The Oblong Box (Dance, Mephisto) (1969)

57% of critics liked it
(7 reviews)
44% of users liked it
(436 ratings)

When Sir Edward Markham (Alastair Williamson) is horribly disfigured by African natives, he is kept chained and out of sight by his brother Julian (Vincent Price). When Sir Edward escapes, he goes on a killing spree in a desperate attempt to get even with the society that has made him a monstrous… More When Sir Edward Markham (Alastair Williamson) is horribly disfigured by African natives, he is kept chained and out of sight by his brother Julian (Vincent Price). When Sir Edward escapes, he goes on a killing spree in a desperate attempt to get even with the society that has made him a monstrous outcast. Julian enlists the help of African witch doctor N'Galo (Harry Baird) for medicine to make Sir Edward appear dead so he can be evicted from the house. Dr. Neuhardt (Christopher Lee) attempts to help the hideous human. There are plenty of female corpses around to drip rivers of fresh, hot blood in this feature, the 13th Edgar Allan Poe story in which Price has appeared. ~ Dan Pavlides, Rovi

Rating, Runtime: PG, 1 hr. 31 min.
Directed By: Gordon Hessler
Written By: Lawrence Huntington, Edgar Allen Poe
Genres: Horror

In Theaters: Jun 11, 1969 Wide
Studio: American International Picture

Critic Reviews

Steve Crum, Kansas City Kansan
Eerie Price programmer.
Ken Hanke, Mountain Xpress (Asheville, NC)
Dreadful, slow, boring beyond words.
Scott Weinberg, Apollo Guide
The Oblong Box is a lot more fun than I expected it to be, and it's certainly worth a look if you're a horror fan grown weary of the same old thing.
Dennis Schwartz, Ozus' World Movie Reviews
The Oblong Box is a satisfying occult thriller.

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Featured Audience Ratings

AJ V

Finally a movie with both Vincent Price and Christopher Lee! If that doesn't make you want to see this movie, what will? It's a great revenge story too, and a creepy horror movie. I loved it, and I highly recommend it.
Daniel P

<i>The Oblong Box</i>, which is not a Hammer film but feels very much like one, is lots of good things let down by a not very interesting story. The initial set up is intriguing and well done with a brother hidden from public view due to horrific disfigurement and apparent… More
<i>The Oblong Box</i>, which is not a Hammer film but feels very much like one, is lots of good things let down by a not very interesting story. The initial set up is intriguing and well done with a brother hidden from public view due to horrific disfigurement and apparent derangement - the result of an African Curse - mixed in with a botched plan involving a Doctor doing experiments on the dead, family betrayal, and age old themes of greed and evil. Unfortunately the good work done in the first half hour is undone by too much exposition and underused potential (the oblong box of the title barely figures and is little more than a plot device). What works very well are some brilliant camera techniques (interesting pans, POV shots), goodish acting from Vincent Price and Christopher Lee, and a palpable sense of period and period details. There's some uncomfortable misogyny that dates the movie to the decade it was made (and not the time in which it is set) and the violence is a little wan, but there's much to admire and the apparently troubled production of the film doesn't transfer to the screen.

Cast

            Vincent Price as Julian

            Christopher Lee as Dr. Neuharit

            Alister Williamson as Sir Edward Markham

            Hilary Dwyer as Elizabeth

            Peter Arne as Samuel Trench

            Harry Baird as N'Galo

            Carl Rigg as Mark Norton

            Maxwell Shaw as Tom Hackett

            Michael Balfour as Ruddock

            Godfrey James as Weller

            Rupert Davies as Joshua Kemp

            Sally Geeson as Sally Baxter

            Ivor Dean as Hawthorne

            John Barrie
            
            Colin Jeavons
            
            Uta Levka
            
            Andrea Malandrinos
            
            Janet Rossini
            
            Hira Talfrey
            
            Hedger Wallace
            
            John Wentworth
            
            Martin Wyldeck
            
            Danny D. Daniels
            
            James Mellor
            
            Tony Thawnton
            
            Anthony Bailey
            
            Anne Clune
            
            Richard Cornish
            
            Terry Martin
            
See full cast