Review of The Abominable Dr. Phibes (1971) by Brendan O — 17 Sep 2011
The usual tattiness of British horror film production - such as a car crash signified by noises off - offset by pricelessly eccentric character acting and flashes of loopy, unrepeatable vision... By the point we come to find Phibes boiling down a job lot of Brussels sprouts to set up his plague of locusts, you well understand how Tim Burton came to fall so much in love with this actor.
Very much of the period that brought Monty Python to our screens, it's equally silly and scary - Price sips cocktails through a tracheotomy scar, men are killed with brass unicorns, and Joseph Cotten (Joseph Cotten! From "Citizen Kane"!) turns up in the middle of it all, clinging onto his usual dignity - but I'd love to believe David Fincher saw this (or "Theatre of Blood", Price's other acting triumph of the period) before making "Se7en".
This review of The Abominable Dr. Phibes (1971) was written by Brendan O on 17 Sep 2011.
The Abominable Dr. Phibes has generally received positive reviews.
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