The oblong box is a 1969 british horror film directed by gordon hessler, starring vincent price, christopher lee and alister williamson. Originally, the oblong box was intended to be directed by michael reeves but, owing to his untimely death at the age of 25 a substitute had to be found. Newhartt, rupert davies as kemp, uta levka as heidi, sally geeson as sally, alister williamson as edward, peter arne as trench, hilary dwyer as elizabeth. The oblong box of victorian horror the new york times. His only hobby is collecting butterflies, which gives him a feeling of power and control that is otherwise totally missing from his life. By the films conclusion, weve doubled back to julian, the original protagonist. The cbs radio mystery theater, which ran from january 1974 to december 1982, did an adaptation. This 1969 film heralded the first onscreen teaming of vincent price and christopher.
But sir edward escapes and goes on a killing spree in a desperate attempt to get revenge. If a movie called the oblong box with vinny price and chris lee sounds good to you, well, this one is even better than it sounds. Its a great story but it suffers from some of the worst death scenes of any horror movie at the time. Mgm midnite movies present a gordon hesslervincent price double bill, the oblong box a gothic horror started by michael reeve, and the contemporary 1960s chiller scream and scream again. He fakes his death to escape from julian and another man is killed to take edwards place in the oblong box.
Vincent price, christopher lee, peter cushing, judy huxtable, alfred marks. Its certainly a watchable movie and true fans of the genre will most likely find some joy in this movie but its too average all to really make a. May 30, 2011 great movie starring vincent price and christoper lee. The oblong box is a 1969 horror film, starring vincent price. The film was actually a project started by michael reeves, director of revenge of the blood beastthe she beast. The oblong box 1969 i saw scream and scream again some time a go, but only got around to watching the oblong box last night. The oblong box has vincent price and christopher lee, and is therefore well worth checking out. It also stars vincent price and that has never been a detriment to any film that i know of. An extra feature finds the enigmatic price reading one of poes best poems, annabel lee. The setting of the story is charleston south carolina and nyc. Audio commentary from film historian steve haberman is available. The oblong box 1969 stream and watch online moviefone. Locked in a vault, five men swap stories of recurring nightmares in this anthology horror film based on. The oblong box is a lot more fun than i expected it to be, and its certainly worth a look if youre a horror fan grown weary of the same old thing.
Having been grotesquely disfigured in an african voodoo ceremony for a transgression against the. Occasionaly sir edward escapes and causes havoc around the town. Oblong box, the on dvd 738329177720 from kino video. Previous usa vhs releases were only 94m whilst the old uk vhs was trimmed further to 91m 87m in pal. The mgm dvd is the complete uncut version running 96m. Read the full synopsis of the oblong box, 1969, directed by gordon hessler, with vincent price, christopher lee, alister williamson, at turner classic movies. The oblong box 1969 cast and crew credits, including actors, actresses, directors, writers and more. Oct 20, 2015 kino lorber presents the oblong box in 1. Movie typography from the oblong box 1969, directed by gordon hessler, starring vincent price, christopher lee, rupert davies, uta levka, sally geeson. The story is dragging at too many points and the story is told a bit too often unnecessarily difficult, which doesnt make the oblong box the easiest or most enjoyable old horror movie to watch. Cast and crew credits for the oblong box, 1969, directed by gordon hessler, with vincent price, christopher lee, alister williamson, at turner classic movies. Lawrence huntington died shortly after completing the script and the original director. Oblong box, the on bluray 738329177829 from kino video.
Lawrence huntingtons script is crammed with incident, throwing a murder, a brawl or a bit of bawdiness at the viewer every few minutes as it rushes headlong through its overstuffed plot. Gordon hesslers the oblong box is a certainly dry and libertiestaking adaptation of the edgar allan poe title, but it is a narratively dense and visually appealing piece of work. At the conclusion, the exotic african sickness we thought was a smokescreen. Watch the oblong box 1969 full movie ursula strauss on dailymotion. The sail split in half and water came in the boat and the pipes were not working to control the water. The oblong box is a 1969 film about an aristocrat who keeps his disfigured brother locked in a tower of his house, until he escapes and causes havoc around the town. Whether you like their work or not, director gordon hessler and screenwriter christopher wicking brought a fresh tone to american international pictures aips gothic horrors. The oblong box was made by the english branch of american international pictures aip who had produced most of cormans poe films and, like most of the corman films, stars vincent price. High resolution official theatrical movie poster for the oblong box 1969. The oblong box 1969 and you call yourself a scientist. It was also adapted as an episode of the american radio series cbs radio mystery theater that first aired on january 8, 1975.
The oblong box is a great addition to any film fans bluray library. Locked in a vault, five men swap stories of recurring nightmares in this anthology horror film based on the ec comics series. Like the mummy 1959, the reptile 1965 and the ghoul 1975, the film s story details guiltridden britons paying a. Not really light entertainment, but unusually wellmade with fine performances. A loose adaptation of poes story the premature burial, set in 19th century england, with price as the lord of the manor whose brother williamson. Stuart galbraith iv is the kyotobased film historian and publishereditor of world cinema paradise. The script was completed by christopher wicking, who worked on the screenplays of two of hesslers other films, the bizarre and entertaining scream and scream.
