Extraordinary Tales - 2013 - PFF

Extraordinary Tales - 2015 - PFF

This film had many aspects that made me want to see it. Some of my favorite actors are narrating the stories, great actors like Sir Christopher Lee, Julian Sands, and “Dracula” himself, Bela Lugosi. Of course, the fact that they are narrating the immortal works of literary legend Edgar Allen Poe is a plus. This film is an anthology piece in which five separate stories are told in five different styles of animation along with

a connector story told in between. An interesting conversation between Poe, in the form of a raven, and “Death” who just happens to be talking to him from the statues in a cemetery. Each style of animation is unique to the story that is being told but will get into that later. There is a unique beauty to the conversation between Death and Poe. Death is portrayed as a soft-spoken woman who has almost a musical quality to her speech. Not at all what someone usually thinks of when they think of the voice of Death.

The stories that are told in this film are: “The Fall of the House of Usher”, “The Tell-Tale Heart”, “The Facts in the Case of M. Valdemar”, “The Pit and the Pendulum”, and The Red Masque of Death”. I will admit that there were two stories told here that I had never read, one of which I had never heard of. The other three stories are some of my favorite Poe stories. I think the only piece of Poe literature that I would have loved to have seen portrayed here was “The Raven”, but that is just because that is one of my favorite Poe works, and I think it was a tip of the hat to have Poe portrayed as a raven in the connecting story. This film is considered by many to be Sir Christopher Lee’s last film project. Those same people feel that it was a very appropriate bookend to his amazing and long career. Each narrator in this film has made their mark on the horror genre in one way or another. From Bela’s portrayal of “Dracula” in 1931 that set the tone for how we saw the vampire many years and is still considered by many to be the best portrayal of Stoker’s vampire, to legendary horror director Roger Corman and the incomparable Sir Christopher Lee. Let’s talk about some of the stories and their narrators, shall we?

First up is “The Fall of the House of Usher”, narrated by screen legend Sir Christopher Lee. This is a story about obsession and madness and I can think of no one better to narrate this than Lee. He has such an expressive voice, you can almost feel the dread that the characters are experiencing creeping into yourself as well. The animation is beautiful, the characters and backgrounds look like they are made out of wood, in the style of Czech animator Jiri Trnka. This role is considered to be Christopher’s last role by many fans of the genre. Was that the case it would be a fitting final film, though there are a few films that have been released since his death. Besides his extensive film career, he also served with distinction during WWII and was a famed Nazi hunter as well. Many recognize Lee from his role as Dracula in the 1960s and ’70s for Hammer films. He was introduced to a new generation when he played the voice of King Haggard in the English and German versions of the 1982 animated classic “The Last Unicorn”. A huge fan of Tolkien, he was again center stage when Peter Jackson cast him as the white wizard, Saruman in Jackson’s adaptation of the Tolkien bestselling classic

novels “The Hobbit” and the “Lord of the Rings Trilogy”. He would also endear himself to young and old Star Wars fans alike as the evil Count Dooku in the 2002 “Star Wars Episode II: Attack of the Clones” and 2005’s “Star Wars Episode III: Revenge of the Sith”. Never one to conform to stereotypes he actually was well known and well-loved on the Heavy Metal scene, having recorded 7 heavy metal albums, one of which being the widely popular “A Heavy Metal Christmas, recorded in 2012 at the age of 89. Sadly, the world lost a man of many talents and a kind and giving soul when Christopher passed away on June 7, 2015, at the age of 93. His death was felt not only by fans of the horror genre but fans of all kinds of film and music. It is my humble opinion that there will never be an actor or musician that will touch the world that Sir Lee did in his lifetime.

Our next story and narrator are pretty well known to Poe fans and Horror fans alike. The story is “The Masque of the Red Death” narrated by Horror king Roger Corman. This is a story about disease, death, and a Prince who hides away in his abbey while his country is dying from “The Red Death”. This story does not have so much of a narrator as the few spoken lines of Prince Prospero are spoken by Roger Corman. Chances are, even if you don’t recognize his name, you have seen his work. From the 1956 “B” movie “Swamp Women” to 2016’s “CobraGator”, Corman is known to fans of the genre as “The King of the B Movies”. B movies for those unfamiliar with the term are low budget films, usually straight to video. Or in the ’50s, '60’s and even into the '70’s films that were Saturday afternoon Creature feature films. Roger has produced and directed many films based on Poe stories, like the 1963 classic “The Raven”, with film legends Vincent Price, Peter Lorre, and Boris Karloff, as well as 1960’s “House of Usher” and 1961’s “Pit and the Pendulum”, both films with his favorite Poe film actor Vincent Price. He is well known to younger generations as well, having produced the 1993 film “Dracula Rising” and the “Death Race” series (2008-2013).

With a career that spans over 7 decades and still going strong, Corman never fails to give his fans what they want, even though they might not have known they wanted it, and that it never ends up being what he was wanting to make. The animation in this film reminds me of old paintings. Where there is no nudity or sexuality in the other stories in this film, there is nudity and sexuality in this. It is a great contrast as you are watching the poorer people in the country dying from this horrible disease, you see Prince Prospero (aptly named), as he is having a grand ball/orgy in his abbey, locked safely away from the outside world, or so he thinks. Roger Corman directed an unforgettable adaptation of “Masque” in 1964, with Vincent Price as Prince Prospero. Having Corman play this role in this film was director Raul Garcia’s tip of the hat as it were to the original film.

I could go on for days talking about the stars and stories in this film, but, then you would not have to see it for yourself. The other three stories are just as wonderful as the two that I have gone into detail about. “The Tell-Tale Heart” is told to perfection by Bela Lugosi with artwork in the style of the talented Alberto Breccia. “The Facts in the Case of M. Valdemar” is narrated by British actor Julian Sands of “Warlock (1989) and “Rose Red” (2002) fame. It is animated in the style of the old E.C. Comic books like “Tales from the Crypt” and if you watch you will see that the mesmerist bears a striking resemblance to Vincent Price, which is not surprising since he starred in at least 8 Poe films with legendary director Roger Corman. “The Pit and the Pendulum” narrated by famed director Guillermo Del Toro of “Hellboy” fame is a story of bleakness and desperation that is animated almost in a CGI style.

This film is a wonderful addition collection whether you are an anthology fan, horror fan, or Poe fan. It is very well put together, it blends well from one story to the next and never leaves you feeling cheated. It is a PFF and is a great movie for any level of horror fan.