The Tingler (1959)

Director:

William Castle

Writer:

Robb White (written by)

Release Date:

29 July 1959 (USA)

Genre:

Horror | Sci-Fi

Tagline:

In Screamarama

Plot:

After much hard work, a pathologist discovers and captures a creature that lives in every vertebrate and grows when fear grips its host...

Plot Keywords:

Fear | Scream | Autopsy | Creature | Movie Theater

Cast

Vincent Price	...	Dr. Warren Chapin
Judith Evelyn	...	Mrs. Martha Ryerson Higgins
Darryl Hickman	...	David Morris
Patricia Cutts	...	Isabel Stevens Chapin
Pamela Lincoln	...	Lucy Stevens
Philip Coolidge	...	Oliver 'Ollie' Higgins

Runtime:

82 min

Country:

USA

Language:

English | American Sign Language

Color:

Color (one scene) | Black and White

Aspect Ratio:

1.85 : 1

Sound Mix:

Mono (RCA Sound Recording) | Stereo (partial)

Certification:

Argentina:13 | USA:Approved | Finland:(Banned) (1961) | UK:15

Company:

William Castle Productions

Trivia:

This film is listed among The 100 Most Amusingly Bad Movies Ever Made in Golden Raspberry Award founder John Wilson's book THE OFFICIAL RAZZIE® MOVIE GUIDE.

Goofs:

Incorrectly regarded as goofs: Hair and nails do not continue to grow after one dies, as Dr. Chapin asserts. The illusion of growth is created by the shrinkage of the flesh surrounding the hair and nails. However, the belief in growth after death has become so ingrained in common folklore that it is not surprising to see it used as "fact" in a horror film; such films play on our fears and knowledge of folklore to achieve their effects.

Quotes:

David Morris: You say get a cat, get a cat, you say get a dog, I got a dog.
Dr. Warren Chapin: We don't need him, come on I want to show you something.
David Morris: Bet you in a fair fight that cat could lick this dog.

Movie Connections:

Features Tol'able David (1921)

Brilliant campy fun from William Castle and Vincent Price

The Tingler marks the second teaming for horror's greatest actor - Vincent Price, and horror's greatest showman - William Castle. This film was released later in the same year that their first venture - House on Haunted Hill - was unleashed upon audiences across the world, and the film sees the two men deliver more of what they did with their first feature. House on Haunted Hill was much loved then - and now - for it's ludicrous plot line and hammy performances, and The Tingler marks another successful fusion of these elements. The plot line is even sillier this time round, and it follows Vincent Price's scientist as he conducts his experiments into fear. He discovers that when we get frightened, a thing, which he called 'the tingler', manifests itself on the spinal column and the only way to rid oneself of this 'tingler' is to scream. Deaf mute's cant scream, however, and soon after discovering that his friend's wife suffers from that condition, and has an acute fear of blood, Price gets to work on attempting to isolate and remove the tingler.

William Castle shows his flair and passion for entertaining his audience throughout this film, with the whole film being, basically, a metaphor for the horror genre on the whole. Castle uses several different methods of getting his audience to scream, and while this film isn't very scary by today's standards - watching this master of entertainment weave his magic is always delightful. Another thing that's delightful about this film is the fact that Vincent Price is in it. Price has an amazing ability to command to the screen, and while this movie doesn't feature his best performance - he's always entertaining, and it's always a pleasure to see him on screen. Castle's special effects are hokey, with the central monster - the tingler - looking rather silly, but that adds to the fun effect of the movie and if the effects had been terrific examples of how good special effects can be - the film wouldn't have been nearly as fun as it is. The Tingler is silly throughout, and it gets really ridiculous towards the end, but if you watch knowing that this isn't to be taken seriously, you'll enjoy yourself just like Castle intended.