The Old Dark House (1963)

Starring Tom Poston, Robert Morley, Janette Scott, Joyce Grenfell, Mervyn Johns
Directed by William Castle
(actor & director credits courtesy IMDB.com)

A car salesman accepts an invitation from his roommate to visit his ancestral home, only to find him murdered when he arrives, and someone plotting to murder the rest of the family.

A collaboration between Castle, who by this time had directed some entertaining low-budget shockers, and Hammer Films, Britain's preeminent horror studio, sounds more intriguing than it actually is, and this one is a huge misfire, despite the skilled veterans in front of and behind the camera.  The picture's meant to be a horror-comedy, based on J.B. Priestly's Benighted, which spawned the classic 1932 version of The Old Dark House from director James Whale.  However, Robert Dillon's screenplay is nothing like the book or the previous film, instead borrowing some characters and recasting them in an Agatha Christie-like plot with attempts at humor that simply miss the mark.  The Hammer artisans behind the scenes do their part, with Bernard Robinson creating a mansion fitting the drab prison the script describes, as well as realizing character Potipher Femm's dream of a new Noah's Ark on a convincing scale.  The cast really can't be faulted, and I found them engaging, with Arthur Grant's photography bringing out the best in them- Janette Scott has never looked lovelier.  I also found the employment of macabre cartoonist Charles Addams in designing the film's main title sequence an inspired choice.  The source material however deserved a wittier touch then Castle and Dillon were able to deliver.