Cheap Spirits of the Dead (DVD) (Brigitte Bardot, Alain Delon, Jane Fonda, Terence Stamp) (Louis Malle, Federico Fellini, Roger Vadim) Price

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Customer Reviews of Spirits of the Dead

Terence Stamp reminds me of a floating cat
this film of three poe stories is based on moody imagery totally rare in cinema today.a painter as director's film,the shots become canvas.perhaps the stories are a tad tedious at times but it is the incredibly looking actors than spring into imagination.It is fellini's toby dammit that is pure dream.There is an ethereal japanese quality to the lighting into the framework of hell.terence stamp,no other actor besides christopher walken or david bowie comes close to his otherworldly stare,he only smiles when he loses his head.

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The best is last
Spirits of the dead is a mixed bag of cinematic delight. Of the 3 episodes, only the last one "Toby Dammit" sustains interest. Fellini is at his best in this segment & Terence Stamp puts in a self destructive performance that has to be seen to be believed! His character, a self destructing actor who has reached the end of all worldly hope & desire wants only to leap into the chasm of death & destruction & he does so in spectactular fashion. This segment alone is worth the price of admission & Fellini caries the weight of the entire film on his capable talents. Images to delight & dialogue to astound, Terence Stamp should have won some kind of award for this brilliant performance as he portrays a burnt out actor with a death wish. You can't help but sympathize with him as he jolts his way from one bizarre interlude to another. You know you're at deaths door when you can turn down that blonde in the awards segment! Yikes!!! Never bet the devil your head!! See it!

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Fellini Makes Films Like My Dreams--Exquisite Bliss
These three short films, loosely adapted from stories by Poe, are all packed with stunning landscape and exquisite set design. However, only Fellini's film manages to create a story worth retelling in its own right.

The first film is Roger Vadim's "Metzengerstein". The best thing I can say about it is that the gorgeous horse was the most effective actor in it. He knew his lines, and nodded when appropriate. Jane Fonda plays Contessa Frederica, an occasionally sadistic libertine who develops a passionate romantic attachment to the aformentioned horse. She is wondefully cruel and gorgeous, making the most out of some truly inspired little outfits. The segment is filmed by Claude Renoir, who captures some stunning images breathtaking beauty. Again, the scenes with the horse galloping and cavorting with Frederica are rather intoxicating. The story itself, however, is sacrificed on the alters of atmosphere and aesthetics. The end result is a very empty film.

Louis Malle's "William Wilson" basically has two really excellent scenes that make this worth watching. The first is a simple send-up of an autopsy. Wilson is demonstrating for his fellow Medical School classmates, the proper introductory procedure for performing an autopsy. Except, where his instructor had used the corpse of an old man--Wilson had bound a lovely, living lass and is preparing to dissect her. The other great scene involves Brigitte Bardot. Throughout this film, Bardot is unflatteringly coiffed in a black wig that is pulled back in a rather schoomarmish fashion. Her eyes are seductive, but she doesn't demand the kind of camera worship she has so often received in other films. However, the hair comes down and Bardot is soon being subjected to Wilson's birch rod. Her face, hair, and the slashes on her back are aesthetically quite sublime. Alain Delon is fair in the title role, but he lacks any real charisma. Between him and his doppelganger, I think they both possessed nearly as much charisma as the horse in Vadim's film. Overall, this film also sacrifices its story to the look of the film. The end is rather intense and powerful in its own right, but it lacks significance because the story itself isn't carried forth with any conviction or authority.

Terence Stamp is Toby Dammitt in the final film, directed by Federico Fellini. He really does an outstanding job looking washed out, confused, sick, drunk, and completely at the end of his tether. The film itself is phenomenal. It is by far the most absurdist and melancholy of the three films. In this adaptation of Poe's story, "Never Bet the Devil Your Head", Toby is jaundiced with everything possibly gained by fame in this life. He seems to represent the insidious truth of fame. He is also haunted by a sweet little girl in white, bouncing a big white ball. The scenes relating to her are the best, in my opinion. She is a sylph with terrible symbolic power. What does the ball mean? Why is she so demonstrably joyful? She can be read as pure and active--a regenerative force that is the impetus for new life. She certainly is spooky and charged with energy. She is clearly something that Toby's psyche cannot accept. Ultimately, the viewer is made privy to a series of associations in Toby's mind that help us understand his relationship with the little girl. But we are not made aware of her exact role in his downward spiral. It is impossible to fully convey the magic that Fellini captures with this film. From start to finish, there is a typically "Felliniesque" hyper-surrealism that transports the viewer into another dimension. This is the only film of the three that manages the rather daunting feats of transcendence and cinematic art. Nino Rota's score is haunting and hypnotic throughout. An absolute masterpiece overall.