Web of the Spider

Thanks for remaking a film you made just six years earlier, Antonio. Seriously, as if I have got enough of these to watch already, we get Castle of Blood remade in colour, with no real differences at all, except that this time Klaus Kinski gets to play Edgar Allan Poe (and therefore 'do a Kinski' by only showing up for a fraction of the film's running time). To jog your memory, a friend of Poe's called Alan Foster takes up a bet that he can't stay the whole night in the haunted old castle of Lord Blackwood. Foster heads for the seemingly deserted castle, wanders around a bit, then realises that he's not quite alone as Lord Blackwood's sister turns up and starts putting the moves on him, but don't get excited though, it ain't that kind of film. Is there any point in describing the plot? It's the same as Castle of Blood - the dead come alive and replay the last moments of their lives and Foster is trapped in there with them. Foster even meets the doctor who tells the same speech as last time and kills another snake! Didn't need that then, don't need it now. I didn't think Castle of Blood was that great a film the first time around, but at least it had Barbara Steele in it. I've no idea what Margharetti was thinking by remaking it, but at least he could have brought the tone in line with the films that were emerging from Italy in the early seventies.

An remake with similar events to a former film titled Castle of Blood or Danse Macabre . While interviewing the famous writer Edgar Allan Poe and in an attempt to convince him , journalist Alan Foster (Anthony Franciosa in previous version played by Georges Riviere) that his horror stories are not pure fantasy, Edgar Allan Poe (Klaus Kinski) challenges the journalist to spend a night in Lord Thomas Blackwood's (Enrico Osterman) mansion. As they take a bet , so that he can spend one night at a tenebrous and haunted house , resulting to be a challenge from which no one has ever returned. Alan's evening starts out uneventfully, until Alan discovers that he is not alone. Sharing the house with him is Elisabeth Blackwood (Michèle Mercier), sister of Lord Blackwell and the most gorgeous woman he has ever seen, along with Elisabeth's lover Julia (Karin Field), a strange man with dark purports named Herbert (Raf Baldassarre), one Dr Carmus (Peter Carsten) who writes books about metaphysical medicine, and an entire ballroom full of dancers. Nice horror film concerned the classic plot about a hanted house with plenty of preternatural beings , creepy murders and ghastly events. Set at a ghastly castle where happens scabrous and horrifying events . There appear to him vengeful spectres and bloodsuckers roaming here and there, such as : a murderer , a doctor expert on mathaphysical , mysterious and bautiful women , all of them resulting in fateful consequences. In spite of a few escenarios in the uninhabited, spiderweb-invested castle and its medium budget the picture is pretty well, thanks to the adequate filmmaking , stunning cinematography taking great use of lights and shades as well as camera positioning to complement appropriate horror set pieces. Acceptable starring , an obstinate journalist well incarnated by Anthony Franciosa . Reamining cast are pretty good , such as : Michèle Mercier , Klaus Kinski , Peter Carsten , Karin Field , Raf Baldassarre and Silvano Tranquilli who also played the 1964 version . It contains an evocative and colrful cinematography in black and white by Guglielmo Mancori , Sandro Mancori and Silvano Spagnoli . Displaying a thrilling and frightening musical score by Riz Ortalani who also composed the former film . The motion picture was compellingly directed by Antonio Margheriti or Anthony M. Dawson . Antonio Margheritti was a good craftsman expert on horror and exploitation films. A prestigious filmmaker of Spaghetti Westerns, terror , adventures Peplum and anything else . Notorious Antonio directed with skill and aplomb from 1956 to his death in 2002. He made all kinds of genres , some of them splendidly directed and others mediocre or failures. As he realized wartime movies, such as : The Last Hunter , Tornado, Codename Wild Geese , Der Commander , Command Leopard . Sci-Fi : War of Planets , Planet of the Prowl , Criminal of the Galaxy , Yor the Hunter from the future , Treasure Planet .Spaghetti Western : Joko, Dynamite Joe , The Stranger and the Gunfighter , Take a Hard Ride , Ghosts go West , Joe implacable God Said to Cain. And Terror : Virgin of Nuremberg , Cannibal Apocalypse , Alien From Deep , Flesh for Dracula, Flesh for Frankenstein, among others. Rating 6.5/10. Better than average. The picture will appeal to Italian Gothic aficionados.

