The Abominable Dr. Phibes

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               9*********skulls</B></div> <bR> <div> <B>*Blood* *Not Particularly Violent* *No Strong Language* *No Nudity* *No Sexual Situations* *Not Particularly Gory*</B></div> <bR> <div> 1<B>971/Color/90 Min./Vestron Video & Orion Pictures Corporation & </B></div> <div> <B>American International Productions(England) Ltd./England/Not Rated</B></div> <bR> <div> <B>Director.............Robert Fuest (</B><I><B>Dr.Phibes Rises Again, Wuthering Heights</B></I><B>)</B></div> <div> <B>Screenplay.......James Whiton & William Goldstein</B></div> <div> <B>Music................Basil Kirchin & Jack Lathan</B></div> <div> <B>Producers.........Louis M. Heyward & Ronald S. Dunas</B></div> <div> <B>Director of Photography....Norman Warwick</B></div> <div> <B>Executive Producers.........Samuel Z. Arkoff & James H. Nicholson</B></div> <div> <B>Make-up & Special Effects by Trevor Crole-Reed & George Blackwell</B></div> <bR> <div> <B><U>Dramatis Personae</U></B></div> <div> <B>Dr. Phibes...............Vincent Price (</B><I><B>Edward Scissorhands, The Fly</B></I><B>)</B></div> <div> <B>Dr. Vesalius.............Joseph Cotton (</B><I><B>Citizen Cane, Gaslight, Soylant Green</B></I><B>)</B></div> <div> <B>Vulnavia.................Virginia North </B></div> <div> <B>Rabbi......................Hugh Griffith (</B><I><B>Dr. Phibes Rises Again</B></I><B>)</B></div> <div> <B>Dr. Longstreet.........Terry Thomas (</B><I><B>Around the World in Eighty Days</B></I><B>)</B></div> <div> <B>Trout.......................Peter Jeffrey (</B><I><B>Dr. Phibes Rises Again</B></I><B>)</B></div> <div> <B>Crow.......................Derek Godfrey </B></div> <div> <B>Schenley.................Norman Jones (</B><I><B>Inspector Morse</B></I><B>-English TV)</B></div> <div> <B>Waverly..................John Cater </B></div> <div> <B>Goldsmith...............Aubrey Woods </B></div> <div> <B>Darrow...................John Laurie </B></div> <div> <B>Lem........................Sean Bury </B></div> <div> <B>Nurse Allen.............Susan Travers </B></div> <div> <B>Dr. Hedgepath.........David Hutcheson </B></div> <div> <B>Dr. Dunwoody..........Edward Burnham </B></div> <div> <B>Dr. Hargreaves........Alex Scott </B></div> <div> <B>Dr. Kitaj...................Peter Gilmore </B></div> <div> <B>Dr. Whitcombe........Maurice Kaufmann </B></div> <bR> <div> <B><U>Critique</U></B><B>:</B><B> The film features many truly memorable images including Phibes unmasked, Phibes in the coffin with Victoria embalming himself, the haunting Vulnavia playing violin, Phibes the organ, and the Clockwork Wizards every instrument in the orchestra. The attempts at humor, the running mispronunciations, the dummy pictures of Phibes in the car windows work well. Phibes underground world is visually impressive and his entire murderous operation, down to the last Frankenstinian detail of his laboratory befits the genius of a major mad scientist with Ph.D.s in Theology and Music. The ten curses of Ktafgh is indeed how a mad scientist doctor of Theology would go about revenging the incompetence of his wife's doctors. Great story that plods just a bit Britishly before recovering for a memorable ending. Brussel sprouts extract and locusts! Brilliant. The sad version of Somewhere over the Rainbow at the end is a keeper. *Another Rube Goldberg award for most complicated ways to kill people (e.g. from being artifically  halestoned to death to being run through by a brass unicorn fired by a catapult).</B></div> <bR> <div> <B><U>Plot Summary</U></B><B>:</B><B> Deep in the cyber-gothic-Egyptian-Kitsch antechamber of his domicile, Phibes in black cape plays the organ on its combination stage/elevator then stops to listen to his robot orchestra "Dr. Phibes' Clockwork Wizards" play as his stunning assistant Vulnavia makes a queen's entrance and they waltz. Phibes climbs into his limousine and Vulnavia drives him to the home of Dr. Dunwoody, where they lower a small army of vampire bats through a skylight and then steal away as Dunwoody is killed in his bed. As the corpse is discovered, Phibes hangs an amulet around the neck of a wax model of Doctor Dunwoody and puts a flame to him. The detectives on the case link this death to that of a Dr. Thornton the previous week who was stung to death by bees in his library. Phibes, who has no hair or facial features, dons make-up and a wig, plays the organ, and leaves for a costume ball where he lends Dr. Hargreaves the psychiatrist a frog mask that becomes ever tighter to the