mark.waltz A classic gruesome threesome that focuses on three short stories by Nathaniel Hawthorne, all starring the fabulous Vincent Price. He plays an aging friend of a grieving man whose fiancée died on their wedding eve, the ailing and reclusive father of a young girl he keeps hostage and alive through a mysterious power that has the capability to kill. In the third segment, he returns to familiar territory: the saga of the Pynchon family, a cursed clan consumed with dark secrets of the past, culminating in a time of great social uproar in 17th Century New England. Sebastian Cabot and Mari Blanchard co- star in the first tale, focusing on the mysterious crypt water which seemingly brings the dead back to life and possible eternal youth. It is eerie, poignant and ultimately haunting. The second segment has a beautifully colorful set but a strange and convoluted tale of a young man (Brett Halsey) obsessed with the creepy beauty (Joyce Taylor) next door. Jaqueline de Witt is Price's sinister and Beverly Garland his innocent bride in one of several short stories that Hawthorne wrote about the doomed Pynchon family. Hoimh back to the early days cinema and feature length films, there's been a slew of multi story structures especially in the horror or mystery genre. I can think of a handful that featured Vincent Price, and indeed, he is the king of the macabre. This one is enjoyable overall, but the second segment takes some patience. It's ironic to see Price have a second involvement in a tale loosely based on "The House of the Seven Gables", this one quite distinctive with a totally different story than the 1940 Universal classic. It's a treat to add to any horror collection, but in my case, it is filed with the rest my Vincent Price treasures.

GManfred Three stories make up "Twice Told Tales", and only the first is worth mentioning. That's "Dr. Heidegger's Experiment", and all three were written by Nathaniel Hawthorne. Vincent Price is in all three, but none of these stories have any visible scare quotient. In fact, the stories aren't horror stories but melodramas put on screen by MGM. No atmosphere, no moody photography and no scary moments."Rappaccini's Daughter" is the second and is about a radioactive plant and a girl infected by it and is not that interesting. The third is a truncated version of "The House Of The Seven Gables", which does not stick to the original story and is the least scary - and the least interesting of the three. You can read other reviewers for a summary of the three but the entire product is not worth the trouble to record it, much less watch it.

Andrew Taylor Another triple play of Poe/Price, like Tales of Terror, but without Corman, and not quite as good. The stories are a bit too nice... a bit melodramatic and drawn out. The tales are Heidegger's Experiment, Rappaccini's Daughter and The House of Seven Gables, and the stories are really the stars. Heidegger's explores that nugget of eternal life, Rappaccini's is about the relationship of poison and purity and Seven Gables is a twisted ghost/blood feud with lots and lots of blood. All three are certainly unusual topics, but I'd say Heidegger's and Rappacini's were my favourite. Again, the sets and design were fantastic, if limited in scope and the actresses beautiful (especially Garland and Taylor). The attention to detail is remarkable. Still, it's something only a Price/Poe fan will love, which is fine by me.

The_Void Twice-Told Tales is a trio of horror stories based on the writings of Nathaniel Hawthorne. Each story stars horror maestro Vincent Price, and this allows the man to show his range in a series of different roles throughout the film. All of Price's roles allow him to show his dark side, but it's the way that he is allowed to show this that makes each one stand out. Vincent Price is my favourite horror actor, and he's arguably the best ever. The fact that he stars in each segment of this film is reason enough alone to see it. The fact that every tale is good is another one. In true omnibus style, the first story is the least memorable; but it's still well worth seeing. We follow two friends who discover a virgin spring in the crypt of one of their loves. This story is good because it follows the ever-present dream of ever-lasting life. The way that the plot builds is somewhat predictable, but still good as we get to see the great horror master turn his performance around from do-gooder to something more sinister. Not the best opener to an omnibus film; but a long way from the worst.The second story is by far the best and, in a way, it's a shame that this story was a part of the omnibus. The second tale is a fairytale horror story of love, protection and madness and follows the tale of an overbearing father that takes steps to ensure that his daughter doesn't sin like her mother did. This story is a variation on the classic 'Romero and Julliet' story, and takes in all the tragedy of that tale by its conclusion. Tale number two is highly original and would make this film worth viewing even if the other two tales were absolute rubbish (which, of course, they're not). The third and final segment is the weakest of the trio, but still manages an excellent Gothic style and a solid story. The reason it's the weakest is mainly because it's really slow; but once it gets started, this tale of greed, witchcraft and murder provides a satisfying end to this trio of stories. With a running time of two hours, Twice-Told Tales is a very long omnibus; and it could have done with being a bit shorter. However, this doesn't harm it too much, and if you're a fan of sixties horror, and/or Vincent Price, this will be a must see.