The Vault of Horror (1973)

User Rating:

6.3/10   

Director:

Roy Ward Baker

Writers:

Al Feldstein (stories)
William M. Gaines (stories)

Genre:

Horror | Mystery

Tagline:

Below the Crypt lies Death's waiting-room - The . . . Vault of Horror

Plot:

Five men trapped in the basement vault of an office building share visions with each other of their demise...

Plot Keywords:

Death | Vampire | Artist | Painting | Vault

Awards:

1 nomination

Cast

Daniel Massey	...	Rogers (segment "1: Midnight Mass")
Anna Massey	...	Donna (segment "1: Midnight Mass")
Mike Pratt	...	Clive (segment "1: Midnight Mass") (as Michael Pratt)
Erik Chitty	...	Old Waiter (segment "1: Midnight Mass")
Jerold Wells	...	Waiter (segment "1: Midnight Mass")
Terry-Thomas	...	Critchit (segment "2: The Neat Job")
Glynis Johns	...	Eleanor (segment "2: The Neat Job")
Marianne Stone	...	Jane (segment "2: The Neat Job")
John Forbes-Robertson	...	Wilson (segment "2: The Neat Job")
Curd Jürgens	...	Sebastian (segment "3: This Trick'll Kill You") (as Curt Jurgens)
Dawn Addams	...	Inez (segment "3: This Trick'll Kill You")
Jasmina Hilton	...	Indian Girl (segment "3: This Trick'll Kill You")
Ishaq Bux	...	Fakir (segment "3: This Trick'll Kill You")
Michael Craig	...	Maitland (segment "4: Bargain in Death")
Edward Judd	...	Alex (segment "4: Bargain in Death")

Also Known As:

Further Tales from the Crypt
Tales from the Crypt, Part II

Runtime:

83 min

Country:

UK | USA

Language:

English

Color:

Color (Eastmancolor)

Aspect Ratio:

1.33 : 1

Sound Mix:

Mono

Certification:

Canada:13+ (Quebec) | Canada:AA (Ontario) | Norway:18 | UK:15 | USA:PG (edited for re-rating) | USA:R (original rating) | Canada:PA (Manitoba)

Filming Locations:

Millbank Tower, Millbank, Westminster, London, England, UK

Company:

Amicus Productions

Trivia:

As he prepares to take his fake overdose the paperback book Michael Craig is reading is the film tie-in to Tales from the Crypt (1972).

Movie Connections:

Featured in Nightmare Theatre's Late Night Chill-o-Rama Horror Show Vol. 1 (1996) (V)

"An underrated horror omnibus from Amicus!"

An underrated horror omnibus from Amicus, makers of such hits as Dr Terror's House Of Horrors (1965) and Tales From The Crypt (1972). All the stories (taken from the EC comics by William Gaines and Al Feldstein) are great fun. These feature Daniel Massey who murders real-life sister Anna Massey for her inheritance, only to walk into a restaraunt frequented by vampires-including his sister! Glynis Johns is driven over the edge by her nagging husband Terry Thomas, whom she kills and dismembers his body neatly putting the body parts into correctly labelled jars. Michael Craig and Edward Judd are fun as two unloyal friends who plan to fake the death of one of them, claim the insurance money and kill the other. However, the most accomplished story is left until last. It's a superb tale about the consequences of Voodoo featuring Tom Baker as an artist who is cheated into believing his work is worthless by three men. While working in Haiti he visits a witchdoctor who gives him power in that whatever he paints will come true. He uses this power to get back at the people who have been profiteering behind his back, but this ultimately results in horrifying circumstances! Often criticised for being a pedestrian production, director Roy Ward Baker's approach to the film is simple but very effective. The tales are played for laughs but at the same time they all have something to say underneath. The professional cast does it's stuff and the whole film is well staged.