Touches You

Load of rubbish!!

Simple and well acted, it has tension enough to knot the stomach.

Strong acting helps the film overcome an uncertain premise and create characters that hold our attention absolutely.

I was told to watch this by some friends. Usually they don't lead me wrong and this one was no exception. I put it on late at night with my sister. We were half tired and not sure we could even get through it but five minutes in when the bed start eating the apple we just laughed forever lol. I mean this bed was hungry! It didn't stop there. It was one classic scene after another.If you like insane movies about mattresses watch this one! What the hell was that yellow goop?

. . . but well above average, for an -amateur- film.First I must say that for having been produced on such a small budget, this sure is quite a capable film - surprisingly so.The story behind this obscure horror film is quite unique, this movie is centered around a cursed antique four-poster bed and the imprisoned soul of an artist, whose held captive behind one of his paintings; he also happens to serve as the movies narrator. It's a very short film clocking in at a mere 67 minutes, but throughout it's short duration it tells a compelling story, which owes a lot to the voice of Patrick Spence-Thomas; whose clipped and elegant narrations in what sounds a Mid-Atlantic accent, capably guides us through this film that has a most unusual premise, a bed that eats people, with much eloquence and class. That accent is all but extinct today, but here it lends itself perfectly to the film, which is further dressed up with the inclusion of a heavy amount of dark imagery and the macabre, which are often lightly tinged with over-tones that come off as vaguely satanic and yet are very effective. On the matter of blood and guts, a light spattering of gore effects is used which provides the film with the necessary visceral edge, which works well with the films heavy use of sordid visual material.It's creators achieved a surprisingly high-level sophistication in film-making, with what looks like a very limited budget, which of course is one defining hallmarks of amateur film-making. With that being said, it completely leaves the question open and makes one wonder what the very same crew could have done with a bigger budget, but as it stands it's still pretty effective as it is. The story that Death Bed tells is a fairly complex one, whose plot is woven together by many layers of richly lurid detail, which not only describe the creation of the death bed, but also it's long and colorful (deadly) past. Most of the films complexity revolves around the fact that there are so many characters/victims which represent so many different era's, but once again, the narrator does such an excellent job, colorfully and concisely describing the films many unwholesome events and as a result you never feel lost at any point and though it is a bit slow at times, the coherency of the movie never falters. However with that being said, if you don't listen to the narrator, nothing about the movie will make sense.Poe Influence: For fans of classic literary horror, I find that this film is very effective in projecting a world that looks as if it came straight from the mind of Edgar Allen Poe (and I don't even like Poe, but it's hard to refute the vibe and air that this film projects), even if it is set in modern times (1977). For several reasons, from the narration, to the gated and dilapidated stone mansion, to the antique four-poster bed (by the looks of it Poe himself may have slept on just such a bed, in his better times), to the withered tombstones and other macabre visuals. This film seeps and drips heavily with the sort of imagery, influence and atmosphere that's undeniable Poe-esque and which I kinda doubt it was by accident or can be chalked up to coincidence. The movie concludes in invigorating fashion and through an impromptu form of exorcism, the history of the accursed bed of death comes full circle - in fiery destruction - yet from destruction, a past life is reborn. The conclusion of the film works very well and does an admirable job of tying together all of the movies most important plot-points and visual ques. Death Bed is an artsy, off-the-radar-screen type of feature, that includes gore and flashes of nudity, both of which help seal it's fate, relegating this film to a bleak and un-marketable existence, one beset in perpetual obscurity. The odds of catching this movie on TV (at any hour) are extremely remote and it's also likely to have a very limited availability in the home video market.Unfortunately... once it's all said and done, Death Bed is not exactly what I would call: Essential Viewing. It's a 40 year old amateur film and it looks like one. However it does have a certain charming repugnance to it, that I think many viewers will readily appreciate and maybe even admire.

A bed that's possessed by a lethal demonic spirit eats anyone who either sits or lies down on it. Yep, that's about it for the plot, but man does this flick register highly on the you have to see it to believe kookiness scale. Writer/director George Barry relates the offbeat story at a deliberate pace, does a sound job of crafting an odd dreamlike atmosphere, makes nice use of the gloomy isolated mansion location, and even sprinkles in a satisfying smattering of gratuitous female nudity for good measure. Fortunately, Barry doesn't take the gloriously ludicrous premise too seriously (the bed ingests a bottle of Pepto-Bismol at one point!). The rough cinematography, wonky synthesizer score, crude gore f/x, and ragged acting by a game no-name cast all further enhance the overall jaw-dropping weirdness. That's noted rock critic and official Bruce Springsteen biographer Dave Marsh as the sickly tortured artist imprisoned in a painting by the bed; Patrick Spence-Thomas provides the voice of the artist and serves as the picture's narrator. A truly singular doozy.

This film is a sublime gem. How many times do we pick up a much lauded, so called, 'cult classic' and find that apart from an interesting opening and a decent climax, there is just too much chasing about in the woods? Well, every now and again a film pops out its box and leaps all over you, like this one. OK, you might imagine from the title that there should be at least one scene that at least alludes to the bed that eats. Believe me there is little else here. From beginning to end this is imaginative, surreal, horrific and startling mayhem. Sometimes beautiful, occasionally amusing but always captivating, this truly is a one off that will stun you with its audacity and leave you open mouthed. I even applauded sat upon my settee a couple of times. It is a tragedy this is so underrated but never mind all that just treat yourself to this amazing and only outing from director George Barry.