roaring 20's music. At home again, Phibes repeats the ritual of amulet and flame on the model of victim number three. Though one inspector insists on the link between three murdered doctors, the chief will hear none of it. Dr. Longstreet enjoys a primitive pornographic film and a brandy when he is visited by Vulnavia (stunning in her Russian white furs) who proceeds to tie him to his chair. Tied up as he is, Longstreet is helpless as Phibes drains his blood into small bottles. Finally the detective finds the link. All of the victims worked at one time for Dr. Vesalius and remained close associates. Inspector Trout visits Vesalius who is working on his model train. While Vulnavia plays the violin outside, Phibes fills the bottles and, oddly, leaves them there. At home the ritual is repeated. Trout visits a jeweler with the amulet found on Longstreet. The Jeweler explains that a tall attractive young fashionable lady had the ten amulets made to order, adding that the marking on the amulet is Hebrew. A Rabbi explains the symbol means blood, part of the Ktaphgh, the ten curses visited on the pharaohs before exodus: Boils, bats, frogs, blood, rats, hail, beasts locusts, death of first born, and darkness. Phibes hooks a speaker to his throat and swears an oath to his wife to seek revenge in front of an altar to her. "Nine killed you nine shall die!" Dr. Vesalius finds only one case where all of the doctors worked together, that of Victoria Regina Phibes. Inspector Trout was born on November 27, 1893, is  married, and has no children. He finds that Dr. Anton Phibes was burned to death as he raced back from Switzerland to see his dying wife. The couple was interred together in London. Two years ago the Phibes fortune was transferred from Switzerland to London to a tall attractive woman who doesn't speak much, Vulnavia. Inspector Trout would like to talk to her. Vulnavia feigns car trouble to stop a limo, allowing the incredibly strong Phibes to have his way with the helpful driver. Vulnavia then places a music box in the Limo and Phibes places a freezing device in the opposite side, which means trouble for Dr. Hedgebach. Vesalius' son is impressed with the knowledge of the chap at the music store, Mr. Darren, who knows all the great organists including Phibes, who had a Ph.D. in Music and Theology. The name shocks Dr. Vesalius who rushes to the music store where the senile man insists Phibes is still his customer. A search of the Phibes family mausoleum turns up at least some ashes in Phibes' coffin. The inspector theorizes it could be Phibes' chauffeur behind the murders. Victoria's coffin is more conclusive - empty! Dr. Kitaj climbs into his plane and takes off as Inspector Trout is trying to stop him, while in the field Vulnavia plays as rats attack the flying Dr.. Phibes observes via telescope. Phibes dances and dines with Vulnavia, eating via a device in the back of his neck. The police take Dr. Whitcombe into protective custody to little avail. Phibes intends to join his wife in a secluded corner of the Elysian Fields. Nurse Allen and Dr. Vesalius, the sole survivors, are secluded in a fortress with seventy guards. One problem - Phibes is in the building. He drills a hole in the ceiling above the nurse and runs a tube through which he lets slimy green abstract of Brussels sprouts run onto the nurse who had taken sleeping pills, then fills the room with locusts. Phibes invites Vesalius to a large house at Mudeen Square where he is holding his son, announcing that "the organ plays until midnight." Vesalius attempts to trade his own life for that of his son. Phibes has lodged a key near the son's heart. If the surgeon can remove the key, he can unlock the crash cart and move it from beneath the tube of acid Phibes has erected above the son's head. He has six minutes, the time Victoria had on the operating table. Vulnavia is instructed to destroy all that Phibes has created. As the clockwork wizards play she bashes them with an axe. Phibes plays as he descends into the antechamber to join his wife while Vulnavia destroys, the police approach and the Dr. works feverishly.</B></div> <bR> <div> <B> <IMG SRC="http://service.bfast.com/bfast/serve?bfmid=26864318&siteid=39400660&bfpage=home" BORDER="0" WIDTH="1" HEIGHT="1" NOSAVE > <A HREF="http://service.bfast.com/bfast/click?bfmid=26864318&siteid=39400660&bfpage=home" TARGET="_top"><IMG SRC="http://www.dvdplanet.com/satellite/banners/generic2b_468X60.gif" BORDER="0" WIDTH="468" HEIGHT="60" ALT="DVDPlanet.com"></A>  </B></div> </td> </tr></table></body>