Load of rubbish!!

Just what I expected

Fun premise, good actors, bad writing. This film seemed to have potential at the beginning but it quickly devolves into a trite action film. Ultimately it's very boring.

Worth seeing just to witness how winsome it is.

Once again the wolfy, long-faced Mr. Price is married to a beautiful young woman, Debra Paget. He has returned to Arkham and although "The Haunted Palace" is a poem by Edgar Allen Poe, this is really based on "The Case of Charles Dexter Ward" by H. P. Lovecraft. It has referenced to Yog Sothoth and Cthulhu and, of course, that old best seller, the Necronomicon. One hundred ten years earlier than his arrival, Price's ancestor had been burned at the stake for practicing black arts (necromancy) and put a curse on the town and the people responsible for his death. When the new Price arrives at Arkham, the natives tell him to get lost, but he has inherited the palace and feels he at least ought to go there. Once there, however, he sees a painting that is the spit and image of him and the image seems to connect with him, entering his body and becoming the original Price. Soon he is back doing his thing, burning people to a crisp (as he was) and terrorizing the rest of the populace. Poor Paget tries to stand by her man, but since he is Satanic, it's hard to feel romantic. Anyway, eventually the torches and pitchforks come out and the ending is a lot of fun.

In the year 1765, men from a small New England town go to the castle of perceived evil warlock Vincent Price (as Joseph Curwen), who has allegedly been abducting their beautiful young women. Later, we learn Mr. Price may be plotting to mate them with otherworldly creatures, in an effort to create a nefarious new race. The villagers burn Mr. Price as he curses them – and their descendants… One hundred and ten years later, the castle's new owner arrives to inspect his inherited estate. He is kinder, gentler Vincent Price (as Charles Dexter Ward), loving husband of very pretty Debra Paget (as Ann). The couple hopes to inspect the premises and put it on the market. It turns out Price is a dead ringer for his wicked great-great grandfather – and the latter's spirit wants to return..."The Haunted Palace" is Corman doing H.P. Lovecraft material with some of the style given his Edgar Allan Poe-inspired movies. Possibly due to exemplary art/set direction, by Daniel Haller and Harry Reif, we linger too long for some shots, but it's worth the wandering camera. Photography by Floyd Crosby (David's father) is colorful and stylish. Corman presents Lon Chaney Jr. (as Simon Orne) well, considering the man was seldom in shape to be working in later years. The camera swerve to introduce Mr. Chaney is a highlight. Price is always fun to watch, and he raises his eyebrows to good effect. TV character actor Frank Maxwell, who ended up in a sweet older romance role on the serial "General Hospital" in the 1980s, gets one of his best parts, as helpful doctor Willet.****** The Haunted Palace (8/28/63) Roger Corman ~ Vincent Price, Debra Paget, Lon Chaney Jr., Frank Maxwell

Among the lavish literary adaptations that Roger Corman made during the 1960s, "The Haunted Palace" stands out, mainly for not being a Poe adaptation, but rather a film version of the Lovecraft tale "The Case of Charles Dexter Ward" (with some utterances of lines, and the title, taken from the Poe poem). Corman was looking for a change of pace, and decided that the writing styles of the two authors were similar enough. Here the filmmaker does typically solid work, utilizing regular collaborators Daniel Haller (production design) and Floyd Crosby (cinematography) and giving the film that wonderful old school atmosphere. Overall "The Haunted Palace" is not as good as the best in the Corman-Poe cycle, but it's still consistently enjoyable.Vincent Price again is in fine form, as he delineates two characters: one a cheery man, Charles Dexter Ward, who comes to the small New England town of Arkham to claim family property, and the other his great-great-grandfather Joseph Curwen, an evil warlock burned alive by an angry group of villagers worthy of a Universal horror flick. Soon Curwen (who, quite naturally, placed a curse on the town and the townspeople who targeted him) is exerting a malevolent influence over his descendant, while Charles's scared wife Ann Ward (gorgeous Debra Paget ("Tales of Terror"), in her final feature film) teams with a well-meaning doctor, Marinus Willet (Frank Maxwell) to try to save her husbands' soul.The film is impressive to look at; Corman had Crosby shoot this film darker than the Poe adaptations, feeling that style suited Lovecrafts' writing better. Ronald Steins' music is wonderful and among his best scores. There are some great horror moments and a monster or two, which we fortunately never get too good a look at. There's also a couple of mutated humans (with decent makeup effects by Ted Coodley) to add to the mix. The cast is certainly a joy. Also to be seen are Lon Chaney Jr. ("The Wolf Man") and Milton Parsons ("The Secret Life of Walter Mitty") as Curwens' villainous associates, Leo Gordon ("The Intruder"), beloved Old Hollywood character actor Elisha Cook Jr., John Dierkes ("Premature Burial"), Harry Ellerbe ("House of Usher"), Barboura Morris ("A Bucket of Blood"), and Bruno VeSota ("Attack of the Giant Leeches").With this much going for it, "The Haunted Palace" is never less than entertaining.Lovecrafts' story would be adapted more faithfully as "The Resurrected" in 1992.Seven out of 10.

This movie pays homage to the classic horror writers of old. Not quite Lovecraft, not quite Poe; this movie creates a unique story that borrows a bit from both.The acting is excellent, and the plot and characters are well written. The special effects are pretty good for the time period this movie was made, and the "less is more" approach" worked to a great advantage here. It is so refreshing to watch a movie that actually relies on good storytelling and competent actors; rather than distracting visual effects. Too often movie makers attempt to dupe the audience by replacing substance with style; which imo is a backhanded insult to the collective intelligence of the audience. You do not have to be a Lovecraft or Poe fan, nor do you have to be familiar with their writings to enjoy this movie; which is a huge bonus. Vincent Price delivers once again in a timeless masterpiece.