Twice-Told Tales

Plot synopsis:
Each of the three sequences is introduced by Vincent Price (in a voice-over). Price also stars in all three narratives.
=== "Dr. Heidegger's Experiment" ===
Two elderly friends, Carl Heidegger (Sebastian Cabot) and Alex (Price), meet to celebrate Heidegger's 79th birthday. They discover that Heidegger's fiancée from 38 years before, Sylvia, is perfectly preserved in her coffin. Heidegger believes that the water dripping into the coffin has the power to preserve. He tries it on a withered rose and it comes back into full bloom.
Carl and Alex drink it and become young again. Carl injects the liquid into Sylvia and she comes back to life. Sylvia reveals that she and Alex were secretly lovers. Carl attacks Alex, but Alex kills him in the struggle. The effects of the water wear off. Sylvia is reduced to a desiccated skeleton, Carl's body returns to its original age. Alex returns to the crypt to find more of the water, but it no longer flows.
=== "Rappaccini's Daughter" ===
In Padua, Giacomo Rappaccini (Price) keeps his daughter Beatrice in a garden. A university student next door, Giovanni, sees her and falls in love. One of Giovanni's professors says that he used to teach with Rappaccini. Many years ago, Rappaccini abruptly quit academia and became a recluse after his wife ran away with a lover. Rappaccini has treated Beatrice with an exotic plant extract that makes her touch deadly; he does this to keep her safe from unwanted suitors, but it makes her a prisoner in her own home.
When Giacomo sees the attraction between Giovanni and Beatrice, he surreptitiously treats Giovanni with the extract so they can be together. Giovanni is aghast, and obtains an experimental antidote from his professor. He consumes the antidote in front of Beatrice, but it kills him. Beatrice drinks it also, killing herself. Giacomo grabs the exotic plant with both hands and its touch kills him.
=== "House of the Seven Gables" ===
Gerald Pyncheon (Price) returns to his family house after an absence of 17 years, bringing with him his wife Alice. His sister Hannah, who had been living in the house, tells Alice about the curse put upon Pyncheon men by Matthew Moll(Maulle), who used to own the house but lost it in a shady deal to the Pyncheon family. Jonathan Maulle, a descendant of Matthew, arrives, but he refuses Gerald's offer to give him the house in exchange for the location of a vault where valuable property deeds are stored. Alice becomes haunted by the curse on the house, which eventually leads her to the cellar.
Gerald finds her there and discovers the map to the vault. He kills Hannah to keep her share of the inheritance. Gerald traps Alice in the basement grave of Mathew Maulle, then goes to the study to find the vault. He opens it, and a skeletal hand inside the vault kills him. Jonathan arrives and takes Alice out of the house, just as it shakes and collapses.

Tags: romantic, murder

Review:
This is a compilation of three short films based on Nathaniel Hawthorne works--Heidegger's Experiment, Rappaccini's Daughter and The House of Seven Gables.
But if you're not acclimated to the style, it takes some getting used to.It's definitely worth getting used to, because these three short films by director Sidney Salkow are atmospheric, captivating stories, full of horror if you are able to slow yourself down and be absorbed by them.
The film's fine technical elements--the sets, costumes, cinematography, lighting, music and so on--help draw one in to the proceedings.As with most Hawthorne, the stories have strong moral subtexts, often hinging on just deserts for questionable ethical decisions, which are often themselves made with an aim of protecting ethical "purity" in some way.
Speaking of Rappaccini's Daughter, it's interesting to note that this could easily count as an early sci-fi tale from Hawthorne.For horror fans, the most important aspect of the film is that Twice-Told Tales' scenarios are macabre and frequently terrifying.
Only the House of Seven Gables offers a slight glimpse of hope at the end.Twice-Told Tales isn't the first compilation film or even the first horror compilation film, but it is one of the earlier, better and influential examples.
Salkow's impact on horror wasn't to end here, as he went on to co-direct the excellent Price vehicle The Last Man on Earth in 1964, which was a big influence on subsequent films such as 28 Days Later (2002).
Twice-Told Tales is a trio of horror stories based on the writings of Nathaniel Hawthorne.
Each story stars horror maestro Vincent Price, and this allows the man to show his range in a series of different roles throughout the film.
The second tale is a fairytale horror story of love, protection and madness and follows the tale of an overbearing father that takes steps to ensure that his daughter doesn't sin like her mother did.
I still love it, each time when I see it again, because of the three intelligent stories (one about an elixir of life and a tragic love triangle, one about a poison which separates two lovers, and one about a haunted house), which of course in view of the movie's age don't contain splatter elements but unfold a subtle horror and especially because of the atmosphere with the wonderful kitschy set and colors, which gives the movie, beside of the dated special effects, the typical and irresistible charm of old trash....
