Product Details

• Format: Box set, Color, DVD, NTSC
• Language: English
• Region: Region 1 (U.S. and Canada only. Read more about DVD formats.)
  
• Aspect Ratio: 1.33:1
• Number of discs: 4
• Rating: Unrated
• Studio: Bfs Entertainment
• DVD Release Date: September 19, 2006
• Run Time: 330 minutes
• Average Customer Review: 2.2 out of 5 stars See all reviews (8 customer reviews)
• ASIN: B000GTJSBW
• Amazon.com Sales Rank: #52,303 in Movies & TV (See Bestsellers in Movies & TV)

Editorial Reviews

Product Description
One of the world’s finest actors, Christopher Lee (The Lord of the Rings Trilogy, Count Dracula) is the perfect host for this thirteen-part series of short stories from America’s most celebrated writer and poet, Edgar Allan Poe. Universally known as the "Master of the Macabre," Poe set the standard for classic horror tales with grotesque imagery and superb plots. Full of untimely deaths, loss, mutilation, fear, claustrophobia, agony and revenge, Poe’s nightmarish visions and tortured soul vividly emerge in the following dramatizations: The Fall of the House of Usher / The Oval Portrait / Berenice / The Black Cat / Ligeia / The Cask of Amontillado / Mr. Valdemar / The Tell-Tale Heart / Morella / The Pit and the Pendulum / The Masque of the Red Death, Parts One & Two

Bonus Program: Biographical Portrait of Edgar Allan Poe

approx. 5.5 hrs. col.

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

32 of 34 people found the following review helpful:

1.0 out of 5 stars What a disappointment!, October 31, 2006

By	Anna M. Wilder "English teacher" (Bakersfield, CA United States) - See all my reviews (REAL NAME)

I love Edgar Allen Poe stories. As an English teacher, I often read one or two during the year with my classes. I bought this DVD set planning to show it to my classes after reading the stories "The Tell Tale Heart" and "The Cask of Amontillado." After viewing several of the story dramatizations, I was so disappointed. In "Cask" the story is changed and tries to explain the reason for Montressor's revenge. In my classes we discuss how Poe intentionally leaves out the reason for the revenge. To alter the story like that seems wrong. Plus the 22 minute dramatization is BORING - not worth watching. I would rather leave the details up to the students' imaginations. "Tell Tale Heart" was really horrible - the old man has a RIDICULOUSLY enormous eye. I laughed once and then turned it off. You could NEVER show this to a class of students. The silliness of it ruined the scary story. One piece of advice - DON'T BUY THIS DVD!

17 of 18 people found the following review helpful:

2.0 out of 5 stars Disappointed is an understatement , April 2, 2007

By	fra7299 "fra7299" (California, United States) - See all my reviews

Imagine my surprise to find this compilation of Edgar Allan Poe short films all based on short works of the great author. As an English teacher, I also love to read Poe stories with my classes, and the thought of showing a visual with these stories was fantastic. I eagerly purchased this, thinking this might be a great resource and future use in teaching the works of Poe.

Imagine my disappointment to find out that the stories are altered, and not very interesting. I was sold on the idea that they would be interesting and detailed, and authentic, especially is Christopher Lee, one of the renown horror geniuses, was host. But, alas, no such luck. Extra details are added in, extra characters are added in to make the stories more "dramatic" and many of the short films are more apt depicting some cheesy soap opera than a Poe work. These short films, for the most part, are devoid of imagination or terror, and are too bland for Poe's style. For instance, "The Masque of the Red Death" was quite a disappointment, even though Lee actually stars in the film!

Like some have said, this is nothing a teacher would want to show in class, namely because they aren't interesting enough for the purchaser to watch. A major disappointment here. Maybe one of these days someone will be able to accurately and successfully depict a Poe story on film.

If you want to view a film BASED on Poe, but not true to the story, you are better off checking out the few Vincent Price films, such as The Pit and the Pendulum or The Masque of the Red Death. These, although somewhat inaccurate, are far superior.

4 of 5 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Better than I expected, November 11, 2006

By	A. J Terry - See all my reviews (REAL NAME)

I expected these short films (about half an hour each) to be cheesy productions, but I was really rather charmed. The Croation/South African production team did a pretty good job, with, I suspect, the filming being done in Croatia. The buildings are real, not film sets, and quite nice. Many of the costumes (which are not wonderful, but they are adequate) are for the post-Poe Victorian and Edwardian eras. Since Poe's original stories are grounded in the human soul, rather than any particular time or place, this works quite well. As the written stories are not particularly plot-oriented, or at least depend more on emotion than plot, a few plot "holes" have been filled in, to the overall benefit of the series. This is still, BTW, horror of atmosphere rather than blood and gore, which is fine with me.