13 Ghosts

As with the last posts, this is the last Supernatural Sunday for the month. I had to go with an old one with some good kitsch.

13 Ghosts comes from the mind of horror genius William Castle. In the late 50's and early 60's, Castle made a bunch of horror movies, each with their own gimmick to either scare or excite the theater audiences. In The Tingler, Castle rigged chairs to give a little shock to patrons at certain parts of the film. In this one, he provided modified 3D glasses that would allow the viewer to see or not see the ghosts. Titled "Illusion-O," this idea was a pretty genius way to use the 3D technology of the time. To view the ghosts, you would look through the red part, but if you got scared you could look through the blue part and the ghosts would disappear. The ghosts were still viewable with the naked eye, which apparently helped its run on television for many years after it ran in theaters. 

Audience member is instructed to use the viewer

Aaah! A ghost!

13 Ghosts is a story about a family in dire straits that inherits a mansion from a late-estranged uncle. Dr. Plato Zorba studied the paranormal and traveled the world capturing ghosts that now reside inside the house. Dr. Zorba's lawyer, Ben Rush, helps the family with the process and gives Zorba's nephew a box that contains strange glasses with no explanation as to what they are for. Cyrus's son Buck loves ghost stories and is all too excited to live amongst the spirits. But there is also a "witch" in the house. Iconic Margaret Hamilton plays the housekeeper, Elaine Zacharides, which was a pleasant surprise. Of course the witch aspect is also a play on her having portrayed the wicked witch of the west in The Wizard of Oz - and there is a nice touch at the end of the film when she grabs the broom and winks at the camera. 

Margaret Hamilton

When Buck and the family play with a ouija board, it tells them one person will die in the house and become... the 13th ghost! Later Cyrus finds a strange room (or before the ouija board thing, I can't quite remember) where he hears voices and tries on the glasses. He sees ghosts! And it is the viewer's first chance to use the glasses. Even later, Elaine explains that Dr. Zorba left a large sum of money hidden somewhere in the house. However, there is someone else that knows about the money inside the house, and is willing to scare or kill for it. Dun, dun... DUN! 

How the living see the ghosts

The lion and lion tamer ghosts

It is fun, kind of silly, but enjoyable and worth a watch. It built the story well, and had a predictable, but good twist. This is one of the older horror movies that has been remade (ala The Haunting, House on Haunted Hill) and I am not ashamed to admit I liked the remake. But I can also say, I enjoyed this one a lot too, maybe even a little more. I checked out the entire William Castle collection from the library, and even though I will not get to fit them all into this month, I will be sure to enjoy them outside of it. 

The man himself, William Castle

My rating: