#11 - The Haunted Palace (1963)
(dir. Roger Corman)
This is one of the great Edgar Allen Poe adaptations put out by American International Pictures in the 1960's. Directed by Roger Corman and starring Vincent Price, these were (in my opinion) the defining American horror films of that decade, and comparable in style and quality to what Hammer was doing over in England during the same period. While they often took some serious liberties with the source material, these are still some of the best Poe adaptations ever made.
Oddly enough, apart from the title and a few lines, this one is barely based on Poe at all. The story is actually mostly an adaptation of H. P. Lovecraft's novel "The Case of Charles Dexter Ward", although it takes some major liberties with that material, too. In the small town of Arkham, in the 18th century, a man named Joseph Curwen (Vincent Price) was burned alive by the townsfolk for being a warlock. 110 years later, the shadow of Curwen's evil and the guilt of that day still hang over the town. When Ward (also Price), inherits the castle, he finds the locals extremely hostile, as he just so happens to look exactly like his much-feared ancestor. Even though he wants to leave, Ward finds himself compelled to stay at the castle, and the spirit of Curwen, hungry for revenge, begins to possess him...
Price is fantastic, but that's a given. Other highlights of the cast include Lon Chaney Jr as the creepy caretaker, and Elisha Cook Jr as one of the townsfolk (no one does "weak and scared guy" like he did). The score stood out as really great to me, too - the main theme is one of the best I've ever heard in a horror film from this era, and is definitely going on the next Halloween playlist I make. I can't say that this is the best of the Corman-directed Poe films, but it's up there.
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