The Ghost

If "Black Sunday" is the pinnacle of Barbara Steel's Italian Gothic Horror career, "The Ghost" is a 4 star winner right behind. I have an affinity for the B/W ones but this is by far my favorite color movie in the genre. The housekeeper's "trance" scene is truly creepy. The plot makes little sense: The safe cannot be drilled open? Really? But WHO CARES? It's Barbara, a scary old house, murder, ghosts, grave robbing, I mean what more do you want? I would say "The Ghost" is on par with "Castle of Blood" and "Nightmare Castle" as Barbara's best after "Black Sunday". If you love the early Italian Goth flicks (before they degenerated into gore-fests) you will love this one.

The beginning of the film amused me because it seems to just 'pick up anywhere' for a moment before the titles start running, as if the first few minutes of frames were unrestorable. Some scenes read as sudden works of art due to the aged discoloration of the source medium. Barbara Steele is fabulous in one of the few "B" movies I've seen in which she isn't playing two different characters. Ms. Steele is so mysteriously beautiful that just seing her face on the screen is mesmerizing. Her madness as she struggles with her lover's body and during the 'poison scene' at the end of the film rivals the pathos invoked by Bette Davis' Charlotte. "The Ghost" is an excellent example of a really good bad movie.

There's a reason The Ghost (1963) is rarely mentioned over such Barbara Steele films as Black Sunday (1961), The Horrible Dr. Hichcock (1962), or Castle of Blood (1963) and that's because it's not very good. Don't get me wrong, I'm a big fan of Euro horror queen Barbara Steele, but I'd be hard pressed to recommend this one over any number of her other, better films. By the way, the spelling of Hichcock with relation to the film I mentioned earlier and also the surname of the main characters in this film is the correct spelling. I'm not going to harp on the trifle matter, but I find it odd that confirmed fans seemed to believe the spelling to be `Hitchcock'. Directed by Riccardo Freda (Lust of the Vampire), even though the credits state Robert Hampton (I would have went with a pseudonym too, seeing the final product), the film stars Barbara Steele, Peter Baldwin, who seems to have found his calling behind the camera (thankfully) directing on such television shows as Full House, Murphy Brown, and Blossom, to name a few, and Leonard Elliott (Buck Privates). Also appearing is Harriet Medin, sometimes credited as Harriet White (The Frightening Secret of Dr. Hichcock, Black Sabbath), as the maid (the character of dutiful house servant seemed to be Ms. Medin's bread and butter, as it was a role she appeared in often).Supposedly a sequel to the earlier The Horrible Dr. Hichcock (even though the good doctor himself is played now by Leonard Elliott instead of Robert Flemyng, and has changed his name from Bernard to John, and Ms. Steele is no longer Cynthia but now called Margaret), the film begins, set in early 20th century Scotland, as we see Dr. Hichcock confined to a wheelchair, now an invalid, probably due the particularly nasty spill he took at the end of the previous film (which was also directed by Freda). The doctor seems to have taken an interest in the spirit world (probably because he'll be joining it soon enough), by which he regularly holds séances, and also believes he can cure his own paralysis by having his friend Dr. Charles Livingstone (Baldwin) regularly administer a poison, followed by the antidote (seems like a strange treatment, but hey, I'm no doctor, though I play one on TV). Anyway, Margaret and Charles are secretly fanning some torrid affair, and she convinces Charles to kill her husband, so that not only could they be together, but share in her soon to be deceased husband's vast fortune (they're quite the pretty pair). Things go as planned, that is until the deadly duo discover all the material wealth isn't where it's supposed to be, and John's spirit has apparently returned to get all supernatural on their behinds, focusing more on Margaret. Oddly enough the strength of their bonds, forged from deception, greed, and adultery, begin to weaken, and the relationship heads into some troubled waters, highlighted by Charles being on the receiving end of one of the worst shaves I've ever seen, administered by Margaret and a straight razor.The film isn't all that bad, but I doubt it's the highlight of anyone's career, either. The script seemed pretty lame (filled with weary expository statements), and the actors (most of whom seemed to be alumni of the Keanu Reeves School of acting) had an awful tendency to step on each other's lines, along with the opposite, that of allowing more time than necessary between lines, i.e. pregnant pauses (perhaps these were both due more to lousy dubbing). The settings were appropriate (what I could see of them...I'll get more into this later), so that helped with the atmosphere, but little else did. The shocks were of the most rudimentary kind, as often we see a character, alone in a darkened room, approached by a hand whose owner we can't see, grasping the shoulder of the original character in dramatic fashion (the hand usually belonged to the maid, who I would have fired after one such occasion...scare yourself to the welfare line, baby...I guess knocking, along with windows, aren't part of her duties). I desperately tried to get into this film, and I was aided by the fact Ms. Steele appeared nearly throughout, but even her lovely visage and large, hypnotic eyes only went so far...she did have a fairly extensive and appropriate wardrobe throughout the film, if you're interested in that kind of thing (my girlfriend is, more so than I). The ending is, well, an ending alright, but one I would have expected from a Scooby Doo cartoon rather than a horror thriller. The clunky exposition comes fast and furious, as every little stinking detail is laid out for us, as is necessary because otherwise how would we understand the intricacies of such elaborate schemes (capable storytelling, perhaps)? This is a case where the writers tried to get too cutesy, developing the story in haphazard fashion, only to figure everything can later be explained at the end of the film.Alpha Video, the company that released this DVD, specializes in releasing films and television features where the original copyright has expired, so their original source material is most likely limited to a previously released VHS copy, this, along with the fact they don't have to pay any royalties, is why they can offer these films so cheaply. The fullscreen print on this DVD is exceptionally poor, with the audio a little better. Any gothic feel is completely obliterated, as the daytime scenes are often murky, while nighttime scenes are obscured completely, along with the occasional missing frame here and there. There's relatively few scenes where excessive damage and/or age wear isn't present, and I actually became weary watching the film as I spent a great deal of effort trying to focus on the events on the screen, rather than the poor quality of the picture. I've heard this film is also available on a DVD set from Brentwood, featuring 10 public domain horror flicks, but the quality there is equally poor.Cookieman108

I think all the Barbara Steele movies are classics that I keep in my movie library. Every once in a while I pull it out and watch it. I wish they would make a modern remake of the movie.

A delicious ending preceded by a classically gothic plot. The acting is bad but the interiors are sumptuous. I love it.

This item was delivered very promptly and in great condition. I watched the move for a second time with my Mom since it's release in around 1970. Thank you.

There was a scene in the solarium that made me think I'd seen this; the scene is a rip off (or, the other movie 'borrowed' it).It was okay, mostly predictable.But Barbara Steele is ALWAYS great!

Classic gothic ghost story with a twist

A hauntingly well told tale! Settings are eerie enough, and the acting is very passable. The usual story but with a slight twist to it. It is certainly worth a look if you are wanting atmosphere and haunting settings. Gho for it!

Ni pierdan el tiempo,es una copia mal hecha es un dvd grabado con una calcomanía en la carátula del disco y en cuanto a la película, pésima Calidad de imagen,de VHS

What a great movie, and hard to believe the director supposedly didn't like doing horror movies very much!Good acting, especially from Barbara Steele, and she certainly is the strongest (in more ways than one), character in the movie.The music is excellent and the cinematography is well done too.Great plot twists, fantastic ending, spooky scenes, and this copy of "The Ghost" delivers a very decent image quality from the other copy I have.And for the price? I definitely recommend this one!