The Horror from my DVD Player (Lovecraft movies)

[Mouseferatu]

So I just watched Dagon (from 2001).

This is what happens when you have a film made by people who like Lovecraft, but don't get Lovecraft.

Meh. :\

So, Lovecraft aficionados... Other than the silent movie version of Call of Cthulhu, which I own, what are the best Lovecraft adaptations available on DVD?

 

[trancejeremy]

Personally, I think "The Ressurected" is the best adaption of an HPL story (The Case of Charles Dexter Ward). Not really Cthulhu Mythos though.

http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0105242/

It's pretty faithful, I think. I'm not sure a completely faithful adaption would work in a modern setting - how many children have family doctors their entire lives? And the story itself mentioned private detectives being hired, so it kinda makes sense to shift the main character from an elderly concerned family doctor to a private detective hired to investigate the case.

And similarly, the ending is a little different, but perhaps more dramatic than simply chanting a spell.

But does a real good job in the catacomb scene, and Chris Saradon is great as Curwen

 

[frankthedm]

The Flashback in Dagon was great. I disliked that the director chose not to use fish men but still used the 'b-movie' shtick of "They want our women!" :\ . The last scene feels too 'Temple of doom" for my tastes to.

Personally, I think "The Resurrected" is the best adaption of an HPL story (The Case of Charles Dexter Ward)...

It's pretty faithful, I think.

I tend to agree. The flashback was darn good too.

Another decent HPL flavored movie is "The Curse" (1987) Liberties are taken, but many key elements get used.

Full moon video's "Lurking fear" have some cool looking ghouls, but thats about it.

"Masters of Horror" H.P. Lovecraft's Dreams in the Witch-House (2005) is worth a watch IMHO.

Innsmouth Wo Oou Kage is a japanese telling of the Innsmouth story. I still seek it.

 

[Steel_Wind]

I honestly don't remember the tile, (but someone here will). There was a Canadian produced TV show, made in Montreal, about some guy who inherits the a book from a long dead relative.

It has elements of Charles Dexter Ward and other Lovecraftian tales in it. I stumbled on to watching it when it was being shown on Space - about halfway through the show.

I was VERY annoyed that I had missed half of this thing - as it was the best HPL based work I'd ever seen.

Anyone remember this? It's only about 5 years old or less.

 

[Rackhir]

Well, I've always thought that the unfortunately named She Creature captured the feel of a Lovecraft story better than anything else I've seen.

If you can find it Cast a Deadly Spell is very, very funny. The main character is named Lovecraft and it does feature the Necronomicon. But it's more of a comedy and a Film Noir movie. Still it is one of my favorite films and there are enough background and sight gags to rival Airplane!

The Ressurected is pretty good and the Vincent Price version The Haunted Palace isn't bad, but I was not very happy with "The Curse".

Unfortuately the pickings are very slim when it comes to good Lovecraft movie. Considering the number of writers who have written bad knock offs of Lovecraft's stories it shouldn't be a surprise that there aren't many good movies.

 

[Aeolius]

Speaking of Vincent Price, you might also look for War-Gods of the Deep on DVD ; it has a Lovecraft sort of feel to it.

 

[Klaus]

John Carpenter's At The Mouth of Madness is very closely to Lovecraft in style and form.

And here's hoping Guillermo Del Toro (Hellboy) manages to find financial backup to produce his "At The Mountains of Madness".

 

[jonathan swift]

The Re-Animator.

 

[trancejeremy]

John Carpenter's At The Mouth of Madness is very closely to Lovecraft in style and form.

I know people say that a lot, but I just never really saw the similarity (other than perhaps the title of the movie). Much closer to Stephen King than HPL, IMHO.

Spoiler

For one, HPL never wrote any apocalyptic stories; SK has written a bunch. For another, in HPL, it's really not reading the books that drives people crazy, it's seeing stuff mentioned in the books that does (and people then generally either run or crumple into a heap, not turn psycho), whereas people turning psychotically violent is a staple of King (though not usually by books). HPL's human villains were generally pretty odious, while the one in the movie is somewhat suave and oily, more like SK's villains. For another, HPL generally focused on otherworldly horror - horrible beings from beyond, or horrible magical lore/science, in the movie, it's really more psychological than anything else. The names are much closer Sutter Cain, Stephen King. The covers of the novels look more like SK books, not to mention, SK is actually a popular author, HPL struggled during his lifetime.

 

[WayneLigon]

So, Lovecraft aficionados... Other than the silent movie version of Call of Cthulhu, which I own, what are the best Lovecraft adaptations available on DVD?

Dagon is the best I've seen so far. (I have not seen the 'silent movie' one yet). Lots of movies have had interesting Lovecraft-inspired elements but nothing I've ever seen has touched any of his actual work.