines this master of macabre’s tales, and to watch it restored didn’t present a lot of flaws as I thought. While those bits are more with the narrative element, the visual one looked quite concrete! From the set designs to the tropes, it’s easy to tell. The video essay does a great job as explaining how this movie came to be, the hurdles faced (which also includes getting Karloff to agree to star in this work) and why it should be remembered as a testing ground for the still young filmmaker–who happened to think that he should take advantage of what’s available for him to use before these contracts expire. Also included in this release is Ballyhoo Motion Pictures “Hollywood Intruders: The Filmgroup Story” (part two).
The written ones, “Boris Karloff and the Long Shadow of Poe,” by C. Courtney Joyner and “Faster! Faster!” by Mark McGee details other aspects of Corman’s films. The former concerns this actor and the latter is about the production of Little Shop of Horrors. And after reading and watching this gorgeously remastered work, I’m motivated to watch the proper list of films that are The Poe Cycle in full.
On this list also includes:
- The House of Usher (1960)
- The Pit and the Pendulum (1961)
- Tales of Terror (1962)
- The Premature Burial (1962)
- The Raven (1963)
- The Haunted Palace (1963)
- The Masque of the Red Death (1964)
- The Tomb of Ligeia (1964)
The reason The Terror isn’t included is that it’s an original work influenced by. What this director made was more like an afterthought if I’m reading from the commentary correctly, and as for how it came together, I’m surprised it did at all! That’s because several directors were involved in picking up from where Corman left off.
There are even bits of missing footage. Some have been included in the documentary, and as for the film itself. While it’s not necessarily a timeless masterpiece, it’s certainly a movie that deserves study for anyone wishing to learn how to emulate another talent’s work. The passion is there, but for the execution, the fact various directors worked on this movie didn’t help when The Terror first screened. It made for The Confusion instead. These days, this play is for cinéastes to debate over–or agree to in the points raised in the essays provided in this release.
The Terror Special Edition