"Twice-Told Tales" is a movie composed of three timeless shorts based on horror tales by Nathaniel Hawthorne with Vincent Price.(1) "Dr. Heidegger's Experiment": In 1859, Alex Medbourne (Vincent Price) and Dr. Carl Heidigger (Sebastian Cabot) have been best friends for decades.
The first story is "Dr. Heidegger's Experiment," about two elderly friends, Dr. Carl Heidegger (Sebastian Cabot) and Alex Medbourne (Vincent Price) who discover magical water that they use to become young again.
The second story is "Rappaccini's Daughter." Giovanni Guasconti (Brett Halsey) falls in love with beautiful Beatrice Rappaccini (Joyce Taylor) at first sight.
Beatrice is the daughter of scientist Giacomo Rappaccini (Vincent Price) and, much to Giovanni's horror, her father has injected her with plant toxins that make her deadly to touch.
The third, and most famous, story is "The House of the Seven Gables." Gerald Pyncheon (Vincent Price) returns to his ancestral home with his new bride (Beverly Garland).
If you watch this movie, do not bother viewing the third one, which is a shortened version of "The House of Seven Gables" with Vincent Price in the villain role [he was the hero in the much superior 1940 version].Other good things about this movie are the music and the sets [especially in the first tale]..
The photography, some good effects and the acting, especially from Price, make the segment worth the watch at least, but it felt dull to me and tries to cram far too much in, which undermined the story-telling severely.
I wholly concur with the general consensus that the second segment Rappacinni's Daughter is the best one of the three, it is creepy and atmospheric, the most lush in look, is the most emotionally complex and has a really well-told story(it is also the most faithful to Hawthorne's writing).
This overlooked Vincent Price movie, supposedly based on the works of Nathaniel Hawthorne, appears to be the inspiration for "Creepshow," complete with a skeleton hand turning the pages between stories.
A skeletal hand turns the pages of a book, revealing three tales of the macabre loosely based on the works of 19th century author Nathaniel Hawthorne, all starring horror legend Vincent Price, who plays a different character in each.In the first story, "Dr. Heidegger's Experiment", Price plays Alex, who meets with his old friend Carl Heidegger (Sebastian Cabot), who is celebrating his 79th birthday.
After studying the water that has been dripping onto Sylvia's coffin, Heidegger believes that the liquid not only has the power to preserve, but also to reverse the ageing process, and even bring his beloved back to life.The second tale, "Rappaccini's Daughter", sees Price as reclusive Dr. Giacomo Rappaccini, whose wife ran off with another man, leaving him to raise his daughter Beatrice (Joyce Taylor).
However, after she threatens to take her own life, Giacomo conducts a procedure that means the couple can finally be together, but his actions have tragic consequences.The closing chapter is "The House of the Seven Gables", in which Price stars as Gerald Pyncheon, who, accompanied by his young wife Alice (Beverly Garland), moves into his ancestral home, which is also occupied by his sister Hannah (Jacqueline deWit).
Gerald is convinced that the house holds a hidden vault containing his ancestor's fortune, but a centuries old curse and a malevolent ghost ensure that his search for the treasure results in madness, death and the destruction of the Pyncheon home.They might be called Twice-Told Tales, but I'll wager that most horror fans will be satisfied to see these stories unfold just the once, Hawthorne's 'dark romanticism' resulting in a trilogy that is heavy on Gothic atmosphere, melodrama and Shakespearean tragedy (Hawthorne borrowed the title 'Twice-told Tales' from a play by the bard), but extremely light on terror.
Price puts in three commendable performances, but even with the star on fine form, Twice Told Tales is a rather dismal and depressing addition to the horror anthology sub-genre..
This also benefits from some decent special effects and capable direction by Sidney Salkow (who also guided star Vincent Price in "The Last Man on Earth").In "Dr. Heidegger's Experiment", Price stars with Sebastian Cabot as they play elderly friends Alex Medbourne and Dr. Carl Heidegger.
(23 years earlier, he'd played the hero in a feature length adaptation of this story.) Gerald and his younger wife Alice (Beverly Garland) arrive at the family home so he can search for the treasures hidden on the premises.
Garland is very appealing, and Price has fun just as he always did with his villainous roles.Fans of old school horror, anthologies, and the actors involved will likely have a good time with "Twice-Told Tales".
Vincent Price heads up a B-cast in this middle-drawer trilogy of not-so-terrifying tales from writer Nathaniel Hawthorne's dark side.
The opener, "Dr. Heidigger's Experiment", is probably the best of the lot, with Price and Sebastian Cabot acting wonderfully persnickety as a couple of old codgers living together like sisters; they discover a "virgin spring" in the mausoleum of Cabot's deceased sweetheart and use it to bring back their youth...and re-animate the corpse!
