Theater of Blood

By the end of the 1960s, the name Vincent Price was already synonymous with a certain style of melodramatic Horror—thanks in no small part to his vivid, Poe-inspired collaborations with the great Roger Corman.

Starting in the ’70s, Price set his sights on a more comedic, self-consciously Camp brand of monster movie—exemplified by 1971’s ridiculously dark horror-comedy classic, “The Abominable Dr. Phibes”. This was followed two years later by this month’s feature: the slightly more conventional—but no less tongue-in-cheek—“Theater of Blood”.

“Theater of Blood” is the story of Edward Lionheart, a scenery-munching Shakespearean actor who, after being humiliated by the local Theater Critics Guild, tries to take his own life. He survives the attempt, and vows to exact his revenge. But—drama queen that he is—these are no ordinary murders. Instead, he decides to kill off each of his critics one-by-one, in a highly dramatic manner that loosely mirrors the plots of Shakespeare’s greatest works.

Lionheart’s deadly theatrics are aided by his adoring daughter, Edwina, played with delicious sincerity by Diana Rigg, who at the time was still hot—and I do mean hot—off her role as Emma Peel in the British TV series “The Avengers”.

And speaking of hot: This month, we’ll be opening our screening with a LIVE horror-themed burlesque act by the one and only Raina Sinclair!

It’s all happening Tuesday, July 30th at Minnie’s Bar in Brooklyn, starting at 7pm.

See you there… if you dare!

Tuesday, June 25
Attack of the 50-Foot Movie presents
“THEATER OF BLOOD”
plus LIVE burlesque performance by Raina Sinclair

Minnie’s Bar
885 4th Ave. in Brooklyn
7pm
FREE!

WATCH THE TRAILERS!

For every Attack of the 50-Foot Movie event, I personally curate and assemble a one-of-a-kind collection of contemporary cult-film trailers, drive-in movie advertisements, and assorted vintage weirdness—all related somehow to the era and genre of the featured film.

VIEW THE ENTIRE COLLECTION HERE

Collected and assembled by Leon Chase.