Just perfect...

Let me be very fair here, this is not the best movie in my opinion. But, this movie is fun, it has purpose and is very enjoyable to watch.

It's simply great fun, a winsome film and an occasionally over-the-top luxury fantasy that never flags.

It is a whirlwind of delight --- attractive actors, stunning couture, spectacular sets and outrageous parties. It's a feast for the eyes. But what really makes this dramedy work is the acting.

Vincent Price not only parodies his own career but salutes the whole genre as well in this look at the modern world through the eyes of Gothic horror. Old colleagues Boris Karloff and Basil Rathbone get honored through their then recent deaths through clips of several of their horror films, and while this marked the end of Price's American International films, he had nearly 29 years left in his own career that included film, stage and TV, as well as various other forms of art. Paired here with Peter Cushing, Price still gets the spotlight as the complicated horror movie star whose series of films as Dr. Death have seemingly driven him mad. But is he the fiend, or is it someone else?Cushing actually has little footage as an actor of horror films who instead became a writer of the series, and hints are dropped that he could be the maniac. But there are other suspects too, among them a former female co-star who has obviously gone mad due to her own frightful memories and unrequited love. The film is bloody and gruesome but not needlessly so, unlike some other films that took the frights a bit too far. Its ultimately pretty predictable but a nice ending to the lengthy career Price had at the greatest B studio following the end of the golden era of movie making. At times, Price overacts a bit and seems to be taking what Karloff had done in Targets and giving it his own touch. There is a persistent blonde who stalks Price and I couldn't wait for her to be dispatched. Perhaps that is the point of the film made through a speech Price gives that we all have a deep seated desire to see violence even if we are unable to commit it.

Paul Toombes (Price) is an acclaimed Horror film star who rose to stardom playing a character called Dr. Death. As the film starts, Toombes discovers his blonde fiancée (Linda Hayden) dead at a Hollywood party causing him to go into hiding for years. He is lured out of retirement for a British TV series in which Paul will be able to reprise his role of Dr. Death by the films screenwriter Herbert (Cushing). Once on location, a mysterious killer dressed as Dr. Death is stalking about killing cast members. Has Toombes gone off the deep end and is killing people for real? Or is it someone else trying to frame it. This joint production from AIP and Amicus has a distinct British feel to it despite Price in the lead role. The movie flirts with being a slasher movie and the gore is amped up with decapitations and the like, but the plot is straight out of the early 1960's and is quite predictable. Price chews up the screen in a role that reflected himself at the time of an aging horror actor. Cushing is completely wasted in his minor supporting role, and the entire story feels like it should have been made ten years earlier. Dr. Death is a cool killer and the prowling scenes work well, but you can guess everything that is going to happen way before it does, and the surprise ending doesn't surprise anyone. This would strictly be for Vincent Price fans who want to see the legend in a starring role one last time.

Garish Looking, even more so than Most 1970's Movies, this Self Parody is Entertaining to those who have Affection for Vincent Price, Peter Cushing, and AIP or Hammer Horror. In Other Words it Helps to have at least Some Investment in the History that is being Spoofed.This Patchwork Film is done Piecework and it seems as though Everyone Involved Ramped it Up a Bit because it does Exude a lot of Energy. It just isn't done Very Well and at times Looks like a Work in Progress or it was all done Cheap and on the Quick, which it was.Things do Move Along and there is a Thick Plot with Mysterious Murders done by a, lets Throw in for Fun, Black Gloved Killer, Gallio Style. Just about Every Horror Cliché is Included. Some Work, Some don't. There are Cobwebs, Spiders, Burn Victims, Knife Victims, Skewer Victims, Decapitations, and just for Something Completely Different, a Four Poster Bed that Crushes.The Contrast between Old Mansion Cellars with Rats and Spiders with a Modern TV Studio is Uneasy as the Mood Swings and the Flavor of the Film Differentiates Wildly. That may Add a Surreal Sense to the Whole Thing, but a lot of it doesn't Make Much Sense. But then again, it's a Madhouse.The Double Twist Ending is a Good Time and if You are Not too Critical You may have a Good Time with this Low-budget, Badly Put Together, Pastiche of Horror Movie Mania.

The legendary Vincent Price lands himself the plumb part of veteran horror star Paul Toombes, who returns to acting after spending several years in a sanitarium. Toombes has trouble distinguishing between himself and his most popular creepy role of Dr. Death. Someone starts committing a series of murders while dressed up as Dr. Death. Is Toombes the killer? Or is it someone else? Director Jim Clark, working from a clever script and inspired by Ken Levisan and Greg Morrison, pokes plenty of sly sardonic fun at Price's famous sinister horror star persona, expertly mines a wickedly amusing line in sharp sarcastic humor (the barbed digs at ruthless and selfish showbiz types are especially spot-on), and does a sound job of creating and maintaining a good degree of spooky mysterious atmosphere. Moreover, the able acting from a bang-up cast helps out a lot: the always terrific Peter Cushing as Toombes' loyal writer friend Herbert Flay, Robert Quarry as sleazy producer Oliver Quayle, Adrienne Corri as the bitter, unhinged, and grotesquely disfigured Faye Carstairs Flay, Natasha Pyne as sweet PR specialist Julia Wilson, Linda Hayden as brash opportunistic aspiring actress Elizabeth Peters, and Michael Parkinson as a hearty TV interviewer. The generous use of choice clips from such vintage 60's Roger Corman chillers as "House of Usher" and "The Haunted Palace" greatly enhances the considerable macabre merriment. Although they only appear in a few scenes with each other, it's nonetheless a real treat to see horror icons Price and Cushing acting in a movie together. The ending is deliciously nutty and ironic. Ray Parslow's polished cinematography gives the picture an impressive glossy look. Douglas Gamley's spirited shivery score hits the shuddery spot. An immensely entertaining fright flick.