I have wanted to see "The Terror" for quite some time. Perhaps I was intrigued with the notion to see Nicholson and Karloff together on screen. But after watching it on TV last week, The Terror didn't have much to offer other than big names and no substance.
The Terror takes place in the 1700s or 1800s when French soldier, Andre Duvalier (Nicholson) is lost and a mysterious woman, Ilsa (Knight) helps him, but she soon vanishes and Andre decides to search for her. Andre comes across an old castle owned by Baron Victor Frederic (Karloff) who is being haunted by the ghost of his dead wife, who died 20 years before. Coincidentally Ilsa looks like the Baron's dead wife and it appears that Ilsa is under the spell of an old witch who wants to torment the Baron.
The Terror is a collection of leftover sets from other movies, mismatch scenes, and an uninspiring script. The biggest problem with this film is that it had too many directors. Several shots were filmed by Roger Corman, Francis Coppola, Monte Hellman, Jack Hill and even Jack Nicholson resulting in a disparity of sequences and incoherent storyline to the point that it almost feel like an experimental student film. This movie doesn't compares to the much more superior Gothic horror productions of Hammer Films back in the day. The other problem was the acting. Nicholson and Karloff didn't have any on screen chemistry. The script was poor as well. According to several online sites, the script was written in four days. This film doesn't deliver any true sense of horror other than the title itself.
Although this film is old and many might know of it because of its big names, this film is far from being a classic. But if you are curious to see Karloff and Nicholson together on screen, well give it a try but don't expect much.
The Terror takes place in the 1700s or 1800s when French soldier, Andre Duvalier (Nicholson) is lost and a mysterious woman, Ilsa (Knight) helps him, but she soon vanishes and Andre decides to search for her. Andre comes across an old castle owned by Baron Victor Frederic (Karloff) who is being haunted by the ghost of his dead wife, who died 20 years before. Coincidentally Ilsa looks like the Baron's dead wife and it appears that Ilsa is under the spell of an old witch who wants to torment the Baron.
The Terror is a collection of leftover sets from other movies, mismatch scenes, and an uninspiring script. The biggest problem with this film is that it had too many directors. Several shots were filmed by Roger Corman, Francis Coppola, Monte Hellman, Jack Hill and even Jack Nicholson resulting in a disparity of sequences and incoherent storyline to the point that it almost feel like an experimental student film. This movie doesn't compares to the much more superior Gothic horror productions of Hammer Films back in the day. The other problem was the acting. Nicholson and Karloff didn't have any on screen chemistry. The script was poor as well. According to several online sites, the script was written in four days. This film doesn't deliver any true sense of horror other than the title itself.
Although this film is old and many might know of it because of its big names, this film is far from being a classic. But if you are curious to see Karloff and Nicholson together on screen, well give it a try but don't expect much.