Each critic is killed in a way similar to how someone in each Shakespearean play they reviewed, died. Despite being a British film, there are some rather gory and scary looking deaths, which I surprised me. Usually, British films didn't show violence and blood as much as this one, but I think it fits for the plot of the film. The one death that was crazy to me, was when the female critic was electrocuted in the salon chair. It was the most nuts of all of the deaths.
"Theatre of Blood" came out the year before "Madhouse" did, which was released in 1974. I remember seeing reviews that "Madhouse" was just a cheaper, less great version of the former, but I disagree. While both films have similar ideas to them, they're not the same plot line. In "Theatre of Blood", Vincent Price is actually the bad guy...in "Madhouse", he's not!
I found the plot idea of Price's character killing the critics because they gave him a bad review, especially hilarious, in today's world. In many ways, this idea would still hold up today, because with social media, people are reviewing things all the time. It's also silly, to think about killing people because they disliked your movie or play.
I really liked how this film let Price shine, when it came to the Shakespearean parts. He really gave it his all when it came to the lines in the film. This is one of those movies where it had that theatric, story driven feel to it, common in British films. I really enjoyed this because it was perfect for Price's acting style. According to lore, Vincent Price really loved working on this film!
I looked up the movie in the newspaper archives, and couldn't find any reviews on it, though I do know that the movie was successful. The movie was advertised with other films such as "Soylent Green", "The Mephisto Waltz", and "Daughters of Satan".
Overall, I liked this film, and would watch it again. It's silly, cheesy, and pretty fun to watch too. It's not scary, but it has that sort of Poe-esque gothic feel to it. Strangely, in comparison to "Madhouse", I like "Madhouse" more. Other reviews seem to feel the opposite way. For me, while "Theatre of Blood" is fun to watch, I still enjoy the creepiness in "Madhouse" a bit more. I think that the latter is more fitting of the "horror" title than this one.
Even still, I give this a 3/5.
