The Old Dark House (1963)

User Rating:

5.4/10   

Director:

William Castle

Writers:

Robert Dillon (writer)
J.B. Priestley (novel)

Release Date:

31 October 1963 (USA)

Genre:

Thriller | Horror | Comedy

Plot:

An American who sells cars in England receives a mysterious invitation from an old, excentric millionaire...

Plot Keywords:

Based On Novel

Cast

Tom Poston	...	Tom Penderel
Robert Morley	...	Roderick Femm
Janette Scott	...	Cecily Femm
Joyce Grenfell	...	Agatha Femm
Mervyn Johns	...	Petiphar Femm
Fenella Fielding	...	Morgana Femm
Peter Bull	...	Caspar Femm / Jasper Femm
Danny Green	...	Morgan Femm
John Harvey	...	Club Receptionist

Runtime:

USA:86 min

Country:

UK | USA

Language:

English

Color:

Black and White | Color (Eastmancolor)

Sound Mix:

Mono (RCA Sound Recording)

Certification:

UK:A (original rating) | UK:PG (video rating) | Finland:K-16 | USA:PG

Filming Locations:

Bray Studios, Down Place, Oakley Green, Berkshire, England, UK

Company:

William Castle Productions

Goofs:

Audio/visual unsynchronized: When Jasper claims his mother "never spent a penny!", the dubbed word we hear is 'penny', yet the word he clearly says with his mouth is 'farthing', probably because American audiences would not understand what a 'farthing' is.

Movie Connections:

Spoofed in Saturday the 14th (1981)

An old, dark and disappointing house!

Well, I'm a big fan of William Castle and of Hammer Horror, so I figured that this meeting between the two would be damn good. William Castle's The Old Dark House is not a remake of the classic James Whale film, and this is actually unfortunate because if it was, it no doubt would have been a better film. Instead, what we have is a plot involving an American car dealer who goes to an old house after receiving an invitation from a friend of his, who he shares a house with. While there, he is introduced to a host of strange characters, as well as a plot involving a huge inheritance. The film is obviously intended to be a comedy, but it would seem that Castle should have stuck to horror as little in this film is actually funny, and I was really bored before the ending - not something I expect from William Castle! Considering the film focuses on an 'old dark house', there's very little in the way of atmosphere and I'm guessing that Castle wanted this film to appeal to a younger audience, and for that reason - there's not much here for the older movie fan. The plot rambles on until the conclusion and by then I didn't really care what happened. Overall, this is a sub standard William Castle film if ever I saw one. Straight-Jacket, Homicidal, Mr Sardonicus, The Tingler, House on Haunted Hill and 13 Ghosts come highly recommended - this one doesn't!