The Abominable Dr. Phibes
From The Grindhouse Cinema Database
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Also Known As
- Abominável Dr. Phibes, O (Brazil)
- Abominable Doctor Phibes, L' (Spain) (Catalan title)
- Abominable Dr. Phibes, El (Spain)
- Abominable Dr. Phibes, L' (France)
- Abominevole Dr. Phibes, L' (Italy)
- Blodtörstige hämnaren, Den (Sweden)
- Dr. Phibes (USA) (promotional title)
- Dr. Phibes - den fasansfulle (Sweden)
- Odrazajacy dr Phibes (Poland)
- Ohavny Dr. Phibes (Czechoslovakia)
- Satanikos doktor Phibes, O (Greece)
- Schreckenskabinett des Dr. Phibes, Das (West Germany)
- The Curse of Dr. Phibes (undefined)
- Vampyyrin kosto (Finland)
Taglines
- Revenge Is The Best Medicine.
- Love means never having to say you're ugly!
- Dr. Phibes has great vibes!
- There are two sides to Dr. Phibes.....both of them EVIL!
Main Details
- Released in 1971
- Color
- Running Time: 94 min
- Aspect Ratio: (1.85:1)
- Production Co: American International Pictures (AIP)
- Distribution Co: American International Pictures (AIP) (USA) | Anglo-EMI Film Distributors (UK) | MGM-EMI (UK) |
Cast and Crew
- Directed by Robert Fuest
- Written by James Whiton and William Goldstein
- Starring Vincent Price, Joseph Cotten, Virginia North, Terry-Thomas, and Sean Bury
- Produced by Ronald Dunas and Louis M. Heyward
- Original Music by Basil Kirchin
- Cinematography by Norman Warwick
- Film Editing by Tristam Cones
Synopsis
The Abominable Dr. Phibes is a 1971 horror film starring Vincent Price. Its art deco sets, dark humor and "over the top" performance by Price has made the film and its sequel Dr. Phibes Rises Again "camp" classics.
Film Review
The incomparable Vincent Price stars as Dr. Anton Phibes (though one begs to ask the question "a doctor of what?"), who was thought to have been killed in a car crash while on his way back to the hospital where his wife had just recently passed away during surgery. Still very much alive and burned beyond recognition, Phibes becomes a madman and vows revenge on the eight doctors and one nurse that oversaw his beloved wife's ill-fated surgery. Using a Biblical-era Jewish tale concerning ten plagues that were used to smite the wicked, Phibes concocts elaborate deaths for each of the medical staff. Only the bumbling Scotland Yard detective Inspector Trout (the hilarious Peter Jeffrey) believes that he has a madman on his hands and it is up to him to find a way to stop the dreaded doctor before he can complete his terrible scheme.
The Abominable Dr. Phibes (not to be confused with the lesser known workout video, The Abdominal Dr. Phibes... guaranteed to give you a firmer tummy in five weeks) is a brilliantly conceived little chiller that not only displays an innate sense of intelligence and intrigue, but also a firm grasp of camp sensibilities that doesn't get in the way of the film's nasty sense of humor. There is such a sense of fun throughout the film that it pervades every inch of the screen and seems as if it had rubbed off on everyone involved in the production. I doubt I could count on one hand the number of films that I have seen that had the feeling that the entire cast and crew were enjoying themselves, and certainly none quite as enjoyable as this film is.
Part of the delirious fun of this film is the thick black comedy that makes up the majority of the murder sequences. While the elaborately staged murders do contain some pretty mean-spirited moments, they are done with a tongue-in-cheek style that never allows the film to get bogged down with matters that are too serious. The killings aren't anywhere near as macabre and gory as many films nowadays are (though the MPAA did go back and re-rate the film as a PG-13 many years after its release due to the violent content, despite the fact that it was originally released with a far more lenient rating), but the fun is in seeing just how Phibes is going to off someone next.
James Whiton and William Goldstein's script is full of smart and witty writing, which is surprising considering just how overly campy other films of the era were. The script is compelling (a good portion of which can be attributed to Phibes’ murders) and actually makes for a pretty good detective story while also offering up a decent horror story, a blend that many films today seem to strive for but can't seem to grasp (The Bone Collector comes to mind). The fact that there is also a generous helping of humor also makes the film much more enjoyable. The only real issues I have with the film are that some of the deaths seem a little contrived (the hail machine, for example) and there are a few stretches where director Robert Fuest lingers far too long on Phibes playing his pipe organ when he could just get back to the action. Minor quibbles both, but enough to make me a little restless throughout the film.
Vincent Price is his usual best, portraying Phibes as an oddly eloquent man, despite the fact that all of his words must be magnified through a large phonograph and he is always speaking in far grander language than is really necessary to get his point across (which adds to the campy nature of the film). Price's supporting cast is equally notable, though none more so than Peter Jeffrey's character of Inspector Trout. Jeffrey plays the character with just the right amount of reserved British exasperation concerning the odd events occurring and the banter between him and his superior Waverly (John Cater) is priceless comedy (comedy that was so notable that it led to the two characters getting more of a spotlight in the follow-up film, Dr. Phibes Rises Again). A running joke where people consistently substitute Trout's last name for that of another type of fish is also pretty funny, despite the fact that the joke is so over-used that it has almost become a cliché. No discussion about Dr. Phibes would be complete without mentioning comic genius Terry-Thomas, who also appeared in such classics as It's A Mad Mad Mad Mad World and Those Magnificent Men in Their Flying Machines. Here, the British comedian plays one of the ill-fated doctors, who also happens to have an interesting fetish involving dancing girls with snakes. Oddly, Thomas would also return for the sequel, albeit, in a far different capacity considering the death of his character.
