The Castle of the Living Dead (1964)

At first sight, this looks remarkably humdrum, but it's a bit better than that. Christopher Lee's outwardly benign "Count Drago" invites a travelling troupe of performers to stay and perform at his castle. Before long, things start going drastically wrong for them. All humankind is reflected in this film - we have a witch, a dwarf, a deaf mute and lots of creatures that look like the product of the taxidermist's art - but are they really? It's eerily told, very much in the Hammer mould, this story - with quite a bit of suspense as we gradually get to the truth. Keep an eye out for Donald Sutherland as the policeman with a little added extra....

**_Beware if a creepy man says, “Stay with Daddy forever”_**

In areas north of Rome, 1815, a traveling troupe is offered a lucrative gig at the colossal castle of the strange Count Drago (Christopher Lee). Horror ensues.

An Italian/French production, “The Castle of the Living Dead” (1964) is similar to Roger Corman’s Poe-inspired flicks, such as “The Terror” from the previous year and the contemporaneous “The Tomb of Ligeia,” not to mention Lee’s work with Hammer. Although unfortunately shot in B&W, the first half is great whereas the second half tends to bog down at the castle. Nevertheless, if you have a penchant for those other movies, you’ll appreciate this one. Underneath the mayhem is a welcome warm heart.

This was Donald Sutherland’s first credited p...