Theater of Blood (1973)

1st View
Format: Netflix WI
Venue: Rivendell (Snow Day)

The Good: Campy but satisfying British horror flick with Vincent Price. Plenty of great kills and, yet again, Price seems to be the inspiration for Saw's Jigsaw; all his kills themed to his victims' transgressions. He even uses the "pound of flesh" theme used in Saw VI. The added gimmick of him being a washed up actor killing his harshest critics is a nice touch.

The Bad: It is quite British and, as such, gets exceedingly dry at points and the overall execution is not as strong as, say, The Abominable Dr. Phibes.


The Weird: There is this weird story device wherein Price's daughter disguises herself as a bearded/afroed man and takes part in the killings that is supposed to be a big reveal at the end...except it's painfully obvious from frame one because they insist on having her speak at length when she is in disguise. It would have been harder to deduce if the Bob Ross clone didn't clearly have a woman's voice.



Rating: 5/10 Atkins