The Pit and the Pendulum (1961 film)
From The Art and Popular Culture Encyclopedia
| Revision as of 02:52, 16 June 2007 WikiSysop (Talk | contribs) ← Previous diff |
Current revision WikiSysop (Talk | contribs) |
||
| Line 1: | Line 1: | ||
| {{Template}} | {{Template}} | ||
| + | '''''The Pit and the Pendulum''''' (also known as ''Pit and the Pendulum'') is a [[1961 in film|1961]] [[horror film]] directed by [[Roger Corman]], starring [[Vincent Price]], [[Barbara Steele]], [[John Kerr (actor)|John Kerr]], and [[Luana Anders]]. The [[screenplay]] by [[Richard Matheson]] was very loosely based on [[Edgar Allan Poe]]’s [[short story]] of the [[The Pit and the Pendulum|same name]]. Set in [[16th Century]] [[Spain]], the story is about a young [[English people|Englishman]] who visits a forbidding castle to investigate his sister's mysterious death. After a series of horrific revelations, apparently [[ghost]]ly appearances and violent deaths, the young man becomes strapped to the titular [[torture device]] by his lunatic brother-in-law during the film's [[climax (narrative)|climactic]] [[sequence (film)|sequence]]. | ||
| + | |||
| + | ''The Pit and the Pendulum'' was the second title in the popular [[film series|series]] of Poe-based movies released by [[American International Pictures]], the first having been Corman’s '' [[House of Usher (film)|House of Usher]]'' released the previous year. Like ''House'', the film features [[widescreen]] [[cinematography]] by [[Floyd Crosby]], huge sets designed by [[art director]] [[Daniel Haller]], and a [[film score]] composed by [[Les Baxter]]. A critical and box office hit, ''Pit'''s commercial success convinced AIP and Corman to continue [[film adaptation|adapting]] Poe stories for another six films, five of them starring Price. The series ended in 1965 with the release of ''[[The Tomb of Ligeia]]''. | ||
| + | |||
| + | [[Film critic]] [[Tim Lucas]] and [[writer]] [[Ernesto Gastaldi]] have both noted the film’s strong influence on numerous subsequent [[Cinema of Italy|Italian]] thrillers, from [[Mario Bava]]’s ''[[The Whip and the Body]]'' (1963) to [[Dario Argento]]’s '' [[Deep Red]] '' (1975). [[Stephen King]] has described one of ''Pit''’s major shock sequences as being among the most important moments in the post-1960 horror film. | ||
| {{GFDL}} | {{GFDL}} | ||
Current revision
|
Related e |
|
Featured: |
The Pit and the Pendulum (also known as Pit and the Pendulum) is a 1961 horror film directed by Roger Corman, starring Vincent Price, Barbara Steele, John Kerr, and Luana Anders. The screenplay by Richard Matheson was very loosely based on Edgar Allan Poe’s short story of the same name. Set in 16th Century Spain, the story is about a young Englishman who visits a forbidding castle to investigate his sister's mysterious death. After a series of horrific revelations, apparently ghostly appearances and violent deaths, the young man becomes strapped to the titular torture device by his lunatic brother-in-law during the film's climactic sequence.
The Pit and the Pendulum was the second title in the popular series of Poe-based movies released by American International Pictures, the first having been Corman’s House of Usher released the previous year. Like House, the film features widescreen cinematography by Floyd Crosby, huge sets designed by art director Daniel Haller, and a film score composed by Les Baxter. A critical and box office hit, Pit's commercial success convinced AIP and Corman to continue adapting Poe stories for another six films, five of them starring Price. The series ended in 1965 with the release of The Tomb of Ligeia.
Film critic Tim Lucas and writer Ernesto Gastaldi have both noted the film’s strong influence on numerous subsequent Italian thrillers, from Mario Bava’s The Whip and the Body (1963) to Dario Argento’s Deep Red (1975). Stephen King has described one of Pit’s major shock sequences as being among the most important moments in the post-1960 horror film.
