Torture Garden (1967)

Simply Perfect

Don't Believe the Hype

It's hard to see any effort in the film. There's no comedy to speak of, no real drama and, worst of all.

Worth seeing just to witness how winsome it is.

TORTURE GARDEN follows exactly the same format as Amicus' other successful anthology films and, as expected, turns out to be a success. While most parts of the film are above average, there are a couple of things which disappoint, namely the second and third episodes. While the first and last are excellent, the middle of the film drags somewhat with some dull, silly and predictable stories and uninterested direction from Freddie Francis.The wraparound story has a hammy Burgess Meredith as an over-the-top sideshow host who wills people to see their own futures. While these bits are funny to watch they're also extremely hokey and slightly silly too. Meredith goes completely over the edge and I couldn't help but think of the Penguin while watching him. The sets here look (and were) cheap. Michael Ripper lurks around in the background to add his own bit of ham to the proceedings but doesn't get to do that much. The final twist ending is totally predictable and mishandled, unfortunately, making this one of the less memorable of the Amicus wraparound stories.Things kick off well with an atmospheric story involving a man haunted by a cat. Michael Bryant puts in a good performance in what is essentially a one-hander, aside from a cameo appearance by an unlucky Maurice Denham. Bryant is actually very good here and conveys torment and fear with some skill. The plot, involving a witch's familiar taking the form of a cat, is a good one too, no doubt down to Robert Bloch's diseased mind. There is even a genuinely disturbing moment which has Bryant opening a long-buried coffin only to have a cat spring out, a moment which is totally unexpected and made spookier by having a headless, smoking (?) skeleton inside the casket! The cat in this film is actually made to look pretty evil via some green and yellow tints, a lot better than the lamentable moggies in THE UNCANNY, made ten years later. As the cat eats people's heads (!) there is ample opportunity for some nicely gruesome moments.The second story has an interesting plot but it's more science fiction than horror. Beverly Adams is talented but unlikeable in the lead role, starring as a woman who uncovers a plot to turn movie idols into automatons. The story is a bit confused here and the horror comes too little, too late. There is some nice subtle makeup but the episode needed a longer running time to do the story justice and besides, it's just a typical conspiracy plot anyway.The third episode is actually quite dire and saved only by the worthwhile attractions of having Barbara Ewing in the lead role. Ewing was a glamour interest woefully underused in '60s horror, if you want to see more of her (literally so) then check out her hot performance in Dracula HAS RISEN FROM THE GRAVE. The plot involving a killer piano is extremely silly to say the least, if not downright laughable. Things meander on meaninglessly for a while, hindered by some poor acting from the bloke who Ewing's seeing, and the climax is just stupid. This does have some novelty value as a so-bad-it's-funny item but it's over very quickly and appears quite boring.Thankfully, things pick up with the much-lauded final episode, entitled The Man Who Collected Poe. Jack Palance is the Poe collector who will do anything (even commit murder) to get his grubby hands on Peter Cushing's Poe collection. This episode doesn't outstay it's welcome and has some fine acting from Palance as the anti-hero, obsessed to the point of murder. Cushing turns in an understated performance and plays much of the episode drunk, besides being sadly underused. There is a nice Gothic ambiance in the basement scenes plus a genuine, original premise. It's also thankfully macabre and a return to traditional British horror, forget the sci-fi aspects thank you very much.Overall, TORTURE GARDEN is a worthwhile anthology film which will only disappoint those familiar with the rest of Amicus' output, as it's not as brilliant as, say, DR TERROR'S HOUSE OF HORRORS or TALES FROM THE CRYPT. Still, there's a great cast as always and some fun ideas from Robert Bloch, so this should be seen by fans of the period.

