TALES OF TERROR
Kinda subpar for Price, but still...
I've said that the worst Price movie I ever saw was still pretty good (forgot about Dead Heat, but I meant a movie STARRING Price); I'd say that still holds true, although this is probably the worst Price movie I've now seen. Directed by Roger Corman and adapted from Poe's stories by Richard Matheson, I'd expected a more consistently enjoyable outing. Instead, we have a mix of three short films with their own strengths and problems.
The first is a take on "Morella", starring of course Price. You just know this can't be as cheesy and lame as Jim Wynorski's The Haunting Of Morella, but Price turns in a very "off" performance, and everything comes across as pretty silly and overwrought.
The second is an overtly comic version of "The Black Cat", casting Peter Lorre as a hallucinating drunk who begins to suspect that his "rival" (florid wine-taster Price) is romancing his wife. It's kind of amusing, and Price has some weird, weird wine-tasting facial expressions, but it overstays its welcome and feels a little TOO lightweight. Lorre comes across better than Price does at this kind of thing.
The third is easily the best, being "The Case Of M. Valdemar", as Price coming under the influence of an evil hypnotist. It's a nice way to wind up the trilogy, though like with Trilogy Of Terror, it makes the viewer wish the whole thing were that good.
Like I said, it's certainly worth a look, but this is not exactly Price's best work.