The Abominable Dr. Phibes (1971)

A doctor, scientist, organist, and biblical scholar, Anton Phibes, seeks revenge on the nine doctors he considers responsible for his wife's death.

Director:

Robert Fuest

Writers:

James Whiton, William Goldstein

Stars:

Vincent Price, Joseph Cotten, Virginia North

1 win & 1 nomination.

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
Vincent Price	...	Dr. Anton Phibes
Joseph Cotten	...	Dr. Vesalius
Virginia North	...	Vulnavia
Terry-Thomas	...	Dr. Longstreet
Sean Bury	...	Lem Vesalius
Susan Travers	...	Nurse Allen
David Hutcheson	...	Dr. Hedgepath
Edward Burnham	...	Dr. Dunwoody
Alex Scott	...	Dr. Hargreaves
Peter Gilmore	...	Dr. Kitaj
Maurice Kaufmann	...	Dr. Whitcombe
Peter Jeffrey	...	Detective Inspector Trout
Derek Godfrey	...	Crow
Norman Jones	...	Sgt. Tom Schenley
John Cater	...	Superintendent Waverley

Storyline

Doctors are being murdered in bizarre manners - bats, bees, a killer frog mask, etc. - which represent the nine Biblical plagues of Egypt. The crimes are orchestrated by an organ-playing, demented madman (from his home base, replete with a clockwork orchestra and help from a beautiful, mute assistant). Detectives are stumped until they find that all the slain doctors once assisted a Dr. Vesalius on an unsuccessful operation involving the wife of organist Dr. Phibes, killed in a car crash upon learning of his wife's death. He couldn't be the culprit, could he?

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Plot Keywords:

revenge | cult film | art deco | tragic villain | anti hero | 

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Taglines:

Nine Gruesome Curses!

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Genres:

Comedy | Horror

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Motion Picture Rating (MPAA)

Rated PG-13 for some horror violence/gore

Did You Know?

Trivia

At one point Phibes quotes "The Good Morrow" by John Donne.

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Goofs

When Dr. Hargreaves fights the frog mask, we see him trying to open the catch with this hands, but in all the close up shots of the ticking catch, there are no hands in sight.

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Quotes

[first lines]
Butler - Ross: Good morning, sir.

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Crazy Credits

Phibes is heard laughing after the song and the credits end.

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Alternate Versions

The Vestron video release and the version shown on cable up until the mid-'90's also featured substituted music soundtracks.

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Connections

Referenced in Svengoolie: Munster, Go Home! (2012)

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Soundtracks

All I Do Is Dream of You
Music by Nacio Herb Brown
Lyrics by Arthur Freed
Courtesy of The Big Three Music Co.
(played on violin after Dr. Kitaj's plane crash)

User Reviews

Tongue-in-cheek horror and lots of Art Deco...

This film would have probably been horrible had they taken themselves seriously. Fortunately, they didn't and, consequently, created a fascinating and entertaining festival of murder, revenge, and Art Deco set design. Vincent Price is Phibes, a brilliant organist and acoustic expert who's wife dies during an operation. He seeks to avenge her death by killing all 9 members of the operating team in creative and extravagant ways. You know the murders will take place, but you're fascinated at how they are done. It's like watching a master at work and all of the murders are works of art. By the end of the movie you'll find yourself rooting for Phibes.

Price is at his best at Phibes. Phibes requires a machine to speak, so Price is effectively miming to the dialog, but he does it so well. The performance of Virginia North as the silent, yet deadly, Vulnavia is particularly interesting. She plays the murderer's sidekick and is always beautiful and mysterious.

One of the most wonderful elements of this film is the Art Deco set and costume design. Every scene just oozes with elegance.

This is one of my favorite movies of all time. No, it's not Gone With the Wind, but it's fun and fascinating just the same, sort of a candy movie. I highly recommend it.

Details

Official Sites:

MGM Studios [United States] Official Twitter

Country:

UK

Language:

English Hebrew

Release Date:

18 May 1971 (USA)

Also Known As:

Dr. Phibes

Filming Locations:

Elstree Studios, Borehamwood, Hertfordshire, England, UK

Box Office

Budget:

GBP300,000 (estimated)

Company Credits

Production Co:

American International Pictures (AIP), Amicus Productions

Technical Specs

Runtime:

94 min

Sound Mix:

Mono

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

1.85 : 1