Edgar Allan Poe wrote an essay called "The Importance of the Single Effect in a Prose Tale". He believed in maintaining one mood and seeking one effect in prose designed to be read in an hour. If this 1969 British film had shared anything more than a title with Poe's 1844 short story (which takes place on a ship), it might have benefited from fewer characters, fewer incidents, less back story, and as a result, less diffusion of that single effect that a good horror story strives for.This is a well-crafted film, good looking and enjoyable. Vincent Price is always a treat. There's just too much going on with too many characters, none of whom are really given the chance to take hold with us or resonate.The best sequence involves the man in the red hood (around whom the story attempts to revolve) being bullied into a crazily debauched pub, with interesting results, but even here, we don't have enough time to develop any real emotional color. Things just keep happening as the plot hurtles forward from place to place and character to character. The three leads share very little screen time and relate to each other minimally.The long, rambling plot synopsis for this film on Wikipedia makes for a pretty good exercise in trouble-spotting, and the fact that I felt the need to seek it out after viewing simply underscores the point. A bit less might have given us room for a lot more.I'm sure I'll give "The Oblong Box" another try in a few years- it's far from a waste of time. But as of now it doesn't crack my top ten Vincent Price movies in which someone is buried alive.

Returning from Africa to his London home, a nobleman's quest to keep his hideously deformed brother hidden away from the public is foiled when an accidental burial results in his being loosened upon the world and sets out for revenge forcing him to stop him.For the most part this here was quite the fun and enjoyable effort. What really makes for quite a fun time here is the way this one manages to combine the rather starting late-60s style Gothic splendor with some more modernized slasher elements which is a rather strong combination. There's plenty to like here about the film's Gothic sensibilities, with the setting and era causing a lot of that to come to fruition here while also setting the stage for the numerous bouts of walking through dimly-lit corridors wielding only candle-lit light which causes this to readily feel at home in the old-school Gothic realm. That also leads rather nicely into the attitude about the grave-robbing and their feelings of the family- owned business with their reputation being called into question rather than simply being concerned with the remaining part of his revenge which doesn't turn into the kind of traditional slasher effort it really could've been as there's plenty of overall appeal to these scenes. Alongside the fact that there's the big party he throws at the house which gets crashed by the killer and frightened away as well as the central investigation scene that handles the vast majority of the second half which starts off the great slasher film aesthetic of the film. There's some rather nice stalking scenes here as he goes after the hooker in their tryst room, the grave-robbers in their flat and the doctor in his house which are more shorter set-pieces relying on the shock of actually stabbing them but still manage to get quite a lot of rather impressive and enjoyable action out of their encounters as well as setting the stage for the big finale as he goes about trying to get his final revenge as that leads into a strong chase into the forest which is quite fun with the killer coming into play and the resolution being quite brutal. Along with the fun opening voodoo ceremony that gives this a strong start, these here are more than enough to hold this up against the minor problems found here. The film's main issue is the fact that there's just no sensible action found throughout here that makes it in the slightest bit logical or coherent, which really undermines a lot of the storyline. The inability to really come to terms with the switch concerning the original burial is the biggest culprit, as that becomes quite a flimsy manner to start the main problem with the killers' actual identity along which is somewhat undone by their inability to really reveal that throughout here and really manages to make for a problematic entry. The only other big issue is the rather atrocious and appalling special effects here to provide not only the murders but also the main villains' appearance who looks so comical it's hard to imagine anyone would find him terrifying even though it's mainly the laughable kills that undo this. Alongside the unnecessary stop-over in the tavern, these are film's flaws.Rated R: Violence, Nudity and some sexual conduct.

Do you ever have low expectations of a film only to thoroughly enjoy it? This was the case with this film for me. Wherever I've looked, all I've seen are bad reviews about THE OBLONG BOX, but I'm happy to say that this is a nice little shocker in Hammer's finest tradition. Ignore the critics and go watch it, that's what I say; you definitely won't be disappointed.Many people have complained that this film is overlong and dull. This is simply not the case. How can a film be dull when a masked murderer goes about all the time, cutting people's throats? There's a overly-complex plot to get your teeth into and keep you concentrating plus a nicely Gothic atmosphere as characters wander through dark squalid streets and menace lurks in the bushes. There's a really nice evocation of the period here, with real attention being paid to the period details: the sets and scenery, while not lavish like in some of Corman's Poe films, are authentic-looking.The killer himself, in his red velvet mask, looks very sinister and brings to mind the climax of MASQUE OF THE RED DEATH. Unfortunately a flaw in this film is the disappointing make-up job done on the murderer. Throughout we see people screaming at his face, building up our expectations of seeing something really, really horrific. But in the end he just looks like a guy with a twisted nose and some nasty pockmarks on his cheeks. Very disappointing. Still, at least we have an obvious but classic twist ending; plus other fun elements like grave-robbing and prostitution to keep things moving merrily along. And watch out for that racist subplot about the voodoo curse. Frightening, not likely, in fact it reminded me of the Roy Castle segment from DR. TERROR'S HOUSE OF HORRORS.The major flaw with this film is that a good cast is wasted and given little to do, little opportunity to act in fact. Once the characters are set up, nothing is done with them (apart from the main psychotic guy, that is) which is pretty disappointing considering the pedigree of some of the stars. Vincent Price is on hand to lend heavyweight support, giving another subdued and indeed subtle performance as a guilt-stricken landowner. He's as good as ever but shamefully underused. Also appearing is a grey-haired (!) Christopher Lee as a sinister doctor. The trouble is, we know he's involved with grave-robbers but we never know what his experiments are about. This is really frustrating! Price and Lee only get to share one brief scene together, pretty dramatic but a waste of a good opportunity. Also appearing are Hilary Dwyer as Price's love interest, Sally Geeson (the spit of her sister, Judy) as a maid whose role is pivotal to the film's climax, and Rupert Davies who lent his distinguished features to many a film of this period.Of course, this being the late '60s, much more gore and sex are involved than was ever allowed before. Throughout the film we have a series of bloody throat-slashings, obviously done with a low budget and with one of those knives which sprayed blood when a button was pressed. Still, these are far grislier than earlier Hammer films would allow. A whole bevy of women in low-cut dresses are forever parading around, especially in an explicit tavern scene which is wilder (even raunchy in places) and probably truer to life than in many other films of the time. All in all, this is surprisingly good entertainment in that endearingly British fashion, and very enjoyable.

"The Oblong Box" is about what you'd expect. Like "Witchfinder General" (aka "The Conqueror Worm") the previous year, a lot of it seems to be going for shock value. Vincent Price plays a 19th-century nobleman keeping his disfigured brother locked in a room...only then the brother manages to escape. There's some violence (although I wouldn't call it gore) and no shortage of women with bug-eyed, frightened looks on their faces.As with the other 1960s horror flicks based on Edgar Allan Poe stories -- although this one is not part of Roger Corman's series -- the movie only uses the title and is otherwise unrelated to the original story. There's certainly nothing special about the movie, except that it was the first pairing of Vincent Price and Christopher Lee. Otherwise, Corman's movies are the ones that I recommend.Also starring Rupert Davies, Peter Arne, Sally Geeson and Hilary Dwyer.