From Beyond The Grave was a film that missed me. It missed me a lot. I have to admit that 70s British horror remains a blind side for me. Sure, I dig seeing actors like David Warner dominate in horror movies. That being said, this is very much Peter Cushing’s movie. As the shopkeeper bringing you tales From Beyond the Grave, the Grandest of Moffs never hesitates to play the Cryptkeeper role. It’s the kind of work you expect from a horror icon, yet why is it so buried?
The Amicus Horror Anthology are an acquired taste. I love anthologies. It’s something about getting a narrative deal that appeases the weird part of my brain. Out of the five stories, I only dug the framing device. I know that sounds weird, but I grew up on comic horror. If you can long sell a story about setting up a crook, I’m down for it. Yeah, I get that Ian Bannen and Donald Pleaseance carried their scenes. But, I dig seeing an idiot getting stuffed into an Iron Maiden.
The idea of the Temptations Limited store is a fun, but tired concept. Sure, this was the 1970s…but the Monkey’s Paw in a different form ran its ground by the 1950s. I get that each generation wants to take a shot at upgrading the tech and FX in these stories. It’s just that, why keep kicking the crap out of a dead horse?
The Blu-ray comes with no special features. The A/V Quality is really sharp, but it will fall on lame ears and eyes. Mainly because if people never saw Amicus films before now, they won’t know that this is an improvement. Deep cut cheaper horror productions on the international market are looking more and more rustic as the years go on. Thankfully, we have loving people like Warner Archive standing tall and delivering the goods.
