Centuries ago in Arkham, New England, the warlock Joseph Curwen (Vincent Price) abducts young ladies from the local village and brings them to his castle to use in experiments with the Necronomicon. The local Edgar Weeden (Leo Gordon) raises a lynch mob that go to the castle and burn Joseph Curwen alive at the stake. Before dying, he curses the village, the villagers and their descendants.

One hundred and ten years later, Charles Dexter Ward (Vincent Price), who has inherited the manor, comes to Arkham with his beautiful wife Ann Ward (Debra Paget) to visit the real estate and has a cold and hostile reception by the dwellers. Only Dr. Priam Willet (Frank Maxwell) helps him and tells that the village has many mutants and the villagers believe that it is a cursed town.

When Charles arrives in the castle, he meets two former associates of Joseph Curwen that also worship the devil, and Charles is possessed by the evil Joseph Curwen that wants to revenge on the descendants of those who killed him and to bring his beloved mistress back to life. Ann and Dr. Willet try to help Charles to escape from Curwen's power.

"The Haunted Palace" is a classic Gothic horror by Roger Corman that follows the same style of the Hammer films. The plot is very simple but works perfectly well, supported by Vincent Price and the gorgeous Debra Paget. Further, this is the last feature of this beautiful actress that retired after getting married for the third time. My vote is seven.

Title (Brazil): "O Castelo Assombrado" ("The Haunted Castle")

Note: On 25 December 2020, I saw this film again.

Roger Corman is fondly remembered for his Edgar Allan Poe adaptations in the early 1960s. With The Haunted Palace, Corman takes his inspiration from another great horror writer – H.P. Lovecraft – and creates an eerie, atmospheric bloodcurdler. The trump card is Vincent Price's portrayal of the main character(s). Price is brilliant as the tormented hero slowly corrupted by an ancestral curse, shading his gradual descent into evil with clever understatement. Whenever the film slips into one of its periodic lulls, we can always rely on Price to keep our attention until the lull has passed.

Warlock Joseph Curwen (Vincent Price) is burnt at the stake by his Arkham neighbours for crimes of witchcraft. During his dying moments, he plots his revenge by placing a terrible curse on them. Curwen's curse seems to have its desired effect, as the subsequent generations are plagued by the birth of disfigured mutants into their families. Over a hundred years later, Charles Dexter Ward (Price again) – an ancestor of Curwen – arrives in the village of Arkham with his beautiful wife Ann (Debra Paget) to claim his inheritance of the Curwen castle. The villagers are immediately distrustful of Charles – it doesn't help that he bears an uncanny resemblance to his great grandfather, nor that they are constantly reminded of Curwen's legacy by the presence of accursed mutants in their village. Charles and Ann do not believe in such supernatural nonsense and prepare to move into their inherited home. They are further encouraged to stick around by the castle caretaker Simon (Lon Chaney Jr), though it becomes increasingly apparent that Simon has an ulterior motive for wanting them to stay. Gradually, Charles begins to act more and more out of character, and it emerges that his body has been possessed by the spirit of Joseph Curwen. For a century he has waited for his chance to wreak terrible vengeance upon the villagers who killed him…. and now his time has come.

Corman generates creepy visuals despite his shoestring budget and hasty shooting schedule. Swirling fog, creaking doors, cobwebbed corridors and disorientating shadows permeate the story, lending a well sustained atmosphere of dread. Kudos is due to Daniel Haller for his effective art direction, depicting a wholly believable period village shrouded in fear and secrecy. In the acting stakes, Price is ably supported by the ghoulish Chaney, while Paget does a convincing enough job as his wife. The story is simple but effective – there have been so many variations of this basic premise that most viewers will figure out with ease what is going on well before the characters manage it. But bear in mind the film was made in 1963, a time when its plot twists and "shock" revelations probably raised plenty of goosebumps. And even now, almost 50 years on, the film's eerie mood still retains the power to unsettle. The Haunted Palace is a good, effective, old-school screamer – a worthwhile nostalgia trip for those who lament the fact that "they don't make 'em like they used to".

I don't consider The Haunted Palace one of Vincent Price's or Roger Corman's best. I do put Pit and the Pendulum, The Raven, The Fall of the House of Usher and especially Masque of the Red Death above it, but it is a very good film and worth checking out. It does get a little ponderous at times in the middle and while eerie in tone the music score is over-the-top. However it is well photographed and has beautiful sets. The writing has some fun and macabre moments and the story delivers its suspenseful atmosphere and creepy scares wonderfully even if the enacting terrible revenge angle is familiar territory. Corman's direction is secure also. The acting is very good. Debra Paget before she retired is beautiful and not too bland. Lon Chaney is wonderful, and his entrance is one of The Haunted Palace's creepiest moments. Even better is Price, he is in a double role here and he is deliciously evil. All in all, very good and very enjoyable, I just wish that it had more attention. 8/10 Bethany Cox