Give a movie character an eye patch, hump, menacing eyes or a thick accent, and you've got the villain du jour, so sinister in his methods and so obviously evil that no human element remains. Stephen McNally is a murderous count, Richard Greene the hero out for justice, and Paula Corday the fragile heroine in the middle. Red herrings played by Boris Karloff and Lon Chaney Jr. (Tor Johnson must have been busy doing Shakespeare) add to the silliness. The only thing missing is Abbott and Costello providing comic relief which is something this film desperately lacks. The only interesting horror twist is a plot development involving premature burial that is wrapped up too easily without comeuppance for the villains in a satisfactory manner. The nadir for me came when they identified an obvious panther as a leopard.
Review of The Black Castle