The second episode, "Rappaccini's Daughter", has Price playing a great scientist/hermit who has replaced his beautiful's daughter's blood with the acidic juice from a Chinese plant, causing her to be untouchable without the proper gloves; the story doesn't bear close scrutiny, but the set design here is interesting.
Director Sidney Salkow, apparently saving the 'best' for last, lets loose with "The House of the Seven Gables" (previously filmed as a feature in 1940, co-starring Vincent Price!), a haunted house meller with bleeding walls and a skeleton's arm in the secret vault; it is unintentionally hilarious, leaden-paced, woodenly acted, and enjoyably ridiculous all at the same time.
Three tales from Nathaniel Hawthorne are shown each starring Vincent Price.
"Twice-Told Tales" is a trio of Gothic horror stories written by Nathaniel Hawthorne (who is considered a classic American writer), all starring Vincent Price.
And the third story, "The House of the Seven Gables" is about a family curse placed upon the Pyncheon family, and the curse makes itself known late one night when the remaining family gathers on the property to discuss inheritance.Sometimes funny, sometimes ridiculous, but always entertaining is the way I'd describe this movie.
It was as if they took the basic idea of a curse and an old house, and fused them together with some common elements of old-time horror films, and came up with this story that is light years different than the actual novel.
Everything looks very fake, but again, for it's time, it probably wasn't considered bad - I'm going to take it easy on this film.Overall, "Twice-Told Tales" is a movie that will probably gain no respect by the majority of today's audiences.
Three stories based on Nathaniel Hawthorne's Twice-Told Tales - all three a excellent!
Surprisingly, this works well, despite Hawthorne not being known for his horror material.Vincent Price serves as the narrator, but also appears as the characters Alex Medbourne, Professor Giacomo Rappaccini, and Gerald Pyncheon."Dr. Heidegger's Tale": A doctor's wife is found in her tomb after 38 years, and never aged or decomposed a day.
All three of the tales here are based on the writings of Nathaniel Hawthorne (best known for his dramatic novel THE SCARLET LETTER) and provide horror spins on everything from the fountain of youth to the touch of the death to the centuries-old family curse.
Unfortunately, thanks to leaden pacing and flavorless, almost anonymous direction from Sidney Salkow (Corman would have handled all this much better), this project never seems to fulfill its full potential.Story #1 is "Dr. Heidegger's Experiment," which doesn't following the source story very closely and stars Vincent Price and Sebastian Cabot as elderly best friends who get a second chance at life.
Dr. Heidegger, along with his heavy-drinking best friend Alex Medbourne (Vincent Price), accidentally knock over Sylvia's coffin and find that her corpse has been perfectly preserved.
A very intriguing little tale (which actually does stick close to the original story), this is well-done, interesting and comes with a nicely tragic ending, though there's not even the slightest attempt to make this feel like it's set in Italy and, once again, Price is relegated to more of a less-colorful supporting role.Finally we have "The House of the Seven Gables," which had already been filmed several times at feature length, including once in 1940 with Vincent Price playing a completely different role.
This tries to cram way too much plot into 40 minutes and becomes both dull and ponderous, though it does pick up a bit at the end with a surprising pick-axe to the head murder, a silly reanimated skeleton hand and a model of the home crumbling to the ground.It's worth a look to fans, but there are much better examples of the anthology format out there, as well as much better usage of horror legend Price in dozens of other films..
However, like so many Vincent Price films of the 60s that are based on classic American tales (mostly those of Poe), the stories diverge a lot from the original source material by Hawthorn.
The final story, The House of Seven Gables, is particularly odd because this story AND the 1940 film THE HOUSE OF SEVEN GABLES both starred Vincent Price and both strayed dramatically from the original stories--so much so that you'd scarcely recognize them.Of the three tales, Dr. Heidigger's Experiment is the most enjoyable.
Despite fun performances by Vincent Price in all three stories, the film just limped along after the first segment and by the time it ended, I was more than ready to watch something else.
This film features the writing of a very famous author, Nathaniel Hawthorne who will hold your interest in which Vincent Price plays all three main actors in all the tales which involves very strange behavior of a father to wants to protect his daughter from the sins of the world and has given her a secret power which destroys everything she touches.
Sidney Salkow directed these three adaptations of Nathanial Hawthorne stories starring Vincent Price & Sebastian Cabot: "Dr. Heidegger's Experiment" - A rejuvenation formula has unforeseen consequences in this nicely produced but routine story, with Price & Cabot in good form at least."Rappaccini's Daughter" - A man with an elaborate garden poisons his daughter so that she will never leave it, though it doesn't go according to plan...
