Trailblazing Dr. Phibes

Media / 8/11/2009 5:35:15 PM

Welcome back one of our latest Chicago edition writers, Brad Witzel. This time he brings us back to the bloody vintage roots of murder puzzles and the villains that confound us...and entertain us!

Before there was "Saw" and the Jigsaw Killer, even long before there was "Se7en" there was the Vincent Price cult classic, "The Abominable Dr. Phibes"! Sure, the budget and special effects aren't the same but there are near-identical plot elements. Just like the film's successors, people in "The Abominable Dr, Phibes" start dying in rather strange and creative ways. Scotland Yard detectives piece together the evidence and discover that the M.O.'s of the deaths relate to the ten Biblical plagues brought about upon Egypt (although the accuracies of the plagues and the order in which they occur are horribly mangled). The victims also seem connected; they all were involved in a case in which the wife of Dr. Anton Phibes met her end. Dr. Phibes himself was believed to have died shortly thereafter in an accident. As it turns out, he's not quite dead and is enacting his revenge through some very creative murders. (Sound familiar?!)

The murder plots are incredibly and ridiculously cool, while remaining some of the most unlikely chains of events ever depicted on film. A case in point, one of the victims is being held in protective custody within the police station where presumably Phibes can't get to him. He's safe until the detectives open a door at the very same moment a copper bust of a unicorn's head flies through and impales the victim. Why a unicorn's head? To represent the "plague of beasts", of course. Yes, this movie is that cool. Apparently, the unicorn bust was catapulted from across the street of the police station, through a window, and into the victim's body. While all of that in and of itself is a great death scenario, consider the implication that Phibes must be a mathematical genius in the areas of probability and geometry. How did he know exactly when the victim would appear in the door frame? How did he get the unicorn bust's trajectory perfect without any trial runs? Where did a bust-flinging catapult come from? None of these questions are answered but that's part of the movie's charm.

There are more ludicrous deaths (one involves brussel sprout paste, a deep sleeper, and anti-flesh locusts) all of which contribute to rather amusing cinematic viewing. "Saw" creators could have gained inspiration from the death involving a key hidden within someone's body while a device counts down toward a messy end.

This film is worth watching for the death scenes alone. Try to sit through this movie without smiling during the murders. It's impossible! Fans of modern or classic horror movies should check out this one, if only to pay homage to the first torture murder mystery horrors! It's not a laughing fest of a B-film, but its enjoyable through-and-through. At the very least, Vincent Price makes an iconic villain, any time, any place.

Brad Witzel

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