When this was playing at the cinemas, they'd give you seed packets that you might one day start your own little Torture Garden - fun? The Shears, look deeply into the shears, deep deep deep... Oh god that was so lame, could they have come up with a less bland instrument than that? Why not throw in an egg-beater of contrition while we're at it! Okay, I thought Burgess Meredith as the customary macabre host was alright, but I definitely didn't find him nearly as impressive as Ralph Richardson or Peter Cushing. He was a bit too hammy and theatrical for me, and when it's his turn to speak to the audience at the end I thought it was done the wrong way and came off as laughable more than owt else. Something that I've noticed before in other Amicus anthologies is that you can tell when they put a lot more effort into a specific story or stories that they need to be extra atmospheric or a good closer for the movie, and although in this instance none of the stories are awful to me, some are less elaborate and it stands out. That said, I really like this movie because I like the classic grim twist in the tale style, and this is one of the big three by Amicus that I can comfortably stand to watch on repeated viewings! Something that I think brings down the quality of this a bit is the weak wraparound story, which feels very cobbled together at points. And for another thing, there's no real twist ending, the only thing that comes close is the mystery of whether or not Doc Diablo was telling the people possible futures to help them, or if was just a twisted game and they can never really do anything to change their fates... Anyway I thought it was a good start to the tales, the actor's performance made a bit of a silly situation more plausible, as a man who after cruelly allowing his elderly uncle to die, wanders into the dank(Evil Dead!) cellar in search of his inheritance and unleashes the awesomely-named Balthazar, a demon cat who'll give him gold in exchange for people's heads! It was so laughable whenever they'd show the cute little kitty's face up close and it's supposed to be all evil and whatnot, but it was just a cat! If Colin had just gotten hold of some catnip or a laser-light there wouldn't have been any problem! Taste the wrath of Balthazar filthy drunken hobo!!! It was shot really well, there's some eerie scenes in the cellar and the house, which I swear is the same one that was later used in The House that Dripped Blood. Verging on the ridiculous, but I liked it. ::: I also enjoy the outlandish second story, it's a bit long-winded and dull, but I find the mystery compelling and when the payoff finally comes, it's effectively sinister. "No cause for alarm" my foot! I liked the spare makeup effect used when the girl scratches the man's face and you see the metal beneath the skin. The tale really could have used a scene with a complete robot man on the rampage, but it works. And yeah, so there's a little sci-fi in there but so what, horror and sci-fi have long gone great together. The punchline at the end is really well done, I like the way it all ties up. It's kind of a creepy line, even if the way the bubbly girl delivers it is the epitome of camp! There's really not much to talk about, it's just a solid enough yarn about a status-seeking wannabe starlet who gets in way over her head, and although she does indeed get the fame and admiration she desperately craves, it comes at a helluva price. Kinda weak, but good. ::: I've read quite a bit of guff, but I love the elegant yet gently sinister tone of the third story, and I love the classy black and white style of the location. The actor who played the musician was a really handsome guy, I thought he was the spitting image of the actor Kevin Vanhentenryck from the 1982 classic Basket Case. I loved the painting of his character's eternally watchful and presumably by the looks of it, evil mother. Her patricial facade looked so coldly fierce, like a wicked tigress, ready to leap out of the painting and devour the interloping little tramp any minute! I really can't say I felt sorry for what happens to the Barbara Ewing character at all, she was a selfish gold-digger who didn't even care if she ended up ruining his artistic gifts! And I have to admit that even if you're a big fan of the story the spectacle of a piano shuffling across the floor to bump the girl out the window is ridiculously silly! The notion of a haunted piano is strange and romantic, but it was probably something best left on paper than on the screen. It sure would have been a great darkly poetic touch if the frozen image of mother dear had been smiling at the end. I suppose it is an odd story, but I have no problems with it. Just one question though: How much does a, Stein-Weigh?(!) ::: And of the superb final story is the most visually stirring and Gothic, as well as the one that I reckon captures the imagination the most. I love how it touches upon the rich lore of old stories and of being a collector of rarities. Jack Palance sold his squirmy edgy character brilliantly, and I thought he actually outshined Peter Cushing. A truly great terror tale is like fine wine, it only gets better with age... Wish I could say the same for this movie which is not perfect, but I'd still recommend, thank you!

"Torture Garden" (1967) is one of seven horror anthology pictures released by Hammer rival Amicus over an eight-year period. It had been preceded by "Dr. Terror's House of Horrors" and would soon be followed by "The House That Dripped Blood," "Asylum," "Tales From the Crypt," "Vault of Horror" and "From Beyond the Grave." Here, a carnival attraction, the eponymous Torture Garden, is run by the leering, taunting Dr. Diabolo, played with Penguin-like juiciness by Burgess Meredith. With the assistance of his waxworks dummy Atropos, the goddess of destiny, Diabolo shows four customers their possible futures, changeable only if they have the requisite strength of inner character (which is doubtful with this lot). In "Enoch," a bounder of a nephew kills his wealthy uncle and comes under the demonic possession of the house's resident black cat. This is a sinister, suspenseful tale, woefully underlit, that concludes with an appropriately grisly finish. In "Terror Over Hollywood," a young starlet (Beverly Adams) discovers the secret behind the success of so many of Tinseltown's most enduring talents. More sci-fi than horror, this section fails to scare but is fun nonetheless. In the film's weakest tale, "Mr. Steinway," a jealous piano takes vengeance on its composer's new lover. A tad silly, this segment still manages to elicit some shivers, when Euterpe the piano commences to play that funeral march. In "The Man Who Collected Poe," easily the best of the bunch here, Jack Palance eliminates Peter Cushing to possess himself of an incredible assortment of Poe memorabilia, and gets a lot more than he bargained for. Palance's over-the-top performance contrasts nicely here with Cushing's customary urbanity, and the segment is filled with all kinds of neat directorial touches from Freddie Francis. In all, four fun tales from the pen of Robert "Psycho" Bloch, if a touch off the mark as compared to some of those other Amicus anthology titles. The film's final moments will be a surprise to only the slowest of viewers, but still provide good devilish fun. "Do You Dare See What Dr. Diabolo Sees?" the film's poster asked back in 1967. My advice would be to go see....

One of eight horror portmanteau films that Amicus made over a fifteen year period. None of them are anywhere near the class or quality of Ealing's Dead Of Night, but they all manage to charm greatly.The truth of the matter is that they're all a little campy nowadays, often in ways that wasn't originally intended. Sure, 1973's Vault Of Horror with its voodoo artists and vampire cafés was bordering on spoof, but the perversely-named Torture Garden is quite a serious work at heart.The question is, over forty years later, how seriously can you take telepathic psychotic cats, haunted killer pianos, android actors and "the shears of fate"? The best elements of the film are Burgess Meredith's musings on the nature of time and the final segment with Palance and Cushing as obsessive Poe collectors. In all, not something you'd watch to be genuinely scared, but something you'd watch with a friend and a glass of wine to enjoy in an affectionate way... a film very much of its time.