Today, I watch a classic Corman Film, Edgar Allen Poe’s the Haunted Palace.

The Haunted Palace, 1963 American International Pictures

Well one thing this movie does NOT have is anything by Edgar Allen Poe save one poem at the end. This movie is almost 100% H. P. Lovecraft’s “The Case of Charles Dexter Ward.” In interviews,Corman stated that he was very much a Lovecraft fan, but no studio wanted to produce a story a story by this “unheard of schlock writer.” That’s when it was decided to rename this picture, “The Haunted Palace,” and claim it was based on a poem by Edgar Allen Poe, seeding the “castle” angle throughout the movie. After all, Corman had already made several well-received Poe pictures with Vincent Price, so why not?

Pictured: Zero Ravens.

That being said, this is actually one of the strongest movie’s Corman’s ever directed. The pacing is better than your usual Corman, the story is well presented and visually interesting. Price’s performance is, as always, very entertaining, and the final sequence is satisfying and nicely grim.

GO PATS!

This is a jewel of classic B-Movies, and definitely worth a watch.