The Haunted Palace — The Haunted Palace(DVD)

H P Lovecraft has gained a level of mainstream recognition recently following the success of the HBO ‘Lovecraft Country’ TV series which incorporates his mythos and features his name in the title.  Before this Lovecraft was never a household name and the highest profile cinema adaptations to date have been those directed by Stuart Gordon and Brian Yuzna such as the tongue-in (gory) cheek ‘Re-Animator’ series (1985 – 2003). 

‘The Haunted Palace’ directed by Roger Corman in 1963 is the first part of an unofficial Lovecraft trilogy from American International Pictures, with the follow-ups (‘Die Monster Die’ (1965) and ‘The Dunwich Horror’ (1970)) directed by Daniel Haller.  Although ‘The Haunted Palace’ is the first accredited adaptation of a Lovecraft work the makers also try to pass it off as based on the Edgar Allan Poe poem of that name, a source with which it shares little.  The actual basis, Lovecraft’s novella, ‘The Case of Charles Dexter Ward’, is recorded in the credits along with Poe and elements of the mythos, such as the Necronomicon, are mentioned in the screenplay.  Passing Lovecraft off as Poe was partly a result of the former’s obscurity and given the popularity of the director’s Edgar Allan Poe cycle (1960 – 1965) it putatively belongs to this made economic sense.

‘The Haunted Palace’ has 18th Century warlock Joseph Curwen burnt by the angry citizens of Arkham village.  A century later his spirit possesses his great great grandson, Charles Dexter Ward, in order to punish the descendents of those villagers.  ‘Palace’ is not a very faithful adaptation of the novella.  The major change is the relationship between Ward and the resurrected Curwen from one of substitution to possession.  Elements are brought in from elsewhere in the author’s works.  In one scene Ward and his wife are surrounded by mutants in an Arkham street.  There is no comparable scene in the novella but it is very reminiscent of passages in the classic story, ‘The Shadow Over Innsmouth’.

Aesthetically, ‘The Haunted Palace’ is of a piece with the stylish Poe cycle.  The colours are muted but still vivid.  The sets are effective, especially the palace hall master set and Corman’s trademark fog billows along the palace exterior.  In his dual roles, Vincent Price excels as both the meek Ward and the evil if suave Curwen.

Beyond its status as the first (semi) official adaptation of a Lovecraft work, ‘The Haunted Palace’ enjoys the distinction of another screen horror first. It features an unhappy conclusion that foreshadows the dark or ‘evil goes on’ endings of zeitgeist-defining works such as ‘Rosemary’s Baby’ and ‘Night of the Living Dead’ which began to arrive some years later.

‘The Case of Charles Dexter Ward’ was remade as ‘The Resurrected’ in 1992 by filmmaker Dan O’Bannon (screenwriter of ‘Alien’).  Set in contemporary times but otherwise much more faithful, the movie, unfortunately, feels clunky and rushed.’ ‘The Haunted Palace’ remains the better entertainment and the better film.

The DVD under review here is a very vanilla edition from the US label Cheezy Flicks. Navigation is limited to ‘Play’, ‘Chapters’ and ‘Trailers’ (‘Dick Tracy Meets Gruesome’, ‘Anatomy of a Psycho’). There are no extras besides the trailers. The presentation of the movie itself is decent enough.  Though as this is budget priced release,  so you get to see the film, at a more reasonable price point.