This is my favorite time of year, second only to Christmas.
Autumn has arrived, the weather is cooling down, and October becomes the
month-long celebration of scary movies called Shocktober. So, in the days leading up Halloween I’ll be posting some horror movie recommendations to help you celebrate Shocktober.
Night 12: Horror Anthology Night
Poe: “I want to be sure my words will survive me, that they will never be lost in time.”
Death: “That, my friend, Nevermore.”
The stories of Poe and the anthology film format are such a
perfect combination I’m surprised there aren’t more Poe based anthology films,
or at least more noteworthy ones. The animated anthology Extraordinary Tales,
written and directed by Raul Garcia, is indeed noteworthy, not just for its approach
to Poe’s stories, but also its superb execution and unexpected, haunting
pathos.
Each
vignette has a distinct animation style with great imagery and notable
narrator. The Fall of the House of Usher, narrated by Christopher Lee, is
the first and longest of the short films, and it is an excellent start to this
moody and atmospheric collection. It captures wonderfully the melancholy and
dread that looms over the house of Rodrick Usher as he fears his sister has
been buried alive. The Tell-Tale Heart is animated in stark black and
white. This short segment is narrated by Bela Lugosi, whose voice comes through
the distant hiss and crackle of an old phonograph. The third segment, The
Facts in the Case of M. Valdemar, animated to resemble a comic book, is probably
the least known story in the film. This story, narrated by Julian Sands, tells
of a mesmerist who hypnotizes an ill friend at the moment of death in an
attempt to stop death and learn about the great beyond.
The Pit and the
Pendulum, about a prisoner facing torture at the hands of the Spanish
Inquisition, is told by Guillermo Del Toro and done in a realistic computer
animation. The final segment is the silent The Masque of the Red Death.
This story shows us the gruesome effects of a plague and the decadence of
people celebrating in the castle of Prince Prospero, believing themselves safe
from the plague. There is only one line of dialogue in this film, when the
Prince (voiced by Roger Corman) questions the identity of the strange guest
that dares to wear a mask resembling the effects of the plague.
The
stories are all tied together with a peculiar and clever device:
a raven visits a cemetery and has a conversation with a stone statue of a
woman. The Raven is the soul of Poe, and the female voice of the motionless
statue is Death. Their
conversation is a gateway to Poe’s stories. The Raven is melancholy and proud
and anxious and defiant of death and time. “My work is eternal,” it says, “I
want that eternity.” The soft sweet voice of death is gentle, beguiling, and
alluring, but also content and peaceful and inviting. The scenes of the Raven
and Death are haunting and give us glimpses into Poe’s life and thoughts.
Extraordinary Tales is a wonderful and fitting tribute to Edgar Allan Poe, a
love letter to his work and influence. It is a great
way to enjoy some of his most famous stories or introduce someone to them. It’s
also great to watch with someone that isn’t really into horror and makes for a perfect
moody Shocktober night.
