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2 Responses to “Premature Burial (1962)”

1. admin
   05月 27th, 2008 at 9:13 pm

   

   By Henry R. Kujawa (”The Forbidden Zone” (Camden, NJ))
   Following the pattern set by the 2 previous Poe flicks, this Roger Corman film (Exec. Producer, Producer AND Director!) opens with a character trying to gain entrance to a large house, and someone trying to turn them away. 3 films in a row, the same opening– the nerve of some people! Actually, predating FROM RUSSIA WITH LOVE by 2 years, there’s a pre-credit sequence before this, where a body is being dug up in the graveyward. When the coffin is opened and they discover the dead person was BURIED ALIVE, the film’s main character goes somewhat off his rocker and a lifelong fear becomes a single-minded obsession.

   Corman had a falling-out with AIP, and did this film at another studio. As a result, he had to do without Vincent Price, and apparently, Les Baxter as well. Filling in are an unknown musician (I saw the name but it didn’t stick) and Ray Milland– of all people. Also in the cast are Hazel Court (CURSE OF FRANKENSTEIN), Alan Napier (who’d worked with Milland in the earlier classic THE UNINVITED), and Dick Miller, a Corman perrennial, as a grave-digger who comes to an unfortunately violent end.

   Most Poe films tend to be based either on short stories, or inspired by poems. Not this one. This was based on, of all things, a non-fiction magazine article. I’m sure Charles Beaumont, who wrote the screenplay, must have thought Corman was off his rocker when he was hired for this project. HOW do you turn an “article” into a “story”? Incredibly– he did it.

   I’d rank this as the least of the 8 Corman Poe films, but even so, just because it’s Corman, it’s still worth watching, and in some ways, moreso than the Poe films that followed his departure. For about the first hour or more, it’s really on the low-key side. I mean, REALLY on the low-key side. Until the climax– at which point, someone goes BERSERK and kills 3 people in under 5 minutes of film! WHOA!!! Now THAT’s Roger Corman! One guy gets run thru with a spear– off-camera– we never even SEE what happened to the 2nd victim, but the 3rd guy gets ELECTROCUTED! Gee, with such variety, you think the makers of HALLOWEEN 2 watched this for inspiration?

   Sadly, neither Milland or Napier are nearly as good as they were in THE UNINVITED (a film that became a new favorite of mine when I saw it the first time about 2 years ago). Napier’s not even as lively as he was 5 years later in BATMAN. Then again, at least this proves he can “act”. If you didn’t know it was him, you might not realize it at first. Hazel Court is her usual stunning, gorgeous “hottie”– and she gets to SCREAM bloody murder before the film’s over, too!

   Just before it was released, Corman & AIP settled their differences… which means AIP wound up distributing the picture. And of course, that led to no less than 5 MORE Poe films by Corman. “Success breeds excess”, for sure!

2. admin
   05月 27th, 2008 at 9:16 pm

   

   By Lawrance M. Bernabo (The Zenith City, Duluth, Minnesota)
   “The Premature Burial” was made in 1962 and stars Ray Milland instead of Vincent Price because director Roger Corman thought he was making the film for someone other than American International, who had Price under contract, but A.I. bought the production at the last minute. This was the third of the seven films based on stories of Edgar Allan Poe that Corman did with A.I., and the only one that did not star Vincent Price. But it is more the story than the lead actor that makes this arguably the least of the films in the series.

   Emily Gault (Hazel Court) demands to know why Guy Carrell (Miland) has called off their engagement. Guy explains that ever since their discovered his father had been buried alive, he has been terrified the same thing will happen to him because he might also suffer from catalepsy. Emily and Miles Archer (Richard Ney), convince Guy to go along with the marriage, but he becomes so worried about premature burial that he even builds a special tomb that will allow him to escape. If you do not know that Guy’s worst dreams are going to come true, then you are just not paying attention.

   That is because the screenplay by Charles Beaumont and Ray Russell (who would script “X - The Man with X-Ray Eyes” for Corman and Milland) works in the idea that Guy’s fear can be taken advantage of by someone who is after his money or his wife (or both). So Guy’s fate has to do with more than the Fates really sticking it to him. This is a relatively short film (81 minutes), but it seems to drag a bit because it takes its time getting to what we all know is going to happen. The best scene comes when Emily tells Guy that he is so obsessed with his fears that for all intents and purposes he is dead already. But the ending is devoted way too much to telling the audience rather than showing us and ends the film on a down note.