Pit And The Pendulum (1961)

4 / 5
Tagline: Until now no one has dared to film this...the most diabolical classic of all time!
Directed by: Roger Corman
Written by: Edgar Allan Poe, Richard Matheson
Actors include: Vincent Price, John Kerr, Barbara Steele
Genre: Horror
Length: 80 minutes
Banned: Nope
Country: USA

Review:
Well I'd seen the '90s version which I'd always thought was based upon this one but now I see they are entirely different films, both charming in their own way but this one is perhaps a little better. We meet a young man who hears his Sister has died, so he goes to her husband's house erm castle to find out what happened. He gets a whopper of a tale from Vincent Price (her husband) and of course he sticks around to investigate. He meets the doctor who pronounced his sister dead and the maid who appears to only want to help as well. As the story goes on we learn of Vincent's tragic past as his Mother and Uncle were tortured and or killed in front of him at the age of ten, and he had to live with that agony. The fact that something awful happened to Elizabeth he claims is tearing him apart. It's really quite a mystery until the fantastic ending which makes the less than fast beginning all worthwhile. A very charming and well shot beautiful picture with lots of horror that any fan should appreciate, definitely a classic!