''Tales That Witness Madness'' is a 1973 British anthology horror film produced by Norman Priggen, directed by veteran horror director

Freddie Francis Frederick William Francis (22 December 1917 – 17 March 2007) was an English cinematographer and film director. He achieved his greatest successes as a cinematographer. He started his career with British films such as Jack Cardiff's '' Sons and ...

, written by actress

Jennifer Jayne Jennifer Jayne (14 November 1931 – 23 April 2006) was an English film and television actress born in Yorkshire to theatrical parents. Born Jennifer Jayne Jones, she adopted her stage name of Jennifer Jayne to avoid confusion with the Holly ...

. The film was one of several in a series of anthology films made during the 1960s and 1970s which included ''

Dr. Terror's House of Horrors ''Dr Terror's House of Horrors'' is a 1965 British anthology horror film from Amicus Productions, directed by veteran horror director Freddie Francis, written by Milton Subotsky, and starring Peter Cushing and Christopher Lee. It was the fi ...

'' (1965), '' Torture Garden'' (1967), ''

The House That Dripped Blood ''The House That Dripped Blood'' is a 1971 British anthology horror film directed by Peter Duffell and distributed by Amicus Productions. It stars Christopher Lee, Peter Cushing, Nyree Dawn Porter, Denholm Elliott, and Jon Pertwee. The ...

'' (1970), ''

Asylum Asylum may refer to: Types of asylum * Asylum (antiquity), places of refuge in ancient Greece and Rome * Benevolent Asylum, a 19th-century Australian institution for housing the destitute * Cities of Refuge, places of refuge in ancient Judea ...

'' (1972), ''

Tales from the Crypt Tales from the Crypt may refer to: * ''Tales from the Crypt'' (album), by American rapper C-Bo * ''Tales from the Crypt'' (comics), published by EC Comics during the 1950s ** ''Tales from the Crypt'' (film), a 1972 Amicus film starring Ralph Ric ...

'' (1972), '' The Vault of Horror'' (1973) and ''

From Beyond the Grave ''From Beyond the Grave'' is a 1974 British anthology horror film from Amicus Productions, directed by Kevin Connor, produced by Milton Subotsky and based on short stories by R. Chetwynd-Hayes. It was the last in a series of anthology films ...

'' (1974). These portmanteau horror films were all produced by

Amicus Productions Amicus Productions was a British film production company, based at Shepperton Studios, England, active between 1962 and 1977. It was founded by American producers and screenwriters Milton Subotsky and Max Rosenberg. Films Prior to establish ...

. ''Tales That Witness Madness'' is sometimes mistaken for an Amicus production; however, it was actually produced by World Film Services.Ed. Allan Bryce, ''Amicus: The Studio That Dripped Blood'', Stray Cat Publishing, 2000 p 93

Plot

In the Clinic link episodes, Dr Tremayne (

Donald Pleasence Donald Henry Pleasence (; 5 October 1919 – 2 February 1995) was an English actor. He began his career on stage in the West End before transitioning into a screen career, where he played numerous supporting and character roles including RAF ...

), a psychiatrist in a modern mental asylum, reveals to colleague Dr Nicholas (

Jack Hawkins John Edward Hawkins, CBE (14 September 1910 – 18 July 1973) was an English actor who worked on stage and in film from the 1930s until the 1970s. One of the most popular British film stars of the 1950s, he was known for his portrayal of mil ...

) that he has solved four special cases. Tremayne explains the case histories of patients Paul, Timothy, Brian, and Auriol, presenting each in turn to Nicholas: In Mr Tiger, Paul ( Russell Lewis) is the sensitive and introverted young son of constantly bickering parents Sam (

Donald Houston Donald Daniel Houston (6 November 1923 – 13 October 1991) was a Welsh actor whose first two films—'' The Blue Lagoon'' (1949) with Jean Simmons, and '' A Run for Your Money'' (1949) with Alec Guinness—were highly successful. Later in ...

) and Fay Patterson ( Georgia Brown). Amid the unhappy domestic situation he befriends an "imaginary" tiger. In Penny Farthing, antique store owner Timothy (

Peter McEnery Peter Robert McEnery (born 21 February 1940) is a retired English stage and film actor. Early life McEnery was born in Walsall, Staffordshire, to Charles and Ada Mary (née Brinson) McEnery. He was educated at Ellesmere College, Shropshire. H ...

) stocks a strange portrait of "Uncle Albert" (

Frank Forsyth Frank Forsyth (19 December 1905 – 2 May 1984), sometimes credited as Frank Forsythe, was an English actor, active from the 1930s. He was born on 19 December 1905 in London, England. He appeared in several TV programmes, including '' Department ...

) and a penny farthing bicycle he has inherited from his aunt. In a series of episodes, Uncle Albert compels Timothy to mount the bicycle, and he is transported to an earlier era where he courts Beatrice (

Suzy Kendall Suzy Kendall (born Freda Harriet Harrison; 1 January 1937 ) is a British retired actress best known for her film roles in the late 1960s and early 1970s. Personal life Born in Belper, Derbyshire, Kendall attended Derby & District College of A ...

), who was young Albert's love interest. These travels place Timothy's girlfriend Ann (also

) in peril. In Mel, Brian Thompson (

Michael Jayston Michael James (born 29 October 1935), known professionally as Michael Jayston, is an English actor. He played Nicholas II of Russia in the film ''Nicholas and Alexandra'' (1971). He has also made many television appearances, which have include ...

