Runtime: 72 minutes
Directed by: Dan Curtis
Starring: Karen Black, Robert Fulton, George Gaynes, John Karlen, Kathryn Reynolds
From: ABC Circle Films
Karen Black was truly the highlight of this made for TV horror anthology. Believe it or not I had never seen any of the segments here until last night; yes, even Amelia, a.k.a. the one with the Zuni fetish doll. As a nice copy was on YouTube (I know, I know), that was viewed as something only 72 minutes fit my schedule the best. It’s been since February that any horror anthologies have been viewed; Trilogy of Terror was a nice film to view to break that streak.
Unlike a typical anthology, one performer starred in all the segments playing different characters. In Julie, Black is a dowdy college professor who is preyed upon by a gross male student (who looks rather old for a college student. Turns out, Robert Burton was Black’s husband at the time) who does some gross things which may be real upsetting to some. Millicent & Therese has dual roles for Karen as twin sisters who are the polar opposite in appearance. Speaking of gross, that story has a rather wild detail. However, the best segment (or at least the one that is the most memorable) is Amelia, where Black purchased an African Zuni fetish doll that comes alive.
The first two stories aren’t as memorable; that said, they weren’t bad. Yeah, “predictable” is a term which could be used yet what helped make this a good time was the direction from Dan Curtis, the stories from Richard Matheson, and especially Karen Black portraying all four roles. No matter the material she delivered with a quartet of vastly different characters. In the past few years, I’ve realized that she deserves more credit for her acting talent than was granted by me in the past. She helped me believe that a small wooden doll which made funny noises was a serious threat.
Henceforth, about darn time I could finally talk about this film that debuted on the ABC network back 48 years ago.
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