Review of Two Evil Eyes (1990) by Allan C — 20 May 2016

This was originally going to be an anthology film of Poe adaptations that include four directors, including Dario Argento, George A. Romero, John Carpenter and Wes Craven. Carpenter and Craven dropped out, so "Two Evil Eyes" is two Poe adaptations by Romero and Argento.

The Romero story, "The Facts in the Case of Mr. Valdemar," is the weaker of the two and feels like a tepid installment from "Creepshow." Argento's story, "The Black Cat," is much creepier, gory and compelling of a short film.

Argento's film also features Harvey Keitel in the lead, which gives the film some gravitas (Adrienne Barbeau in the lead of Romero's film did not give it gravitas). I like the idea of a new Poe film, since it kind of honors the old AIP Poe cycle of films and giving them a modern amped up level of gore and special effects (courtesy of Tom Savini).

The film does feature a solid cast of familiar faces, including Tom Atkins, E.G. Marshall, John Amos, Julie Benz, Sally Kirkland, Kim Hunter and Martin Balsam and it also features a fine score by Pino Donaggio.

Overall, the Romero short isn't all that worth watching, but the Argento one is excellent.