Reviewed by Chuck Dowling
The Ten Plagues of Egypt
Dr. Phibes takes his inspiration for the murders from the Old Testament, the Ten plagues of Egypt:
- 1. Boils: Prof. Thornton is stung to death by bees (not shown, only referred to during the film)
- 2. Bats: Dr. Dunwoody is mauled to death by bats
- 3. Frogs: Dr. Hargreaves's (who is not really a surgeon; just a psychiatrist) throat is crushed by a mechanical mask of a frog
- 4. Blood: Dr. Longstreet has all the blood drained out of his body
- 5. Hail: Dr. Hedgepath is frozen to death by a machine spewing ice
- 6. Rats: Dr. Kitaj crashes his plane when attacked by rats
- 7. Beasts: Dr. Whitcombe is impaled by a brass unicorn head
- 8. Locusts: Nurse Allen is eaten by locusts
- 9. Death of the first born: Phibes kidnaps and attempts to kill Dr. Vesalius's son Lem
- 10. Darkness: At the ambiguous ending of the film, Phibes drains the blood from his own body while injecting embalming fluid, apparently joining his wife in death.
Production Notes
- Robert Fuest rewrote most of the original screenplay. One of the few scenes to remain as scripted was one in which Trout consults a rabbi and first learns of the curses. Some original plot lines and sequences that were altered or eliminated:
- Phibes was to be much more violent in the original script, abusing Vulnavia, smashing furniture, etc. The filmmakers ultimately decided to make the character more sympathetic.
- The victim of the plague of rats was to be attacked on a boat rather than in a plane. It was changed as most people's reaction was, "Why couldn't he just jump off the boat?"
- Vulnavia was going to be revealed as another one of Phibes' clockwork devices (he has a clockwork band called "Dr. Phibes' Clockwork Wizards.")
Phibes was originally to kill Vulnavia and then escape his house (which was to catch fire) in a hot air balloon with Victoria's body.
- In order for Joseph Cotten to know his cues, Phibes' dialogue was read aloud by a crew-member.
- Cotten would grumble on the set that he had to remember and deliver lines, while Price's were all to be post-dubbed. Price responded, "Yes, but I still know them, Joe." (In fact, Price was well-known in Hollywood for his ability to memorize all of the characters' lines in a given production, not just his own.)
- Price commented that Cotten was uncomfortable doing these scenes, so he intentionally pulled a lot of faces to make him laugh.
- Vincent Price went through hours of make up, which often had to be reapplied as he kept laughing.
- The name "Vesalius" is a reference to Andreas Vesalius, a Flemish scientist who cut up corpses to learn about the workings of the body.
- The film was followed by a sequel, Dr. Phibes Rises Again, in 1972. Several other possible sequels were planned, including Dr. Phibes in the Holy Land, The Brides of Phibes, Phibes Resurrectus and The Seven Fates of Dr. Phibes, but none were made.
- Dr. Phibes' wife, played by '70's model, Caroline Munro (who later appeared in such Hammer Horror fare as Dracula A.D. 1972 and Captain Kronos, Vampire Hunter), was excluded from the film's credits.
Music
- The film opens with War March of the Priests (Mendelssohn) flamboyantly played by Dr. Phibes on a grand organ.
- The succession of murders is accompanied by period music including "Charmaine", "Darktown Strutters Ball" (sung by Paul Frees), "You Stepped out of a Dream", "Close Your Eyes" and "Elmer's Tune".
- The film also features a version of the Johnny Mercer hit "One For My Baby (And One More For The Road)" (sung by Scott Peters)
- "Over the Rainbow" closes the film over the end credits.
- The horror-punk band "The Misfits" has a song by the name of 'The Abominable Dr. Phibes'. It is a shortened version of the "Kryst the Conqueror" song 'Dr. Phibes Rises Again'. 'Kryst' was a post original Misfits band featuring brothers Jerry (long time founding member bassist of the Misfits) and Doyle (guitarist). The extended song was rerecorded by the Misfits with Michale Graves singing, on the album "Cuts from the Crypt".
- Punk and Goth pioneers, The Damned pay tribute to Dr Phibes on the track "13th Floor vendetta" from the 1980 "Black Album", The song opens with the lines " the organ plays to midnight on maldine Square tonight"
- German deathrock band Madre del Vizio has songs named "Dr. Phibes" and "Il Retorno del Dr. Phibes".
- German ska band The Busters released a song named "Dr. Phibes" on their 2004 album "Revolution Rock". It is an instrumental with the organ as the main instrument, including a long organ solo.
- British heavy metal band Angel Witch released a song entitled "Dr. Phibes".
- American death metal band The Black Dahlia Murder have released a zip-up hoody featuring artwork inspired by the movie. The piece of merchandise is entitled simply 'Phibes.'
- Italian Electronica band Overmamba released a song entitled "Phibes Returns" on their debut EP Crawl Out.
- British Heavy Metal band Angel Witch included an instrumental titled "Dr. Phibes" on their "Loser" EP and the 1990 re-issue of their self-titled album.
