The Comedy Of Terrors (1963)

We are now well into the month of May and I hope everyone is being safe as we all endure the pains of Quarantine and government imposed stay at home orders. I just hope that through this blog, I can give you some suggestions on films to watch and for today's Sunday At The Classics, we have decided to check out 1963's The Comedy Of Terrors which was directed by Jacques Tourneur (I Walked With A Zombie). The film stars Vincent Price (The House On Haunted Hill) as drunkard undertaker Waldo Trumbull who along with his trusty sidekick Felix (Peter Lorre) run a funeral home that isn't quite the most happening place for business in New England. Then you add the pressure of owing rent and now Trumbull has the bright idea that if they are not willing then we shall make them so as he creates his own clients. The film also stars Boris Karloff (Dick Tracy Meets Gruesome) as  Amos Hinchley, Joyce Jameson (The Outlaw Josey Wales) as Amaryllis Trumbull, Joe E. Brown (It's a Mad Mad Mad Mad World) as Cemetery Keeper, Beverly Powers (Kisses for My President) as Mrs. Phipps, Orangey The Cat (Breakfast At Tiffany's) as Cleopatra, Luree Holmes (How To Stuff A Wild Bikini) as Black's servant, and Basil Rathbone (The Adventures Of Robin Hood) as John F. Black.

When you have the caliber of actors in this film like Vincent Price, Peter Lorre, and Basil Rathbone would you expect anything less than a great performance from them? Vincent Price was brilliant as a self centered drunkard who only cared about money more than anything in the world while Peter Lorre played the obedient servant who was only obedient because of a secret that was being held over him. Basil Rathbone on the other hand was the Shakespearean loving landlord who just refused to stay dead in the film which was the comedy of terrors in this film. At points in this film, you will find yourself rooting for Peter Lorre's character as he attempts to get the girl because she deserves better than Trumbull because I sure as heck was rooting for him. I know I didn't mention Boris Karloff in the beginning and that is because he looked like death in this film and while he played his role well, he didn't have to do much, but act like he had one foot in the grave. He does however shine towards the end of the film when he gets his one big scene. I thought the film was a lot of fun to watch and I can imagine that it entertained a lot of horror fans back in the day as this is an original horror comedy as there were a lot of good laughs in this one for sure. I am definitely recommending this one to anyone who loves any of those four gentlemen in this film. That is why I am going to give the film an B+ for a final grade so check it out on Amazon Prime right now.

Dick Tracy Meets Gruesome (1947)

One of my favorite things about this blog and Sundays is that I am trying to take the time to check out some classic cinema. Thanks to Timeless Classic Movies on Youtube, I have a chance to do that for Sunday At The Classics and we have a good one for you today. When I was a kid, Warren Beatty brought us his own version of Dick Tracy which I remember loving as a kid. So, I wanted to check out a classic Dick Tracy film and I present to you Dick Tracy Vs Gruesome. Things are about to get a little complicated for Dick Tracy as a gang of criminals that features a piano player named Melody (Tony Barrett) and an very imposing ex-convict aptly named Gruesome (Boris Karloff) find out that a scientist has developed a nerve gas that freezes everyone temporarily in their place and they use it to rob banks. Now, Tracy and the rest of the police force have very limited amount of time to catch these guys before it's too late. The film stars Anne Gwynne (House Of Frankenstein) as Tess Trueheart, Edward Ashley (Pride And Prejudice) as Dr. L.E. Thal, June Clayworth (Live, Love, and Learn) as Dr. Irma M. Learned, Lyle Latell (Dick Tracy Vs Cueball) as Pat Patton, Skelton Knaggs (Captain Video, Master Of The Stratosphere) as X-Ray, Milton Parsons (The Wild Wild West) as Dr. A. Tomic, Ralph Byrd (Dick Tracy Vs Crime, Inc.) as Dick Tracy, and the film was directed by John Rawlins (Arabian Nights).

One thing that I will say about the film is that I kind of wished that Dick Tracy had a stronger presence in the film than he did. He was barely in the film to the point that I thought the film should have been titled Gruesome Meets Dick Tracy. It was to the point that we were seeing more of his partner Pat then we were of him until the end of the film. Nonetheless, there is a lot to enjoy about this film besides the funny names they came up with for their characters and that is the masterful performance by Boris Karloff. Boris commanded the screen with a presence that just demanded that you stopped everything you were doing to watch him. Gruesome had to be one of the vilest and ruthless villains I can remember as he cleans up all the loose ends and he makes it interesting as he continues to outsmart the police. The acting in the film is really good as everyone brings something to the table which made it enjoyable to watch. One thing that I do wish wee got was more of those outrageous characters like Flattop or even Pruneface would have been cool, but as I said we had Gruesome. If you're into 1930's styled police capers and what not then this is definitely one to check out or if you love Karloff as much as I do then check it out for sure. His performance alone in the film jumped the final grade to an B.