The oblong box american international productions 1969. Julian vincent price hides his horrendously disfigured brother, sir edward markham alister williamson, in a tower where he is kept in chains. However, they are only afforded one scene together, and when it comes, it is a disappointment. The oblong box 1969, a film by gordon hessler theiapolis. The oblong box, dvd, remastered, digitally mastered in hd, horrormonsters, 738329177720. The oblong box scream and scream again midnite movies double feature. Further, it seems that every time huntington tries to move the plot. Staring rupert davies, vincent price and christopher lee. Oscars best picture winners best picture winners golden globes emmys san diego comiccon new york comic con sundance film festival toronto intl film. Written by lawrence huntington and christopher wicking, based on the short story by edgar allan poe. Film looks like a lowkey, photographed stageplay, a welldressed period piece having little to do with poes short story, besides the title box. The blood is way to fake looking and some of the throat slashes are funny to watch because it looks like the knife isnt even touching the throat at all. This was the first film to star both price and lee. The oblong box by edgar allan poe by prezi user on prezi.
A 1969 film directed by gordon hessler starring vincent price carries the name the oblong box. The film itself it startling and creepy, with plenty of suspense and a great hook to keep you watching. Released 1969, the oblong box stars vincent price, christopher lee, alister williamson, hilary heath the r movie has a runtime of about 1 hr 31 min, and received a score of out of 100 on. The oblong box remastered, digitally mastered in hd on movies. Check here english if you are not a hdcenter premium member, you cannot see premium links. Based on the premature burial, the oblong box is a nice little horror in the mould of the roger corman films of the early 1960s. The oblong box joined american horror movie icon, price with british horror movie icon, christopher lee horror hotel, taste the blood of dracula, dracula has risen from the grave, the wicker man, gremlins 2, sleepy hollow, the lord of the rings all, corpse bride, alice in wonderland for the first time. The oblong box 1969 british board of film classification.
The oblong box 1969 r 1h 36min horror 11 june 1969 usa aristocrat julian markham keeps his disfigured brother, sir edward, locked in a tower of his house. American international pictures production company. Extra info about three days later their was horrible hurricane. Both star vincent price and were the first two aip films directed by gordon hessler with. The oblong box, which is not a hammer film but feels very much like one, is lots of good things let down by a not very interesting story. The oblong box dance, mephisto 1969 rotten tomatoes. When sir edward is horribly disfigured, he is kept chained and out of sight by his aristocratic brother. If you like the oblong box you are looking for suspenseful, serious and bleak movies about with buried alive, vengeance, obsession, danger, crimes, supernatural and murder themes of horror genre shot in uk. However, that very thin connection didnt matter much in 1969 when the film was released as it did very well, based upon the success of previous vincent priceedgar allan poe vehicles. The oblong box isnt exactly good but it can be fun for horror fans in the right mood. Edgar allan poe mishmash concerning hideously deformed maniac and assorted bodysnatchers.
Some things are better left buried aristocrat julian markham keeps his disfigured brother, sir edward, locked in a tower of his house. Starring greats, vincent price and christopher lee, the film weaves graverobbing, curses, and the resurrected dead into an engaging horror film. The oblong box may also be available with public performance rights ppr and digital site licensing dsl for colleges and universities. The narrative is designed so that the reader solves the mystery along with the narrator. This first combo links two 1969 films by gordon hessler, a prolific. Title the oblong box also known as edgar allan poes the oblong box year 1969 formats cinema, dvd distributors simply home entertainment,polygram video ltd,optimum releasing,guild home video,american international. Not good but, for price and lee fans, worth seeing once, especially for its pristine highdef transfer, the oblong box is a rent it. Edgar allan poes the oblong box was adapted as an episode of the 1950s american radio series nbc short story. The oblong box is a 1969 british horror film starring vincent price in a chilling tale about a bloody feud between two depraved brothers that leads them and everyone around them into a. The oblong box 1969 a reading by martin donegan as part of volume iii of short stories of edgar allan poe, issued on the cms records label cms567 the oblong box 2008 audio book unabridged, read by chris aruffo. Although the oblong box as a movie has nothing to do with the original poe story, a character does mention the namesake aloud.
Cast vincent price as julian, christopher lee as dr. Edgar allan poe wrote his short mystery story, the oblong box, in 1850. Hesslers film doesnt really seem to understand what its doing. There are no winners in this movie and one is left with the inescapable conclusion that ones sins will always find one out. The oblong box marks the first time that the actors vincent price and christopher lee appear together in a film. This movie is a thickly cut slice of gothic horror coupled with postcolonial guilt, boasting lush, hammerlike sets and top notch directing. The oblong box is a film directed by gordon hessler with vincent price, christopher lee, alastair williamson, hilary dwyer, year. The oblong box is the title of a 1969 british horror film directed by gordon hessler. The oblong box 1969 pg 0611 1969 us horror 1h 31m user score. Produced and directed by gordon hessler, the edgar allan poe adaptation stars vincent price, christopher lee, rupert davies and sally geeson.
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