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Curse of the Crimson Altar is a 1968 British horror film directed by Vernon Sewell and starring Christopher Lee, Boris Karloff, Barbara Steele and Mark Eden. The film was produced by Louis M. Heyward for Tigon British Film Productions. The film was edited and released as The Crimson Cult in the United States. The screenplay, by Doctor Who writers Mervyn Haisman and Henry Lincoln,[1] was based (uncredited) on the short story "The Dreams in the Witch House" by H. P. Lovecraft. This film also featured one of the final film appearances of horror superstar Karloff.[2][3] It was shot in England in February 1968, and Karloff became ill afterward with bronchitis during location shooting on a cold, rainy night.[4]

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Curse of the Crimson Altar
Theatrical release poster
Directed by	Vernon Sewell
Written by	Mervyn Haisman and Henry Lincoln (screenplay)
Produced by	Louis M. Heyward executive Tony Tenser
Starring	Christopher Lee Boris Karloff Barbara Steele Mark Eden Michael Gough Rupert Davies Virginia Wetherell
Cinematography	John Coquillon
Edited by	Howard Lanning
Music by	Peter Knight
Production company	Tigon British Film Productions
Distributed by	American International Pictures
Release dates	December 1968 (1968-12) (UK) 15 April 1970 (1970-04-15) (USA)
Running time	89 minutes
Country	United Kingdom
Language	English

The film opened in England in December 1968, then later premiered in Los Angeles on April 15, 1970 on a double bill with Horror House starring Frankie Avalon. It later went into general release across the United States on Nov. 11, 1970, on a double bill with Count Yorga, Vampire.[5]

Plot synopsis

Antiques dealer Robert Manning (Eden) searches for his brother, who was last known to have visited the remote house of Craxted Lodge at Greymarsh, their family's ancestral town. Arriving at night, he finds a party is in progress, and he is invited to stay by Eve (Wetherell), the niece of the owner of the house. His sleep is restless and strange dreams of ritual sacrifice disturb him. Enquiring about his brother, Peter, he is assured by the house owner, Morley (Lee), that the man is not there. Manning's suspicions are aroused by nightmarish hallucinations. Occult expert Professor Marsh (Karloff) informs Manning about a witchcraft cult led by Morley's ancestor, Lavinia (Steele). With the vicar's help the cult is discovered to still be active. In an effort to kill both Robert and the modern and righteous Lavinia, Morley sets fire to Craxted Lodge but is trapped on the roof. He is actually the head of the cult, the ancestral witch Lavinia, who, laughing at the bystanders, is consumed in the flames.

Cast

• Christopher Lee – Morley
• Boris Karloff – Professor John Marsh
• Mark Eden – Robert Manning
• Barbara Steele – Lavinia Morley
• Michael Gough – Elder
• Virginia Wetherell – Eve Morley
• Rosemarie Reede – Esther
• Derek Tansley – Judge
• Michael Warren – Chauffeur
• Ron Pember – Petrol attendant
• Denys Peek – Peter Manning
• Rupert Davies – The Vicar

Production

The house used for Craxted Lodge is Grim's Dyke, the allegedly haunted former home of William S. Gilbert, located in Old Redding, Harrow Weald, Middlesex, London. The building, which is now a hotel, was used for both exterior and interior shots.

Critical reception

Roger Greenspun of The New York Times wrote, "Karloff himself, cadaverous and almost wholly crippled, acts with a quiet lucidity of such great beauty that it is a refreshment merely to hear him speak old claptrap. Nothing else in The Crimson Cult comes close to him—though there is Barbara Steele in greenface playing Lavinia, a glamorous 300-year-old and a monumental cast that lists no fewer than seven-party girls, plus several sacrificial virgins."[6] Variety wrote that as one of Karloff's final pictures, "it would have been nice if it had been a better role. As it is, it is a totally unabashed rehash of a formula that Karloff has been identified with through the years."[7] Kevin Thomas of the Los Angeles Times called the film "a delight for horror fans, with Karloff in top form despite the infirmities of age."[8] The Monthly Film Bulletin wrote that apart from a wild party and some exposure of a woman's bosom in a bed, "this is one of the lamest and tamest horrors in a long time, with the script hobbling along like an underprivileged Agatha Christie thriller through acres of would-be sinister dialogue as the handsome hero investigates endlessly and Karloff and Christopher Lee dispense meaningful sneers."[9]

References

External links

• Curse of the Crimson Altar at IMDb
• Curse of the Crimson Altar at AllMovie

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