07 December 2024
Trilogy of Terror (1975)
72 min.
Directed by Dan Curtis.
With Karen Black, Robert Burton, John Karlen, George Gaynes, James Storm, Kathryn Reynolds, Gregory Harrison, Tracy Curtis.
This legendary 1975 TV horror anthology boasts two solid tales...and one genuinely nightmare-inducing little masterpiece.

Featuring Black as the lead in each vignette, the first two yarns are satisying enough:

Julie concerns a 'black widow' schoolteacher who lures frisky young men to their untimely deaths.

Next up, Millicent and Therese tells of a schizophrenic Black who has two different personalities battling for dominion, one a withdrawn bookworm and the other a wildly extroverted nymphomaniac.

But, of course, the notorious final segment is the best: Amelia is a deliciously manic roller coaster ride about a Zuni fetish doll that comes to life and terrorizes a hapless Black alone in her apartment.

A no holds barred mano a mano showdown between Black and the killer doll, Amelia is a sheer blast.

Kudos to Karen for three - make that four - excellent performances; she complements the superior screenplay from Richard Matheson and assured direction from Dan Curtis.

Trilogy is a must see.

Curtis also directed the followup Trilogy of Terror II in 1996.

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