#1 - The Raven (1963)
(dir. Roger Corman)
The credits for this film read like a horror icon Hall of Fame - directed by Roger Corman, written by Richard Matheson, based on a poem by Edgar Allan Poe, and starring Vincent Price, Peter Lorre, and Boris Karloff. This is part of the excellent series of Corman-directed Poe films put out by AIP in the early sixties, although it sets itself apart from the others by being a very silly comedy that has little to do with Poe's poem.
The film opens with Dr. Craven (Price) reciting "The Raven" over some neat psychedelic visual effects, culminating in an actual raven entering the room and perching upon the bust of Pallas. The similarities to the poem end there, however - the raven is actually a man named Dr. Bedlo (Lorre) who was transformed by the evil sorcerer Scarabus (Karloff), and he harasses Craven into cooking up a cure. After returning Bedlo to normal, the two team up to take Scarabus down. Lots of wacky magic antics ensue - at one point Bedlo gets turned into strawberry jam - culminating in a duel "to the death" where Craven and Scarabus cast a series of very silly spells at each other.
The performances of the three leads are absolutely the backbone of the film - Price chews up the scenery as usual, and Lorre is especially hilarious. The humor is often cartoonish, but the great acting and lavish set design ensures that the film remains charming even when the jokes occasionally fall flat. An essential (but goofy) horror classic.
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