Tales from the Darkside

Four ghoulish fables in one modern nightmare

TALES FROM THE DARKSIDE: THE MOVIE (18)

D: John Harrison

Columbia Tristar/Paramount (Richard P. Rubinstein & Mitchell Galin)

US 1991

93 mins

Horror

W: Michael McDowell; George Romero [based on stories by Arthur Conan Doyle; Stephen King]

DP: Robert Draper

Ed: Harry B. Miller III

Mus: Donald A. Rubinstein; Pat Regan; Chaz Jankel; John Harrison

Deborah Harry (Betty), Steve Buscemi (Edward Bellingham), Julianne Moore (Susan Smith), Christian Slater (Andy Smith), William Hickey (Drogan), David Johansen (Halston), James Remar (Preston), Rae Dawn Chong (Carola)

A trio of ghoulish comic-book style horror short films told via a wraparound in the style of The Twilight Zone. The stories get increasingly better, starting with "Lot 249", a rather standard beast-in-a-box ghost story and ending with "Lover's Vow", adapted from a Japanese ghost story that appeared in Kwaidan (qv).

The middle of the three stories is the most likely to induce nightmares, penned by Stephen King and titled "The Cat From Hell".

Reasonably good as a horror anthology, featuring some very good gore effects by veteran makeup artist Dick Smith.

6/10