The Boris Karloff Collection (Tower of London / The Black Castle / The Climax / The Strange Door / Night Key)

Thanks to Amazon for having us in stock and available to buy that was awesome it arrived on time with no problems I have been able to buy a lot of my great classics through Amazon such as this classic and that is totally awesome.

For the reasonable price this goes for today, if you like Boris Karloff this is a boon for three of the five films. Karloff's role as Mord the executioner in TOWER OF LONDON has always been one of his best and has the added attraction of Basil Rathbone and a young Vincent Price. THE STRANGE DOOR is worth the price as well for Charles Laughton's scenery chewing (especially if you like "ground Chuck"), but the biggest surprise is NIGHT KEY. NIGHT KEY is a terrific little programmer with Boris as a wronged inventor whose former partner ripped him off once, when he tries to do it a second time Boris gets his revenge...with unintended consequences. The fast moving little actioner features great performances, entertaining "science," those fun old special effects and the added bonus of Ward Bond in his 110th of 227 performances as a crook named "Fingers!" As for the others films, THE CLIMAX is a gorgeous Technicolor bore that utilizes the sets from 1943's PHANTOM OF THE OPERA and co-stars Mickey Dolenz's father, and THE BLACK CASTLE is so-so "evil count" hokum with Boris and Lon Chaney, Jr. in minuscule roles only worth a look to gaze at John Hoyt's amazing six-pack...(who knew?). The B&W (and one Technicolor) prints are in excellent shape and the packaging is nice, but the only extras are some trailers......

(in my best bobby boris pickett voice)...stormy night? not feeling so well? you need to rest. just come down to my la-bor-a-tree and we will see what we can do to help you. mind you, watch the steps. and don't be afraid, that's just the door creaking. what? why are you so alarmed? that's only my personal assistant, igor. igor, help our guest into the chair. no, not that chair, the metal one in the corner with the electrodes. I think you'll find you'll be much happier there. and now that I am turning out the lights, we can all watch "the black castle." heeheehohohohahaha

It doesn't matter how good you are at something if you don't use your talent in the right arena, you won't receive the proper recognition. Because he was associated with the "low" genre of horror, Boris Karloff probably didn't get the respect he deserved compared to other actors of his era. In his best movies, however, Karloff was a great actor who would steal the show from his co-stars. Frankenstein, The Mummy, The Body Snatcher and other films show Karloff was no mere hack but the best horror actor - and one of the best actors, period - of his era.The Boris Karloff Collection, however, is a bit disappointing if you're a Karloff fan. That's not a statement about the quality of these movies, but of the five in the set, Karloff is only really a star in two, and ironically, these are the two weakest in this three-disc set.Disc One has Night Key and Tower of London. Night Key features Karloff as an inventor of alarm systems. His invention years ago was stolen by a man who now runs a security company, but Karloff is still willing to sell him his even newer device. When he is once again conned, Karloff goes on a burglary spree using a device that bypasses the security systems; his intent is not personal gain but rather to embarrass his adversary into fulfilling their deal properly. Unfortunately, some hoodlums catch on to his game and use him for their own nefarious schemes. This movie is unremarkable, neither good nor bad.Tower of London is a version of the story of Richard III, though not necessarily Shakespeare's version. In this movie, Basil Rathbone is Richard and Karloff is his faithful (and murderous) servant. Though best known for his Sherlock Holmes role, Rathbone is also a good villain, as he shows here. Vincent Price is also on hand as Clarence, Richard's brother; nearly a quarter-century later, Price would be Richard in Roger Corman's version of the same movie.The first film on the second disc is The Climax, which is probably most noteworthy as Karloff's first color movie. In this film, he is a doctor who years earlier, killed his opera star fiancee in a fit of rage. Now, a new singer looks to take her place, and Karloff is intent on stopping her. Although it has some moments, this movie emphasizes music over horror and only works okay with both of them.The other movie on the disc is my favorite in the set, The Strange Door. In this film, a rather roguish man is made to believe he is a killer. He flees into the hands of a delightfully evil Charles Laughton, who intends on marrying the man to his niece for motives that are unclear till the end. Karloff plays Laughton's dungeon keeper whose loyalties are more with the prisoners than his employer. Laughton's villainy helps make this movie a cut above. Also, look for Alan Napier (Alfred from TV's Batman) in a small role.Finally, the sole movie on the last disc is The Black Castle, another period adventure like The Strange Door. In this one, Richard Greene goes to the home of an evil count (is it just me, or are most counts evil in movies?) to find proof that the Count killed Greene's friends. Karloff plays the Count's benevolent physician and Lon Chaney plays a more cruel servant. Though not outstanding, this movie is also fun to watch.There are no extras in this set, but with a pair of three-star movies (Night Key and The Climax) and three four-star ones (the others), I am giving this set four stars. As stated before, however, this is not a great set when it comes to featuring Karloff, as he has only supporting roles in three of these films. So as a set, the Boris Karloff Collection may be a bit misleading, but overall, it's still enjoyable.

