The Tingler (1959)



Movie Title: The Tingler

Year Released: 1959

Rated: Not Rated

Runtime: 1h 22min

Genre: Horror

Director: William Castle

Writer: Robb White

Starring: Vincent Price, Judith Evelyn, Darryl Hickman, Patricia Cutts, Pamela Lincoln, Philip Coolidge

Review: A pathologist (Vincent Price) has discovered a parasitic creature that grows along the spine of its host when they are gripped with fear. Soon his discovery becomes an obsession as he's determined to capture a specimen from an unsuspecting host.

Legendary genre director and gimmick-guru William Castle (House on Haunted Hill, 13 Ghosts) gives us one of the most ludicrous, outlandish, and endlessly entertaining horror movies of all-time! And thanks to his newest gag "Percepto" The Tingler gave audiences a lot to scream about (More on that in the "Fun Fact" section below).

The parasitic creature feeds on fear and grows large and lethal the more frightened its host becomes. But once you scream, the monstrous organism vanishes. When a deaf mute woman is scared to death he sees his chance to bring his discovery out in the open with spine-chilling, blood-curdling results.

Horror icon Vincent Price is perfectly cast as a doctor with a growing obsession concerning his discovery of "The Tingler". Only an actor with the chops and skill of Price could pull off explaining what the "The Tingler" is and deliver lines of dialogue like, "The tingler exists in every human being, we now know. Look at that tingler, Dave. It's an ugly and dangerous thing-ugly because it's the creation of man's fear; dangerous because... because a frightened man is dangerous." like it's Shakespeare.

It's so incredibly silly a concept, but you can't help love the straight-faced conviction coming from all of the actors. Another highlight is Castle's direction. He really adds tension and a dread to many of the scenes, especially those that involve the deaf mute woman. And there are some genuine scares here! I've seen The Tingler at least a dozen times and it still packs quite a punch. Oh, and did you know that it's the first major motion picture to depict depict an LSD trip? That's right, man!

So if you're looking for a horror classic that's fun as it is scary then get ready to scream for your life or face a terrifying end courtesy of... The Tingler!

Stars (out of 4):
       

Fun Fact: William Castle was an enduring showman. Whenever blood-curdling screams occurred in the movie, hidden buzzers vibrated some seat in the audience (This feature was called "Percepto.") zapping the viewers to scream and react. Shills were also planted in the audience to let out their own screams.



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