Crucible of Terror (1971)

This movie opens with an art dealer trying to make some money on an art show.  The only thing selling is some art from an unknown artist named Victor Clare.  Though when he wants more of his work to sell he runs into a problem.  It seems that Victor’s son, who sold him the art, stole it from his father.  Victor is a difficult artist that has no interest in selling his work.  Undeterred the dealer, Victor’s son, and their girlfriends head off to try and work the old man to let go of a few more pieces.  That is easier said then done though, because not only is the old man difficult to deal with, but someone is knocking off the houseguests one at a time.

Severin has scored yet again.  At this point I’ve been a fan of the horror and exploitation genre for more then 30 years and I’ve seen most everything.  But until I checked out this DVD I had never seen Crucible of Terror, which is too bad because this is just the sort of movie that I love.  The story can be a bit slow at times, but I enjoyed the sense of foreboding that the movie builds up.  You know that something very bad is coming, even before the bodies start to hit the floor.  And once the killing starts it is fun to figure out who is the killer, though I’ll admit this one had me fooled.  I never would have guessed the identity.  What is even better is that once revealed it all makes sense.  This might seem like a bland by the numbers horror movie, but it is really cleverly written, which endears it to me. 

Not only is the plot engaging and fun, but also I love the characters.  They are so odd and strange that it is fun just watching them interact.  That also adds to the mystery of who is the killer because you have so many suspects to choose from.  The cast is solid from top to bottom.  This is especially true of the actor who plays Victor, Mike Raven.  It seems like he only did 4 movies in the early ‘70s before moving on to radio career, but based on what I’ve seen here I will be looking for his other movies.  Raven manages to make Victor as total bastard, but at the same time sort of likeable.  How does one manage that?  And I would be remiss if as a child of the ‘80s and big fan of Raiders of the Lost Ark I didn’t mention Ronald Lacey, who plays Victor’s son Michael.  He plays a great drunk.

There are several onscreen kills in Crucible of Terror, with the first one being the best and most memorable.  They are pretty bloody for the early ‘70s, but won’t shock a modern audience.  This isn’t the kind of movie that the gore hounds are going to appreciate that much.  Still a couple of them are pretty mean spirited and hold up pretty well. 

I really recommend Crucible of Terror as a flick horror fans will want to pick up and add to their collections.  This is the kind of movie that I’ll be watching again.  Plus it also allows us to support a cool company like Severin.  Check out there website at http://www.severin-films.com/ for more information on where you can pick up this and their other killer titles.

3 out of 4

reviewed by John Shatzer

© Copyright 2010 John Shatzer