In comparing this 1971 remake with its 1964 original, one immediately misses the presence of Barbara Steele, although in both titles the 'heroine' only makes her first appearance at the half hour mark. Director Antonio Margheriti must have felt the absence of color in "Castle of Blood," and really adds little else to this new version, with Michele Mercier's Elisabeth fleshed out to some degree, as we see more of her absent husband, barely seen in the original. All the plot elements are virtually identical, right down to the lesbian love scene, resulting in three corpses lying on the floor in roughly two minutes of lustful activity. It was definitely daring in 1964, but here is treated in such timid, predictable fashion that it loses all the bite of the original. The guest filled ball is the one sequence that adds more running time here, 106 minutes over 1964's 89, Elisabeth juggling multiple affairs while her husband is away in America, and both male and female lovers equally jealous to the point of murder. The main weakness in both versions remains the same, a skeptical journalist who doesn't engender audience empathy with his failure to discover what the audience already knows. I would recommend the black and white version with Barbara Steele over the color one, both of which aired twice on Pittsburgh's Chiller Theater, between 1976-1982.

Antonio Margheriti's 1971 remake of his classic "Castle of Blood" has always been criticized for being inferior in every level to it's predecessor. While I do think "Castle of Blood" is a better film, "In the Web of the Spider" does not stand so far behind. Made on a bigger budget than the 1964 version, Margheriti does a good thing by taking a different aesthetic approach than the candle-lit B&W nightmare that is the latter, and instead lighting up the set with a nice range of deep blues and orange gels to show off the more elaborate locations. It also enjoys a better cast than the original, with a highlight being the presence of Klaus Kinski as Edgar Allan Poe. At first glance, he might not seem very right for the role, but he truly nails it in a absolutely maddening performance. They even made his role slightly larger than the original, by adding a superbly creepy introduction scene in a crypt that sets the tone for the rest of the picture. Albeit not as memorable as Barbara Steele, Michele Mercier (the protagonist from the Telephone segment of Mario Bava's "Black Sabbath") is a good replacement and she has great chemistry with Anthony Franciosa (Argento's "Tenebre"), even more so than Steele and Riviere in "Castle...". Also, I found the film to be somewhat more frightening than it's predecessor, specially towards the ending. The best example of which is the scene where Carmus descends into the crypt and coms across a corpse being reanimated. The effects used in the scene are more subtle, but all the more effective in my view. Riz Ortolani's score is rather uneven. There are some memorable tunes, particularly the hauntingly beautiful love theme and the song that plays during the ball sequence, but the rest is a routine and rather distracting orchestra piece intended to create a creepy environment, whereas there are more than a few scenes where I think absolute silence would've made it all the more effective. Still, it doesn't really ruin the picture, and as I've said, it wasn't all bad. The film's major problem is the fact that it's virtually a scene-by-scene remake of the original. Surely, there are some slight improvements, such as the shirtless, hunky ghost that was looked silly in the original is now dressed and more menacing-looking, and the ending is also more subtle and tragic. Still, these elements are only a very small portion of the piece, and while they do make a difference, the whole thing failed to impress me story-wise, because I knew exactly what was going to happen next in every scene. There are no big changes and/or improvements to make it essential viewing for those who have already seen "Castle of Blood", which is a pity really, since it does have some great assets and even surpasses the latter in some ways. Also, where "Castle of Blood" felt provocative and ahead of it's time with it's depiction of sex and lesbianism, "In the Web of the Spider" feels way too restrained and tame, specially for a film that came one year after "The Vampire Lovers", which dealt with some similar themes. The sole 'gore' scene we get to see is in the very end, and is restrained to a brief shot of blood flowing from Franciosa's wound. Mind you, I'm not a gorehoud, nor do I think violence is essential to make a horror film good, but in this case I think it was more than necessary, if only to make it stand out from the original. None of these cons stopped it from being a fun and atmospheric slice of Italian Gothic, but it makes me sad to give it a mere a 7/10. If you're a fan of this type of film and haven't seen "Castle of Blood" yet, I think you might better watch this one first, but otherwise I unfortunately can't go as far as calling it the forgotten gem of continental horror it could have been.

I picked this one up at the dollar store (for a buck, naturally) and it was well worth the price (but not much more than that). This is classic schlock theater fare, perfect for Halloween. More mood than actual plot. You can't take it too seriously because it takes itself so very seriously and that makes it almost comical at times. This is no cinematic masterpiece, but as long as you keep your expectations realistic, you'll have fun watching it. I wish I knew Italian so I could decipher the original title. Somehow, the American title "Web of the Spider" isn't too descriptive as spiders don't figure very prominently in the plot. I guess it's a metaphor for not being able to get out of a situation once you're in it.

