Mr. Sardonicus (1961)

Starring Ronald Lewis, Audrey Dalton, Guy Rolfe, Oscar Homolka, Vladimir Sokoloff
Directed by William Castle
(actor & director credits courtesy IMDB.com)

A doctor is invited by his former love to visit the castle of her husband Baron Sardonicus, in order to treat the Baron's affliction, that keeps his face hidden behind an expressionless mask. 

William Castle's film adaptation of the horror tale by Ray Russell is probably best known for the gimmick Castle employed in his advertising, and in the film itself, encouraging audiences to vote for punishment of Sardonicus via thumbs-up, thumbs-down cards provided in the theaters.  It was also a phony gimmick as only one ending truly exists, according to most film historians.  However, its period setting and distinguished cast make the film itself worthwhile.  My friend Dan Day Jr. has pointed out that this was likely Castle's attempt to emulate the British horror popularized by the Hammer studio, ironic since Hammer and Castle would soon team up for the production of The Old Dark House a short time later.  I enjoy the film quite a bit, although one senses we don't get to quite see all the depravities committed by Sardonicus in Russell's original story.  Lewis is fine as the doctor, as is Rolfe as Sardonicus, and Dalton is a lovely damsel with a lot to play off in her dialogue, but I really appreciated the colorful characters added by Homolka and Sokoloff, who both added an old-world feel to the film that fit in well with the sets and art direction.

The Monster That Challenged The World (1957)

Starring Tim Holt, Audrey Dalton, Hans Conried, Barbara Darrow, Casey Adams
Directed by Arnold Laven
(actor & director credits courtesy IMDB.com)

A Navy commander spearheads an investigation into the mysterious deaths of divers in California's Salton Sea, and discovers giant radioactive mollusk monsters are to blame.

Not a great movie, but a lot of fun, with horrific and convincing looking monsters, although they don't really resemble mollusks that closely, as a video presentation during the movie makes painfully clear.  Presumably giant puppets patterned after the ants in the 1954 classic Them!, the creatures unfortunately don't have much mobility which limits their effectiveness on screen, but they're so scary looking, and with Heinz Roemheld's foreboding music accompanying their attacks, they definitely make a creepy impact.  Star Tim Holt was on the downhill side of his career, and looks like he's carrying a bit of weight, but he's a fine enough choice for the picture, and although his scenes with Dalton as a widowed secretary pining for him are a bit clumsy, they came off for me all right.