Comedy and horror are two polar opposite feelings, and yet, in cinema, they often intertwine, especially in the countless, low budget films of Roger Corman."A Bucket of Blood" is one of the most acclaimed Corman movies, which are often looked upon as being pure camp despite the fact that a few of them are of genuine quality, and I can assure you, "A Bucket of Blood" IS of genuine quality! It is not so much a horror film as it is a comedy that just happens to feature a lot of murder...it's hilarious, dark, and satirical. It twists a twisted plot into a ingenious and clever little black comedy filled with fun characters, quotable lines, dark wit, and so on and so on. The plot itself is a combination of tragedy and terror, but is manipulated easily enough to become an awkward and wildly funny farce! If you can appreciate the film's humor, it is more than likely that it will soon grow on you and you'll fall deeply in love with it like I did! It's 65 minutes of amusingly demented entertainment!

Cult favorite Dick Miller has his finest hour here as beatnik murderer Walter Paisley. Directed by Roger Corman with a script by Charles Griffith, it's a brilliant little dark comedy. Walter Paisley is a simple-minded busboy at a café frequented by beatniks who desperately wants to be an artist. Despite his seeming lack of talent, he soon finds acclaim as a sculptor. The problem is his sculptures are actually just dead bodies encased in plaster. The cast includes Ed Nelson, Bert Convy, Anthony Carbone, and beautiful Barboura Morris. Julian Burton's turn as a pompous beat poet is terrific. But the movie belongs to Dick Miller, who's such a treat to watch. Given that it's Corman, the whole thing was shot on the quick and cheap, which shows in the production (look at that obviously stuffed cat they used for the kitty death scene). A lot of the laughs come from the many jabs at the pretentious art-house types. It's a timeless bit of satire since, while the trends and styles may have changed, these types are still around today. This one is often spoken of as the warm-up before Corman and Griffith's classic Little Shop of Horrors (also featuring Dick Miller). But I think it's just as funny as that film, if maybe not as creative.

Walter Paisley (Dick Miller) is a dim-witted busboy at the beatnik café The Yellow Door. He tries to make a clay sculpture at home. He hears Frankie the cat in his wall. He tries to get him out using a knife and accidentally kills him. He covers the cat with clay and he becomes the toast of the club with his amazing cat 'sculpture'. This sets him off on a serious of killings and cover-ups using his clay.It has some hilarious stuff with the slow innocent Walter. Director Roger Corman is making fun of the beatnik culture. Actually I don't find the beatnik stuff that funny and the music rather annoying. I guess you have to experience it at the time to truly feel the jokes. Walter turning evil isn't scary but it is good solid old-fashion horror. This is relatively well made despite its low budget.

Dick Miller, one of the greatest cult actors of all time, here had a career high with his engaging portrayal of Walter Paisley. Walter is a meek busboy at a café dubbed The Yellow Door, a place frequented by goofy "beatnik" types. More than anything, he yearns to impress them and be part of their crowd. Alas, he's lacking in the department of artistic talent. However, his accidental killing of his landlady's cat sets off something inside of him. Soon, he's using clay to create amazingly accurate looking "sculptures" that finally make him a hit at his place of employment.Considered by some to be one of producer / director Roger Cormans' best pictures, "A Bucket of Blood" is deliciously macabre fun. Written by Charles B. Griffith, it's a very funny satire of the entire "beatnik" era, and of pretentious artistic types in general, while it also sends up the entire subgenre of "House of Wax" type features. The characters populating the story are frequently hilarious, especially pompous "poet" Maxwell H. Brock (Julian Burton), and the laid back duo Will (John Brinkley) & Oscar (John Herman Shaner). The movie is also a very effective dark comedy which suggests some pretty nasty violence. It's beautifully shot in stark black & white by Jacques R. Marquette. The sculptures themselves are really kind of creepy looking. The jazzy score by Fred Katz adds to the enjoyment.Miller is wonderful in the lead. Also doing good work are Barboura Morris as his leading lady Carla, and Antony Carbone as café owner Leonard de Santis. Turning up in nice supporting roles are Ed Nelson and Bert Convy as undercover detectives, Judy Bamber as stuck up model Alice, Myrtle Vail as landlady Mrs. Swickert, and Bruno VeSota as an art collector.The typically low Corman budget prevents the ultimate resolution from being that satisfying, but up until then, this is fine entertainment.Eight out of 10.