Amicus Classic
This will be my last (for now) review of Dark Sky Films’ The Amicus Collection and I must say, I truly hope they’ll be releasing more. These films are a treat to watch and really “take you back” to the olden days when every damn channel on TV had some kind of horror film playing at night. I distinctly remember watching Asylum (aka House of Crazies) as a child and I was scared shitless. Looking back now I can laugh at my innocent terror but…
W-W-WHAT WAS THAT??! Did anybody see that? I could have sworn I saw something!
Anyhow, Asylum may not be as effective as it once was, it’s still quite good! Let’s not forget who wrote this! Robert Bloch is THE MAN. That’s right…THE MAN. Bloch is responsible for such classics as Psycho, several episodes of “Boris Karloff’s Thriller”, “The Alfred Hitchcock Hour”, “Star Trek” and he’s even done work on “Night Gallery”, “Tales from the Darkside” and the short-lived “Monsters”! Robert Bloch knows horror and Asylum is no exception to that.
Asylum is jam-packed with all sorts of horror personalities from Peter Cushing (The Satanic Rites of Dracula) and Britt Ekland (The Wicker Man) to Herbert Lom (The Dead Zone) and Patrick Magee (A Clockwork Orange). I don’t know about some of you but Ekland was one of my biggest inspirations in deciding to travel the world as a wealthy, international pagan.
Would you believe well-off scoundrel?
Would you believe man-whore with burger money?
The premise for Asylum is quite cool and shoves you directly into a horror anthology without you even realizing it.
Dr. Martin (Robert Powell) is a young, fresh-faced doctor seeking a position at the Dunsmoor Asylum for the Incurably Insane. When he arrives he discovers Dr. Starr, the head of the institution, has had a nervous breakdown and is now a patient. Dr. Starr’s associate Dr. Rutherford (Patrick Magee) is now at the helm and he agrees to hire Dr. Martin on one condition…one challenge…discover which patient is Dr. Starr. Obviously, Dr. Martin feels that should be easy enough but he has no idea what lies in wait for him.
He’s introduced by attendant Max Reynolds (Geoffrey Bayldon) to four patients, each with their own account as to how they ended up in Dunsmoor Asylum. Dr. Martin begins with a shy girl named Bonnie (Barbara Perkins) in an episode entitled, “Frozen Fear”. Bonnie tells Dr. Martin that she and her lover Walter (Richard Todd) conspired to kill Walter’s wealthy wife Ruth (Sylvia Sims) and store her body parts in a deep freeze located in the basement. When Bonnie arrives at Walter’s home though she discovers Walter dead and Ruth’s body missing…or is it?
Could Bonnie be Dr. Starr? Dr. Rutherford mentioned that Dr. Starr was rational but a new personality complete with background history had taken control. Perhaps Bonnie is the good doctor?
As Dr. Martin moves on he’s introduced to Bruno (Barry Morse), a struggling tailor, down on his luck in an episode called “The Weird Taylor”. Poor Bruno and his wife Anna (Ann Firbank) are behind on their rent and may lose the tailor shop. Fortunately for Bruno, a wealthy gentleman named Mr. Smith (Peter Cushing) enters the shop and asks Bruno to tailor a suit for his son. Mr. Smith gives Bruno specific directions to follow on what times of the day to make the suit and he gives him a pulsating, multi-colored fabric to be used. Bruno follows the directions as ordered and drops by Mr. Smith’s home to drop off the suit and pick up his money. Something is just not right with Mr. Smith and this suit…something that may change Bruno forever!
The next patient to meet Dr. Martin is Barbara (Charlotte Rampling), a young woman charged with murdering her brother George (James Villiers) and live-in nurse Miss Higgins (Meg Jenkins) in an episode entitled, “Lucy Comes to Stay”. Barbara claims her friend Lucy (Britt Ekland), an acquaintance highly disapproved of by George, was the culprit. Is Barbara lying or did Lucy really kill those people and get away with those horrible crimes?
The last patient introduced to Dr. Martin is Dr. Byron (Herbert Lom), a man of science whose hobby it is to make small robot toys in an episode entitled, “Mannikins of Horror”. Byron’s toys are unlike anything Dr. Martin has seen as each one has a perfectly sculpted likeness of Byron’s acquaintances! Byron proposes to “breath life” into these toys just as God breathed life into dust and made man. He plans to do this by willing, with intense concentration, his very being into a toy. Is Byron crazy or is he onto something? Can a man’s consciousness really migrate from one construct to another simply by willing it?
Dr. Martin has made his decision and joins Dr. Rutherford downstairs to discuss his choice. Who is Dr. B. Starr? Could it be Bonnie? Barbara? Bruno or Byron? Will Dr. Martin chose wisely or will he overlook the crafty Dr. Starr’s true personality?
Watching Asylum was like jumping into a time machine and journeying back to my childhood. I can still see myself sitting on the floor; seven inches away from the TV with my hand in a pickle jar…mouth slightly ajar…constantly looking over my shoulder.
Dark Sky Films have lovingly mastered this gem in HD from the original 35mm elements and there wasn’t a flaw to be seen. In my opinion, this is one of Amicus’ better known films and Dark Sky have snatched it from ugly obscurity and given it new life in anamorphic widescreen (1.85) format.
While the transfers on these Amicus films have been breathtaking, the audio has been less-than-stellar. The 2.0 mono was just a bit too quiet for my tastes but perhaps I’m just going deaf.
As with all the other releases in The Amicus Collection, there are extras galore for fans to dig into! You’re going to get your money’s worth if it’s the last thing Dark Sky does! There’s audio commentary by Roy Ward Baker (director) and cameraman Neil Binney, a featurette entitled, “Inside the Fear Factory”, cast and crew biographies, theatrical trailers for the Amicus films, a still gallery and liner notes.
Do yourself a favor and grab a copy now!