Bound together in one package, three stories from writer Nathaniel Hawthorne are presented in one collection.The Good Stor(ies): Dr. Heidegger's Experiment-Dining together, two friends start in on his long-deceased wife and his desire to see her again.
Each of the three tales told here are magnificent, albeit slightly suffering from their shortage and I'll definitely continue to look for the long-feature film version of "The House of Seven Gables", as I know it's available somewhere.
Price this time stars as the tormented scientist Rappaccini, who pumped his poor daughter Beatrice so full of poison that she absorbs the color and life out of everything she touches.
The third and final tale in this marvelous horror anthology is called "The House of Seven Gables" and revolves on a feud between two families that still lives on after several generations.
Three-part horror anthology: in the first story, Sebastian Cabot finds what appears to be the elixir of youth, and re-animates his long-dead wife-to-be to boot; some good (for the time) "morphing" effects, and the payoff is both amusing and grim.
In the third tale, Vincent Price returns to his (cursed!) ancestral house, determined to find a hidden vault, while his young wife (Beverly Garland, with her exquisite cheekbones) gets weird premonitions, as if someone is trying to communicate with her - from beyond the grave!
Vincent Price stars in three effectively eerie and engrossing tales of terror based on the short stories of Nathaniel Hawthorne.
Second and most original segment, "Rappaccini's Daughter" - The strikingly comely Joyce Taylor is enchanting as Beatrice, a lovely young lass with a lethal poisonous touch.
Third and most horrific episode, "The House of the Seven Gables" - Price hams it up nicely as a wicked wealthy swine who returns to a creepy crumbling family mansion that has a 150 year old curse on it to find a buried hidden fortune.
Price and Sebastian Cabot portray long time friends who eventually find themselves at odds over Heidegger's fiancé (Mari Blanchard), who died thirty eight years earlier.
The toxic plant business is a bit of a stretch too, making Dr. Rappaccini (Price) it's final victim in this story of unrequited love and it's tragic aftermath.The third part of the trilogy is a much condensed version of Hawthorne's 'House of the Seven Gables', and mysterious enough to recommend that I get the source material to check it out in novel form.
A trio of tales, all starring Vincent Price, has a virgin spring that returns youth, a scientific experiment which causes an acidic touch, and a hidden vault long sought after somewhere in an old manor deemed cursed.
The first tale has Vincent Price as Alex Medbourne, sharing a whiskey with long time friend, Dr. Carl Heidigger (Sebastian Cabot), as the two talk about old times while a thunderstorm stirs outside.
The second tale has Vincent Price as an embittered father, Dr. Giacomo Rappaccini, whose wife left him for another man, inflicting his daughter, Beatrice (Joyce Taylor) with an affliction where her touch is acidic, killing anyone or thing instantly.
Another triple play of Poe/Price, like Tales of Terror, but without Corman, and not quite as good.
The tales are Heidegger's Experiment, Rappaccini's Daughter and The House of Seven Gables, and the stories are really the stars.
One year after Roger Corman's "Tales Of Terror", the incomparable Vincent Price starred in another ghoulish and great Horror anthology, namely Sidney Salkow's "Twice-Told Tales" of 1963.
The film is divided into three Gothic tales, all three starring Price, all three based on the writings of the magnificent Nathaniel Hawthorne, all three compelling, atmospheric and wonderfully eerie.The first segment, "Dr Heidegger's experiment" is about the classic topic of resurrection and eternal youth.
Dr. Carl Heidegger (Sebastian Cabot) and Alex Medbourne (Vincent Price) have been best friends for all their life.
It gives Price the opportunity to appear at his maddest, and yet his character is not necessarily purely villainous, but merely a tormented man whose pain has driven him into insanity.When the second segment is the most macabre, the third tale, "The House of the Seven is the one with the most uncanny Gothic atmosphere.
150 years later, Gerald Pyncheon (Price) returns to the 'House of the Seven Gables' , well-aware that all of his male ancestors have died horrible deaths there, but even more keen on finding a lost family treasure...All three stories are atmospheric and gloomy, and while the first one, "Dr. Heidegger's Experiment" is slightly lesser to the others, it makes a great first segment in the anthology.
All things considered, "Twice-Told Tales" is great Gothic Horror cinema that should not be missed by any lover of Horror, and especially a must-see to all my fellow Vincent Price fans!
A classic gruesome threesome that focuses on three short stories by Nathaniel Hawthorne, all starring the fabulous Vincent Price.
The second segment has a beautifully colorful set but a strange and convoluted tale of a young man (Brett Halsey) obsessed with the creepy beauty (Joyce Taylor) next door.
It's ironic to see Price have a second involvement in a tale loosely based on "The House of the Seven Gables", this one quite distinctive with a totally different story than the 1940 Universal classic.