) brings home an old dead tree, which he lovingly calls Mel, mounting it in his modern home as a bizarre piece of found object art. He increasingly shows unusual attention to Mel, angering his jealous wife Bella (

Joan Collins Dame Joan Henrietta Collins (born 23 May 1933) is an English actress, author and columnist. Collins is the recipient of several accolades, including a Golden Globe Award, a People's Choice Award, two Soap Opera Digest Awards and a Primeti ...

). In Luau, an ambitious literary agent, Auriol Pageant (

Kim Novak Marilyn Pauline "Kim" Novak (born February 13, 1933) is an American retired film and television actress and painter. Novak began her career in 1954 after signing with Columbia Pictures and quickly became one of Hollywood's top box office stars, ...

), lasciviously courts new client Kimo (

Michael Petrovich Michael may refer to: People * Michael (given name), a given name * Michael (surname), including a list of people with the surname Michael Given name "Michael" * Michael (archangel), ''first'' of God's archangels in the Jewish, Christian and ...

); he shows more interest in her beautiful young daughter Ginny (

Mary Tamm Mary Tamm (22 March 1950 – 26 July 2012) was a British actress, who appeared in many British TV drama series and serials, and is best known for her role as Romana I in the BBC's science fiction television series ''Doctor Who'', starrin ...

). Auriol plans a sumptuous luau for him; when the plans fall through, Kimo's associate Keoki (

Leon Lissek Leon Lissek (19 January 1939 – 13 January 2022) was an Australian-born British actor. He appeared in over 80 films in his career, which started with ''Marat/Sade''. Lissek was well known for his television roles in ''The Sullivans'' and ''Eas ...

) takes over. The luau, as organised by Keoki, is actually a ceremony to assure Kimo's dying mother Malia (

Zohra Sehgal Zohra Mumtaz Sehgal (born Sahibzadi Zohra Mumtazullah Khan Begum; 27 April 1912 – 10 July 2014) was an Indian actress, dancer, and choreographer. Having begun her career as a member of a contemporary dance troupe, she transitioned into actin ...

) passage to "heaven" by appeasing a Hawaiian god, and a requirement is that he consume the flesh of a virgin: Ginny. In the Epilogue, Tremayne watches as manifestations of the patients' histories materialise. Nicholas cannot see the manifestations and has Tremayne declared insane, apparently for believing the patients' bizarre accounts. Nicholas enters the patient holding area, and is killed by "Mr Tiger".

Cast

; Segment "Clinic Link Episodes" *

- Dr Nicholas *

- Dr Tremayne * Charles Gray - Nicholas (segment "Clinic Link Episodes") (voice) (uncredited) ; Segment "Mr Tiger" * Georgia Brown - Fay *

- Sam * Russell Lewis - Paul * David Wood - Tutor ; Segment "Penny Farthing" *

- Ann Beatrice *

- Timothy * Neil Kennedy - 1st Removal Man * Richard Connaught - 2nd Removal Man *

Beth Morris Bethan "Beth" Morris (19 July 1943 – 1 March 2018) was a Welsh actress. Born in Gorseinon and a lifetime native of Swansea, she was probably best known for her performance as Julia Drusilla in the 1976 BBC adaptation of ''I, Claudius''. Her ...

- Polly *

- Uncle Albert ; Segment "Mel" *

- Bella *

- Brian ; Segment "Luau" *

- Auriol * Michael Petrovitch - Kimo *

- Ginny * Lesley Nunnerley - Vera *

- Keoki *

- Malia (as Zohra Segal)

Production

''Tales That Witness Madness'' was filmed at

Shepperton Studios Shepperton Studios is a film studio located in Shepperton, Surrey, England, with a history dating back to 1931. It is now part of the Pinewood Studios Group. During its early existence, the studio was branded as Sound City (not to be confused ...

on 35 mm, with an aspect ratio of 1.85:1. It was the last film of

, who appears as Uncle Albert.

died shortly after his scenes were filmed. Hawkins had had his larynx removed in an operation in 1966, and here his voice was dubbed by Charles Gray in post-production. ''Tales That Witness Madness'' was Hawkins' final film appearance. Kim Novak broke a four-year hiatus from films with her appearance in ''Tales''. She replaced

Rita Hayworth Rita Hayworth (born Margarita Carmen Cansino; October 17, 1918May 14, 1987) was an American actress, dancer and producer. She achieved fame during the 1940s as one of the era's top stars, appearing in 61 films over 37 years. The press coined th ...

shortly after production started.

Evaluation

The ''Encyclopedia of Horror'' writes that the film "avoids farce and develops a nicely

deadpan Deadpan, dry humour, or dry-wit humour is the deliberate display of emotional neutrality or no emotion, commonly as a form of comedic delivery to contrast with the ridiculousness or absurdity of the subject matter. The delivery is meant to be blun ...

style of humour which is ably sustained by the excellent cast in which only Novak appears unable to hit the right note."Milne, Tom. Willemin, Paul. Hardy, Phil. (Ed.) ''Encyclopedia of Horror'', Octopus Books, 1986. p 284 Kim Newman in ''Nightmare Movies'' calls the film "unreleasable" but with no further elaboration; presumably he found it sub-par.

References

External links

Allmovie
*
Tales That Witness Madness
at

Rotten Tomatoes Rotten Tomatoes is an American review-aggregation website for film and television. The company was launched in August 1998 by three undergraduate students at the University of California, Berkeley: Senh Duong, Patrick Y. Lee, and Stephen Wang ...

{{Freddie Francis 1973 films 1973 horror films British comedy horror films British anthology films Films about cannibalism 1970s English-language films British supernatural horror films 1970s comedy horror films Films directed by Freddie Francis British horror anthology films 1973 comedy films 1970s British films