Only adding that - until more caringly reissued (as well noted in other best review here=see S. Nylund '03) - since you'll likely come across the more commonly available pan and scan version, you can add fun here, not only watching to guess all the likely shouted direction to Francis in his ponderous constant close ups (look this way Anthony; now the other; smirk, smile, grimace …) as he wanders almost wordlessly around the haunted mansion, but also, being it is largely dialogue free, you can surely add extra enjoyment by shouting in your own dialogue, instead! In any case, bookend Kinski's character is obviously - and travesty so - dubbed, so losing his patent maniacal deliveries which it could have well done with.) And so p-o-n-d-e-r-o-u-s-l-y slow paced indeed, that you'll also get plenty o time to carefully appreciate the sets and decor, and by which, for the 'candle wranglers' alone, should get a very special mention for their constant atmospheric efforts here (does candle wax ever drip from candelabras?).

Right after Mario Bava, the late Antonio Margheriti was arguably the second-greatest Italian Gothic Horror director, his doubtlessly most ingenious work being the 1964 masterpiece "Danza Macabra" (aka. "Castle of Blood") starring the one and only Barbara Steele. "Danza Macabra" easily ranks among the most brilliant and fascinating Gothic Horror films ever made, and I was therefore sceptical about this "Nella stretta morsa del ragno" aka. "In the Grip of the Spider" (1971), a remake which Margheriti made of his own film only seven years later. While "In the Grip of the Spider" does in no way equal (or even come close to) the greatness of "Danza Macabra", however, it is nonetheless an atmospheric, creepy and highly entertaining film that every fellow fan of Italian Gothic Horror should enjoy. The storyline is more or less the same as in "Danza Macabra": When interviewing Edgar Allan Poe (Klaus Kinski), a journalist Alan Foster (Anthony Franciosa) makes a bet with a sinister count. Foster has to spend a night alone in the count's eerie, presumably haunted mansion. When the first after his arrival is the beautiful Elisabeth Blackwood (Michèle Mercier), Foster does not foresee the horrors that he is about to experience... Anthony Franciosa is always great, most fellow Italian Horror fans will agree that he had his greatest moment in Dario Argento's "Tenebre" (1982); and who would not love a film that begins with the credits: "Klaus Kinski as Edgar Allan Poe"? Michèle Mercier is a beauty, but she is no Barbara Steele. Barbara Steele is my all-time favorite actress and her mere appearance is such an enrichment to all the great Gothic gems she has starred in that a remake with someone else in her role is most likely to disappoint. She is dearly missed in this one, even though Miss Mercier is in no way bad. "Danza Macabra" is one of the most atmospheric and eerily beautiful Horror films ever made. "In the Grip of the Spider" can not compete with the wonderful mood of the original, even though the film is nicely filmed in cool, eerie settings. It really is a blast to see Klaus Kinski play Edgar Allan Poe, however. While the film mostly keeps the storyline of "Danza Macabra", Margheriti added a long opening sequence which consists mainly of Kinski wandering through eerie tombs in search of a grave. Before seeing this, I expected it to be more exploitative than "Danza Macabra", but the film is actually quite low on sleaze and violence. Overall, "In the Grip of the Spider" is nowhere near as brilliant as "Danza Macabra", but it is definitely still atmospheric, creepy and vastly enjoyable Gothic Horror. My fellow Italian Horror buffs can definitely give this a try, but should make sure to see "Danza Macabra" first.

Early '70s Italian Gothic horror about a journalist, Alan Foster (Anthony Franciosa), who makes a bet with Lord Thomas Blackwood (Enrico Osterman) that he can stay overnight in Blackwood's castle... and survive. Blackwood is good friends with Edgar Allan Poe (Klaus Kinski). Such is the vapid nature of this film that Poe's character is totally inconsequential to the plot. Six writers cobbled together the mishmash of a script. Franciosa spends the majority of his on-screen time wielding a candelabra and looking handsome. Finally, some eye candy shows up in the personae of Elisabeth Blackwood and Julia (Michele Mercier and Karin Field). What could have become a ghostly threesome devolves into a convoluted plot about romantic intrigue amongst the better-off-than-you, as shadows of the past reunite for a fancy ball, witnessed by Foster and his unsolicited companion, Dr. Carmus (Peter Carsten), who shows up halfway through the film: He manages to suck whatever life there was out of it, as he assumes the role of expositor and waxes eloquent about what happens to snakes after they are chopped in half. The principals' psychodrama plays out in front of them, and there is much murder and mayhem. Foster interacts effortlessly with these spirits, oblivious to the notion that there might be a trick being played on him. By the time the action ensues, we are ready to call for our last dance card. So cheap was the transfer of this film to video that the copyright shows up about five minutes before the end of the film, an end that doesn't come nearly soon enough.

