Crypt of the Vampire

Crypt of the Vampire (1964)

La cripta e l'incubo

How much shock can the human brain endure before it cracks?

Count Karnstein sends for a doctor to help his sick daughter Laura. Her nurse believes she is possessed by the spirit of a dead ancestor, Carmilla. A young woman becomes intrigued by the mysterious deaths surrounding Laura after a carriage accident outside the castle forces her to stay. They become close friends until Laura becomes convinced the spirit of Carmilla is forcing her to kill.

Date of release
1964-05-27
TMDB
4.9 / 10 (41)
Runtime
1h 22m
Genres
Horror
Director
Camillo Mastrocinque

Casting

Interesting facts

  • Box office: $989.3K
  • Based on: Carmilla

Terror in the Crypt is a 1964 gothic horror film directed by Camillo Mastrocinque and starring Christopher Lee, Adriana Ambesi, Ursula Davis and José Campos. It is based on the 1872 novel Carmilla by Sheridan Le Fanu. An Italian and Spanish co-production, the film was released on May 27, 1964.

Production

Terror in the Crypt was the third film adaptation of the novel Carmilla, following Carl Theodor Dreyer's Vampyr (1932) and Roger Vadim's Blood and Roses (1960).

According to Tonino Valerii, the script was written in three days, while Gastaldi stated that it was written in 24 hours. Gastaldi has also claimed that he lied to a producer that they had a script ready, and then returned home to pen the script to return to the producer with the following day. The original title of the script was entitled La maledizione dei Karnstein (lit.: "The Curse of the Karnsteins").

The film was originally going to be directed by Antonio Margheriti. Due to other commitments, the film was given to Camillo Mastrocinque to direct. Mastrocinque was more prominently known for his comedy films, and was suggested by agent Liliana Biancini in order to help find the director new work. Valerii was also the assistant director on set, and later claimed that he personally shot several scenes of the film.

The film was shot at Castello Piccolomini in Balsorano, Abruzzo.

Read on Wikipedia · Text from Wikipedia, CC BY-SA 4.0. Data from Wikidata.

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