Spine Tingler! The William Castle Story

Product Description SPECIAL FEATURES INCLUDE: Two audio commentaries featuring producer / director Jeffrey Schwarz, Terry Castle, editor Philip Harrison, composer Michael Cudahy, graphic designer Grant Nellessen, with special guests Vince Rotolo (Bmoviecast.com), Arthur Knight (Knight at the Movies), and William Castle, Larger Than Life: The Making of Spine Tingler! The William Castle Story, One Hour of Interview Outtakes, Arthur Knight USC Cinema Class Audio, AFIFest 2007 Q & A, Bob Burns Interview at The Alex Theatre, Darryl Hickman Interview at The Alex Theatre, Terry Castle Interview at The Alex Theatre, The Tingler Premiere, San Antonio, TX, William Castle at the USA Film Festival, Indie Express Interviews with Jeffrey Schwarz & Terry Castle, Red Carpet Interviews, filmmaker TV and appearances. Review William Castle, was not just a writer / director / producer / horror fan. He was also a larger-than-life showman in the same league as P.T. Barnum (or Harold Hill). Mr. Castle felt that a simple scary movie was not enough; each of his flicks came with its very own 'in-cinema' gimmick. When audiences saw The Tingler, they also felt some goofy joy-buzzers from underneath their seats. When the ghosts showed up on Haunted Hill, inflatable skeletons would sometimes pass through the audience. That sort of thing would never dazzle today's audiences, but back in the early 1960's William Castle was one of the horror fan's most admired flick-makers. Now comes a long overdue and very entertaining documentary called Spine Tingler! The William Castle Story, which is every bit the thorough, colorful, informative, and affectionate bio-piece that Castle's fans have been waiting for. It's great that Ed Wood has enjoyed such a lengthy posthumous shelf-life, so why not throw some love towards a considerably better schlock-slinger? Heck, I'm ready for Paul Giamatti to play William Castle in a big-budget bio-pic! Very well constructed by the folks at Automat Pictures (one of the leading companies in high-end DVD documentaries and featurettes), Spine Tingler gives us the whole colorful story in just about 80 minutes: From Mr. Castle's rather unhappy childhood to his early successes (and a few visits visits from lady luck), from his horror hits to his late-career stumblings. Ah, and let's not forget; Castle is best known for churning out the simple-style horror stuff, but if it weren't for him, we'd have never met Rosemary's Baby. Stocked with several excellent interviews and a ton of photographs, stills, and posters from the filmmaker's colorful career, Spine Tingler! is a great little documentary about a filmmaker whose impact deserves to be remembered. If the movie skips over a few of the man's lesser works (no mention of The Old Dark House?), the omissions can easily be forgiven. Director Jeffrey Schwarz went out and grabbed a really eclectic collection of interviewees. From close friends and family members to esteemed film critics and historians to fans / filmmakers like Joe Dante, Roger Corman, John Landis, John Waters, and Stuart Gordon. By working from such a wide array of people, we get to see several different angles of William Castle. And all of them are cool. --Fearnet.com In an age filled with remake after remake, now s the time to start going back in time and checking out the films that are being ripped off today. If you ve already seen the Universal classics like Frankenstein and Dracula, then maybe it s time to educate yourself about the legendary William Castle, who took cinema to a whole new level. You might think Walt Disney World was the first place to get interactive with films (Honey I Shrunk the Audience!), but Castle was the originator. In the documentary Spine Tingler! The William Castle Story, filmmaker (and fan) Jeffrey Schwarz will help transport you to a world where going to the theater more than just an afternoon killer. It was an event. Schwarz s Spine Tingler! is extremely focused and fabulously entertaining.