A few years ago I bought a VHS of the 1972 Vincent Price minor classic horror film, The Abominable Dr. Phibes. I saw it twenty years ago with a friend and we were impressed.Like many VHS copies of movies that I have, Phibes sat in the archives waiting to be screened. After clearing up some matters which had to be taken care of first, I fired up the big TV and relaxed. Actually, I popped in the DVD-R that I made from the VHS.
Vincent Price sparkles as Dr. Phibes, projecting the right amount of torment (due to his injury from an accident) and passion for his long lost wife. We don't see Price's lips move -- he speaks through a device -- but it is his unmistakable voice; a voice modulated and gargled to a degree, making his plans for compensation even more pronounced.
The Abominable Dr. Phibes could have easily fallen on the side of pure camp -- even at the time it was released never mind due to the passage of time -- but it confidently plays it straight while balancing some genuine need to be laughed with. It all runs to a satisfying denouement.
Rent this one.
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