Boris Karloff "king of the monsters" mademany movies where he wasn't a monster butsome of the movies were considered horror.This set included many of his best work& are overlooked classic movies! Towerof London is a Universal classic gothictale with Karloff playing the executioneras a vicious evil man who follows the Kingto his death! Vincent Price is also hereas the brother of the King & is great.The STrange Door w/Charles Laughton isbrilliant. Great story & acting by both.The ending is great! Night Key & Climaxare okay Karloff movies very enjoyablebut not his best work. The Black Castleis another Universal Gothic tale & ismy favorite. Great story & action withmystery. Karloff is kind of a good/badguy & is actually the hero with anexcellent ending. One of his best.I highly recommend this set even ifyou aren't a Karloff fan. Great movies!

I had fun watching all of these. There was a nice mix of genre's from medieval to modern (at the time these were made). They have a great cast of actors. I enjoyed watching Charles Laughton and Basil Rathbone being villainous, and seeing Boris being twisted and Boris being good. These are a better of class of older movies that I recommend.I hate trying to watch an old film with hissing and popping making it inaudible. The sound and picture quality are both good and clear. Two thumbs up (they're both my thumbs but still ... they're both up)!

like these funny movies. great service fast service, thanks

Der Film ist genau das Richtige für Liebhaber alter Filme. Amazon ist Klasse. Man findet echt fast jeden Film den man sucht und das auch noch zu einem Top-Preis.

10 films for this price has got to be a bargain. Obscure movies which mostly can't be found elswhere. Sound and picture quality is as good as can be expected for material this old. Films included are 'The Snake People/The Terror/Dick Tracy Meets Gruesome/Island Monster/Juggernaut/Sabaka/Mr Wong in Chinatown/Doomed to Die and Mr Wong,Detective.Extras are trailers, film posters and archive radio show. If you a Karloff fan, don'tthink twice but it now.

Cofanetto imperdibile per gli amanti del genere: 5 dvd (4 film e un cd extra con interviste, scene inedite, trailer etc).Comprato tramite vecosell, spedito ieri...arrivato oggi!!!! Viva la posta!.Unica pecca del cofanetto è il materiale: ovvero appena aperto la custodia ha un'"ala" movibile.....peccato che dei due ganci che la supportano, uno è rotto a metà e non rimane incastrata...che dire..pazienza!!!I cd sono perfetti e comunque comprato nuovo (sigillato - imballo spedizione anche quello ottimo) perciò la mia è solo sfortuna! Grazie ancora!Ps. Ringrazio ancora vecosell che m'ha mandato anche lo scontrino fiscale! Più onesto di cosi!

This is a good collection. I am a big Boris Karloff fan and have quite a few of his movies. However, these are not really pure horror movies. Tower of London and The Black Castle are enjoyable. The Strange Door and Night Key were ok. The Climax was really dull in my opinion. Tower of London is my favorite from this collection. The picture quality is really good for all of these films.