A Masterpiece!

A terrific literary drama and character piece that shows how the process of creating art can be seen differently by those doing it and those looking at it from the outside.

The acting in this movie is really good.

One of the worst ways to make a cult movie is to set out to make a cult movie.

Robert Flemyng is the title character, Dr. Bernard Hichcock, a doctor / surgeon in 19th century London. His wife Margaret (Maria Teresa Vianello) dies under suspicious circumstances, and years later, Bernard marries younger woman Cynthia (a radiant Barbara Steele). She begins to see and hear strange things, and one of the questions that the story asks is whether Cynthias' visions are real or imagined. Certainly Cynthia starts to suspect her husband of something sinister. Bernards' colleague Dr. Kurt Lowe (Silvano Tranquilli) cares for her and starts wondering about Bernard himself.Written by Ernesto Gastaldi, and directed by Mario Bavas' mentor Riccardo Freda, "The Horrible Dr. Hichcock" is fairly engrossing as a mystery, with the two of them being as vague as possible as to what Bernards' intentions are. All we know that is Bernard has a particular kink as part of his personality; this viewer won't mention it here. That helps to give a bit of a lift to what is ultimately a pretty routine story. But the story isn't the principal attraction. It's Fredas' stylized presentation, and the performances of the cast. This is a handsomely produced, suspenseful, atmospheric film, enhanced by a good soundtrack by Roman Vlad. Freda downplays elements such as sex and gore, making his film of more interest to more traditional genre lovers. It's also well paced, clocking in at a mere 77 minutes. (There is a longer, international cut running about 11 minutes longer.)Flemyng is effective in his subtlety when it comes to his villainy. You're not quite sure what to make of him. Tranquilli is an utter stiff, but Vianello is fine as the wife, and American actress Harriet Medin, a familiar face in Italian genre cinema during this time, also comes off well as the loyal maid. Still, "The Horrible Dr. Hichcock" truly belongs to the lovely young Ms. Steele, who's got some of the most expressive eyes one will ever see. We've seen her score in villainous roles herself, and here she shows that she can also be a sympathetic heroine.Not really a great film in this viewers' humble opinion, but it still provides fine entertainment for any fan of Italian horror.Followed by "The Ghost".Six out of 10.

The Horrible Dr. Hichcock (1962)*** (out of 4) Dr. Hitchcock (Robert Flemyng) administers a drug to his beautiful wife but he accidentally gives her too much, which causes her to overdose and die. The pain causes him to leave him home but years later he returns with his new wife Cynthia (Barbara Steele). It doesn't take too long for the new wife to start seeing and hearing mysterious things, which could be the dead wife.THE HORRIBLE DR. HITCHCOCK is a pretty good horror film from director Riccardo Freda who skips out on blood or graphic violence and instead delivers atmosphere and some great performances. The film became a pretty big hit when it was originally released and it continued to gain new fans as it showed up on American television. There are two different versions out there with the original Italian version running twelve-minutes longer than the American cut but it's the American version that is currently available on Blu-ray and is what I watched.For the most part this is a pretty good film that works perfectly in that "old dark house" way where we're given an innocent woman put into a dangerous situation and we're not quite sure what's going on. Is she losing her mind? Is her new husband playing sinister tricks? Has the dead wife returned? These are the questions that are asked throughout the picture and Freda keeps the film moving at a nice pace. There's no question that it's a well-made film that contains some beautiful cinematography as well as a nice music score. Freda builds up a very good and rich atmosphere that carries the picture to the end.Another major plus is the fact that the performances were so good. Flemyng is very good in the role of the husband because he plays it so perfectly down the middle that you can never tell what he's up to. Then you've got Steele who once again delivers a great performance as the wife who finds herself seeing ghosts and other strange objects. THE HORRIBLE DR. HITCHCOCK isn't a flawless movie but it's certainly an entertaining one.

Riccardo Freda's film is another variant of Daphne Du Maurier's "Rebecca" updated as a horror and fantasy film: everything is on the menu: the widower who gets married again,the gloomy -but desirable- castle,the sinister-looking servant ,the wife who may or may not be dead and of course the new lady played by famous Barbara Steele (the actress is the main reason to watch this movie).Even the final is borrowed from "Rebecca" .The glass of milk directly comes from "suspicion" and "notorious" .There's also a dash of "psycho" thrown in for good measure.Thanks to Barbara Steele ,this slow-moving flick sustains interest and attention till the end.The long walks at night through the dark corridors and subterranean passages are well filmed.But if you want to see Barbara Steele in a really good work,try " La Maschera del Demonio" by Mario Bava instead.

Dr. Hitchcock, a noted surgeon and anastheologist has developed an intravenous anesthesia, created a great deal of notoriety and success for himself. His favorite patient is his wife, whom willingly allows herself to be drugged and ravished. Hitchcock knows the drug is unpredictable and unstable. However, one evening, he administers slightly more, hoping to place his wife into an even more deathlike condition. However, this time the drug kills his wife. Devastated, Hitchcock leaves his home, not to return for twelve years. Hitchcock returns with a new wife (Barbara Steele), whom he eventually plans to murder and use her blood to restore the beauty of his first wife, whom apparently has taken on the condition of "living death."The movie has its share of creepy moments but fails to take full advantage of Steele's loveliness (Just as well, she suffers in comparison to Hitchcock's first wife, who has an even BETTER face and bod than does Steele). Little sympathy is raised for Steele's character. After all, what did she see in that creep Hitchcock in the first place, and why does she allow herself to be victimised in herown home? I know this is supposed to take place in Victorian England, but, come on.POSSIBLE SPOILER AHEADThe worst thing about "The Horrible Dr. Hitchcock" is that there IS NO PAYOFF. We dread seeing what has happened to the beauty of the first Mrs. Hitchcock. Fear not, we NEVER see her clearly, blunting what little payoff this movie had to offer. All the characters are skin deep and atmosphere can carry a movie only so far.The print I viewed had been poorly maintained. Some of the scenes had become so contrasty, there was barely any image at all (in DAY scenes at the hospital, surprisingly). One can get MANY more shocks in the teaser at the beginning of any "X Files" episode than in the nearly two hours of this slow movie.Not a total failure but pretty horrible, nonetheless.