Theatre of Blood

Theatre of Blood was a 1973 horror film starring Vincent Price as vengeful actor Edward Lionheart and Diana Rigg as his daughter Edwina Lionheart.

Edward Lionheart, who sees himself as a great Shakespearian actor, is in fact an extremely hammy and over-the-top actor, much like Vincent Price who plays him. With the aid of his daughter, Lionheart murders a group of critics who fail to give him an award, and had ridiculed him his whole career one by one. The manner of each critic's death is inspired by a death in a play in which Lionheart's performance was slated by that particular critic.

The first is butchered on the 15th of March, similar to Julius Ceaser. The next is speared and then dragged behind a horse, Hector's fate in Troilus and Cressida . Other murders include drowning one in a vat of wine, ala Richard the Third, a decapitation similar to Cymbeline, force feeding the camp Merridith Merridew his "babies" (his dogs) vaguley linked to Titus Andronicus , tricking one of the critics into murdering his wife Othello, a modern version of Joan of Arc being burnt in the stake (from King Henry the Sixth) and reworking The Merchant of Venice so Schylock gets his pound of flesh. There is also a duel scene inspired by Romeo and Juliet. Many of the deaths are appropriate to the critic (e.g. the one drowned in wine is an alchoholic).

Some critics have commented due to this that the film is simply a rehash of the Abominable Dr. Phibes, in which Price's character also systematically killed a group of people in a pattern method. Another similarity to Phibes is that the police force is depicted as being comical and incompotent. A major difference is that the Phibes films are set in the twenties and thirties, while Theatre of Blood is set in contemporary times.

Before or after each death, Edward recites passages of Shakespeare, giving Price a chance to show his acting ability. These sequences often happen in an abandoned theatre that Lionheart has used as his hideout, which is where the title of the film originates (it was originally to be called Much ado about murder).

The film ends when Lionheart's attempt to blind one critic ala King Lear backfires. A group of tramps who helped Lionheart turn on him and kill Edwina. In his rage he sets fire to his theatre hideout, retreating to the roof and delivering Lear's final monologue. At that point the roof caves in and he dies.

This film is considered by many to be Vincent Price's greatest work, and it was a personal favourite of his, as he always wanted the chance to act in Shakespeare, but found himself being type cast due to his work in horror.

Some disliked the ending though, as Price made Lionheart such a sympathetic character, especially compared to the critics.

The film has been recently adapted to the stage, with Jim Broadbent playing Edward Lionheart and Rachael Stirling, Diana Rigg's daughter, playing her mother's role of Edwina. The play differs from the film as the critics are from the major British newspapers (examples including The Guardian and the Times), and it is all set within an abandoned theatre.

External link

• Theatre of Blood at IMDb