kidboots Even though the opening warning addressed to "those who are squeamish" etc, and with the sound of a heartbeat on a black screen now seems a cheesy gimmick (think William Castle), overall the film is quite a scary experience. You know it's going to be good when you realise it is an early Brian Clemens (he of "The Avengers" and "Thriller" fame) script.Laurence Payne's haggard looks gave dimension to his performance as the shy Edgar, a reference librarian, whose hobby is chess and who is desperate to find his ideal love. He contrasts strongly with his Carl (stalwart of British Bs, Dermot Walsh) who has all the charm and worldliness that Edgar lacks. They both fall for the same girl, Betty (pretty Adrienne Corri,) and she is attracted to Carl's ease of manner - next to him Edgar appears like a neurotic wimp. Within the first ten minutes you realise Edgar has a drug addiction, he has almost an aversion to women in the flesh but has a need for pornography - did I say he also has a mother complex!!Betty is a flower seller who moves in across the road from Edgar who, in taking tips from Carl, attempts to sweep her off her feet. His manic enthusiasms turn her off but she is more than willing to be romanced by Carl who tries to warn Edgar about her flirtatious ways. Edgar takes a voyeuristic delight in watching her undress - their windows face each other across the street but one night he sees more than he wants to when Carl keeps a midnight rendezvous with Betty.The murder of Carl is particularly vicious as Edgar, blood spattered and wild looking, drags his body down the stairs. Jenny seems to show undue concern when after three days Carl has still not shown up. Meanwhile, back at Edgar's residence, the cleaner has been given strict instructions not to enter a locked room. Ticking clocks, dripping taps - even rocking vases, chess pieces and metronomes do their best to send Edgar completely around the twist. He removes the heart, takes it to the parkland and buries it - all very grisly. Observing Edgar, Betty feels he is at the bottom of Carl's disappearance but the police laugh at her complaints, thinking she can't get over the fact that she was thrown over!! And even though the ending is a major let down it still doesn't take away from what is an unsettling, horrific movie!!Throughout the movie Edgar's sexual repression was pounced on by the censors who apparently removed scenes involving a brutal murder with a poker, the resurrection of the victim's body from it's hiding place and the removal of the heart - all to do with sexual arousal through violence, something the British Board of Film Censors wouldn't put up with. Just a couple of years previously there had been a huge controversy over Michael Powell's "Peeping Tom" (1960) that was finally given an X certificate which may explain why the release of "The Tell Tale Heart" was delayed for two years.

The_Void The Tell-Tale Heart is one of the best known of Edgar Allen Poe's works; and I was surprised that I had not seen a film based on it. The original story is just a short story, and while there have been many versions of this tale committed to screen; most of them are only shorts themselves; thus making this film one of the few feature length editions of the story. Well...after having seen it, I have to admit that I'm not surprised there aren't more feature length versions because really there isn't enough plot to stretch to such a long running time. Thus, most of the story of this film has no relation to Poe's original story. We focus on a man named Edgar (a bit of a ham-fisted reference if you ask me); a quiet man that lacks experience with women. When he notices a young lady named Betty in a house across the street; he resolves to romance her and asks his close friend Carl for advice on how to speak to women. He and Betty are getting on well; until he discovers that Carl and Betty are also getting on well, and so Carl is murdered.The film is shot in black and white and looks really cheap throughout. Director Ernest Morris appears not to have the resolve to elevate the film above the mundane and also fails to get a good performance out of his any of his (relatively) unknown cast; which renders the whole production rather bland. Of course, the whole film is just build up to the inevitable situation whereby the murderous central character is haunted by the echoes of the beating heart from the man he has killed, and this leaves most of it feeling rather pointless. To the film's credit, however, it does handle Poe's actual story well and things do become much more interesting once we reach the main part of the film. This version of The Tell-Tale Heart never really gets into the psychological side of Poe's original story; and the reason for that really just goes back to the characters, which aren't interesting enough. Overall, this is really a lacklustre effort and I wouldn't recommend tracking it down; this story is more suited to a short film anyway, and I'm sure that at least one of the many short film versions is superior to this effort.

Scarecrow-88 A pitiable, terribly timid librarian, Edgar Marsh(Lawrence Payne, who is superb), falls head over heels for a new neighbor, a flower sales-girl who lives across the street. This lovely creature is Betty Clare(Adrienne Corri)and she agrees to date Edgar out of sympathy for his pathetic nature, but soon is attractively drawn to his best friend, playboy Carl Loomis(Dermot Walsh), a ladies' man with quite a reputation around the place. Carl, at first, resists Betty who clearly displays arousing affection for him, but soon accepts a sexual invitation for which a gullible Edgar sees from his window(..he often watches her undress, the voyeur that he is). Edgar, who had spent a considerable amount of money and time on Betty, reacts hostilely to Carl's betrayal by attacking him with a fireplace poker, burying the body under a floor board. This act of violence, haunts him as he hears the loud pounding of Carl's heart beat, which rarely ceases, plaguing him night after night. Succumbing to drink and madness, it's only a matter of time before he cracks. Meanwhile, Betty pursues the answer as to why Carl hasn't returned to her, suspicious since he proclaimed their future betrothal after he broke the news of their engagement and love affair to Edgar.I think this was a really nice surprise. Director Ernest Morris builds the torment existing within Edgar's soul slowly, over time, using the movement of objects, simple but effectively spooky tricks anchored by Payne's pitch-perfect portrayal of a rather feeble man whose guilty conscience starts to erode his psyche, and his already fragile mental state slowly crumbles..and Morris uses images and sounds such as a water faucet dripping, a clock ticking, a chess piece rolling on a board back and forth(..wonderful symbolism, to boot, since Edgar and Carl played chess all the time), and a rug moving up and down symbolizing the supposed beat of a heart. Corri is ideally cast as the lustful object of Edgar's affections, and she's incredibly sexy which provides an understanding as to the infatuation of the film's protagonist and why he'd constantly obsess over her, to the point that he'd kill his best friend as a result. Great use of silence(..accompanied by the variety of sounds I mentioned above), as well, pointing out Edgar's isolation as the heart beats and he can not escape it, eventually cutting it from Carl's chest, looking at it thump, finally burying it. I think the filmmakers(..and, especially Payne) effectively convey this poor loser's slow descent into hysteria. Bravura job for all concerned..a real sleeper, see it of you get the chance. A word of warning, though..this is a slow burner, a film that takes it's time, allowing all the elements to take shape.MAJOR SPOILER: Maybe, the twist at the end is a bit of a drag(..the whole "it's all a dream" aspect), but Edgar is quite a whimpering chap, so he deserves some sympathy, which may be why he's spared.

dseast The original murder of an old man is not seen in this movie, but a more interesting and prolonged plot involving love and betrayal. The main character, named Edgar Poe, seems a bit unstable from the very beginning, if not just plain creepy. The theme and feel of the original work is alive in this picture as our main character slowly progresses into psychological deterioration. Good climax and plenty of classic gore for a black and white film.I think Poe would have liked this one.I too bought this as part of a double feature for $1 at Wal-Mart, and tax free in New Hampshire no less. Great find if you happen upon it!