Castle of the Living Dead (1964)
"Il castello dei morti vivi" (original title)

Count Drago (Christopher Lee) invites over entertainers to his castle, but what the people don't know is that Drago mummifies animals and humans!

Directors:

Warren Keifer, Luciano Ricci

Writers:

Warren Keifer, Michael Reeves

Stars:

Christopher Lee, Gaia Germani, Philippe Leroy

Cast

Complete credited cast:
Christopher Lee	...	Count Drago
Gaia Germani	...	Laura
Philippe Leroy	...	Eric
Mirko Valentin	...	Sandro
Donald Sutherland	...	Sgt. Paul / The witch / The old man
Renato Terra	...	Policeman (as Renato Terra Caizzi)
Antonio De Martino	...	Nick
Luciano Pigozzi	...	Dart
Ennio Antonelli	...	Gianni
Jacques Stany	...	Bruno
Luigi Bonos	...	Marc (as Luigi W. Bonos)

Storyline

All'inizio dell'800 una compagnia di girovaghi è specializzata in uno spettacolo durante il quale viene messa in scena una falsa impiccagione. Durante un sosta vengono invitati dal conte Drago nel suo castello. L'arlecchino della compagnia viene licenziato da Bruno dopo una lite ed il suo posto viene preso da Eric, ex ufficiale. E così partono per il castello; per strada incontrano una vecchia che predice loro che arrivati a destinazione alcuni incontreranno la morte. Nella foresta vedono inoltre un corvo che sembra vivo, ma vivo non è. E infine giungono al castello dove, dietro una porta aperta, trovano ad attenderli una sala piena di uccelli imbalsamati, o che almeno lo sembrano. Fa quindi la sua comparsa il conte Drago.

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Plot Keywords:

entertainer | castle | prophecy | mummy | raven | 

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Taglines:

How much shock can the human brain endure before it cracks?

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Genres:

Horror | Sci-Fi | Thriller

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Details

Country:

Italy France

Language:

Italian

Release Date:

5 August 1964 (Italy)

Also Known As:

Castle of the Living Dead

Filming Locations:

Bomarzo, Viterbo, Lazio, Italy

Company Credits

Production Co:

Filmsonor, Francinor, Serena

Technical Specs

Runtime:

91 min

Sound Mix:

Mono

Color:

Black and White

Did You Know?

Trivia

According to Christopher Lee, during postsynch stage, he had to dub his own voice only with a vague memory of his lines because a continuity girl had neglected to record the dialogs of the film on paper.

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Connections

Featured in Horror Europa with Mark Gatiss (2012)

User Reviews

An Eerie Film With Great Ambiance

Ambiance is what it's all about, and this film has plenty of it. The setting is Europe during the Napoleonic era. A traveling circus troop has been invited to perform at a mysterious castle for a Count and his sleazy looking sidekick. This appears to be Donald Sutherland's first film, and he does a terrific job in a dual role. His presentation of an old hag-like witch is unforgettable. After seeing the movie, I found myself repeating some of the macabre rhymes, such as "Some will live and some will die before the morning sun is high." The acting is solid throughout. Don't expect a lot of action or violence. There's plenty of suspense throughout, however. The female minstrel is most exotic looking, and one watches in anticipation that she might eventually hike her skirt. The tension generated is occasionally broken by comic relief; some of it unintentional no doubt. There is a bit of sword play at the end, which appeared very awkward, but the awkwardness seemed to enhance the realism in a most peculiar way. It had been years since I had seen this film, and I fondly recalled it. I was successful in locating a reasonably crisp copy on DVD. I plan on watching it again soon. I easily rate it a 7 out of 10 based on entertainment value. After all, how many films can offer up their own midget toss?