Some people really suck at negotiating business deals. "In the Grip of the Spider" revolves on a guy who accepts a bet to spend the night in a secluded and reputedly haunted castle and if he survives the ordeal, he receives the astonishing, stupendous and exhilarating reward of … 10 pounds! Ten pounds?!? Even in the 19th century this probably wasn't even enough to pay the coachman to drive you back to civilization! At least the eccentric Vincent Price offered his guests $10.000 to spend one night in his house on haunted hill; now there's a guy you can do business with! "In the Grip of the Spider" is an accomplishment of the hugely underrated Italian director Antonio Margheriti (better known under his international alias Anthony M. Dawson) and apparently a remake of his very own Gothic horror classic "Castle of Blood" starring Barbara Steele. By doing this Margheriti was far ahead of his time, as it's extremely popular among directors nowadays to remake their own earlier movies. Unfortunately I haven't seen "Castle of Blood" (or at least not yet), so I can't compare, but reliable sources tell me this early 70's version can't hold a candle to the original. This may be so, but I still wouldn't call "In the Grip of the Spider" a bad film – especially not if you're a sucker for Gothic atmospheres. Admittedly the storyline is a little flimsy and unspectacular, but the film nevertheless has several things going for it, like the presence of Klaus Kinski (depicting no less than Edgar Allen Poe), lovely luscious ladies and a downright sardonic finale. The American journalist Alan Foster is desperate to get an interview from the notorious novelist Edgar Allen Poe, but he gets more than he bargained for when Poe and his friend challenge him to spend the night at Blackwood castle. Convinced that ghosts and vampires don't exist, Foster accepts and remains alone in the dark and ominous castle. Things start out great for him, as the lucky bastard even has sex with the perplexing beauty who appears out of nowhere. Several more suspicious individuals make their appearance and, through flashback, Alan gradually learns they're all ghosts trapped inside the castle for all eternity. "In the Grip of the Spider" is slightly overlong (110min) and a lot of footage easily could have been cut. There's a lot of ballroom dancing and painting observing going on, which is quite unnecessary and in fact only undermines the atmosphere of Gothic morbidity. The scenes where random characters dwell through the castle's catacombs and stumble upon ancient tombs are irrelevant to the plot at well, but at least they fit the Gothic concept. The rare moments when Kinski appears on screen are sublime – even though he doesn't even remotely resemble the real Edgar Allan Poe – since there is no other actor more suitable to play a neurotic and lightly inflammable genius than him. Michèle Mercier (as Elizabeth) and Karin Field (as Julia) are both extremely beautiful and sexy starlets, but I'm sort of convinced that Barbara Steele was even better than the two of them combined in the original. I guess I'll have to track that one down as soon as possible. Overall this is a flawed but interesting film, recommend to fans of vintage Italian Goth-horror.

Seven years after giving us the very enjoyable Castle of Blood (1964), one of the most gothic of '60s gothic Euro horrors, director Antonio Margheriti decided to tell the exact same tale again, only this time in colour and without cult favourite Barbara Steele. The result is entertaining enough but also rather redundant if you've already seen his earlier, better movie. The promise of Klaus Kinski as Edgar Allen Poe is undoubtedly a draw, and sure enough the actor chews up the scenery with a typically wild-eyed performance, but his appearance is little more than an extended cameo to kick off proceedings. The majority of the film follows American reporter Alan Foster (Anthony Franciosa) as he endeavours to spend an entire night in a haunted castle for a wager. As in Castle of Blood, he meets several mysterious characters, all of whom turn out to be ghosts who feed on the blood of the living to ensure their existence. The film is atmospheric enough and the performances adequate, but I had hoped that Margheriti would have moved with the times, opting for a more exploitative approach this time around, just to make the film a little different from its predecessor (I'd have happily seen more of Michèle Mercier and Karin Field, who play ghostly babes Elizabeth and Julia). It's not to be: Web of the Spider is remarkably reserved, aiming for style over sleaze. Oh well...