City Of The Dead
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DVD Cover Information Actor: Betta St. John, Christopher Lee, Dennis Lotis, Patricia Jessel, Tom Naylor Director: John Llewellyn Moxey Brand: Video Communications Inc. DVD: Region Code 1 Audio: English (Unknown), PCM Mono; English (Original Language), PCM Mono Format: Anamorphic, Black & White, Closed-captioned, Color, DVD, NTSC, Special Edition, Widescreen Picture Format: 1.66:1 Running Time: 76 minutes DVD Release Date: 2001-10-23 Audience Rating: NR (Not Rated) Studio: VCI Entertainment |
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Movie Reviews of City Of The Dead
Movie Review: 2.35 STARS: Atmospheric and kinda creepy movie about witchcraft.
Summary: 2 Stars
"Horror Hotel" or "City of the Dead" is an old style horror flick that is atmospheric and somewhat creepy, but rather benign for a horror movie notwithstanding its age. Basically, "Horror Hotel" is about a town called Whitewood where a witch was burned at the stake back in 1692. Well, the movie fast forwards to the present (at least the present for when the movie was made which may seem like 1692), and the audience is introduced to a professor who is giving a lecture on witchcraft. One of his students, Barlowe, decides to go to Whitewood to do some research for her term paper. Well, to say that Whitewood has not advanced much since 1692 would be an understatement. More importantly, Whitewood seems to be enveloped in not only an incredibly dense shroud of perpetual fog but in a curse as well. It seems that witchcraft is more than just a legend in Whitewood, but a way of life. Needless to say, Ms. Barlowe is in for a very interesting term paper writing experience and may get more information that she desired for her precious assignment.
"Horror Hotel" is not a great horror movie or even that good by any stretch of the oh-so important imagination, but it's not because of a lack of atmosphere. In fact, I've never seen so much fog in my life!! Also, I love the creepy old guy who appears at the fork in the road, rides for a while with a stranger and then mysteriously disappears into thin air!! All of these things and more will be revealed to you while watching "Horror Hotel", the kind of movie you see on the late, late, late horror show, back when we used to have those wonderful little things like Saturday Night Nightmares on USA or TNT Monstervision with Joe Bob Briggs (well, Joe Bob might actually pass on this one, but you get the idea).
Well, the overly-dramatic use of the fog does add a lot to the atmosphere in "Horror Hotel" and, perhaps, this is part of the witch's curse which makes Whitewood all the more creepy. In fact, there is more fog in this movie than there is in John Carpenter's "The Fog"!! At any rate, the movie does a good job of presenting the town of Whitewood and its inhabitants as genuinely mysterious and creepy. Moreover, "Horror Hotel" deserves some credit for its misdirection with leading characters and interesting play on characters in general, if not its attempt at providing a shocking revelation to the audience by movie's end. There is clearly some suspense in "Horror Hotel" although the movie is quite predictable at times as well. Clearly, "Horror Hotel" was a lot scarier back in the day, but for those of us who appreciate atmospheric and setting-induced horror, "Horror Hotel" provides a mildly entertaining movie watching experience that is light (and I stress the word "light") on the scares. Still, the acting, story, plot and the atmosphere present in "Horror Hotel" makes up for its shortcomings by providing the viewer with an interesting spook story.
With regard to the acting, Christopher Lee does a terrific job as the professor, and the other actors are more than adequate for their roles. I affectionately give "Horror Hotel" a little over TWO STARS notwithstanding its limitations. Even though it is not that scary, "Horror Hotel" does a pretty good job of providing the viewer with an interesting look at witchcraft and satanism along with its thick atmosphere which I also found quite interesting. Do not look for any blood in "Horror Hotel" as you will not find it, and there is very little violence nor any unadulterated terror. In a sense, "Horror Hotel" is a lot like an extended episode of "The Twilight Zone" because of its mystical quality, and if you watch it with that in mind, you will probably enjoy it a lot more. The black and white picture present in "Horror Hotel" actually aids in presenting the spooky and creepy atmosphere that the creators of this movie were trying to instill. Overall, "Horror Hotel" is not a bad, not good, but not a bad little flick to warm up to on a cold and rainy night. In fact, this flick should definitely be viewed during the night as the right time and setting are absolutely crucial to getting the right effect with this flick.
With that being said, because of its limitations, "Horror Hotel" won't provide the audience with much in the way of scares (creepiness maybe), but will reward the viewer who likes to use his imagination and who appreciates an atmospheric and setting-induced chiller about witchcraft and the horrors of satanic rituals. However, if you are really looking for a good horror movie that is scary, it's best not to look here. Taking into consideration how old "Horror Hotel" (1961) is, there is still some degree of entertainment value here for the horror movie lover like myself.