Mr. Sardonicus (1961)

6/10

gftbiloxi24 April 2005

William Castle usually marketed his movies with gimmicks, and for MR. SARDONICUS the gimmick was "the punishment poll." When the film played in theatrical release, audience members were issued a voting card, and near the movie's conclusion Castle himself appeared on the screen and asked the audience to vote: show the card thumbs up to show mercy, thumbs down for none. Now, in theory, there were two different endings, and the ending shown depended on the audience vote--but no one ever saw the "show mercy" ending and it seems unlikely that it ever existed at all. And you certainly won't find it here: Sardonicus is punished every time.

For once Castle should have left well enough alone. The Punishment Poll is the only seriously weak thing in the entire film, which has a considerably better script and over-all better cast than most Castle outings. The story, which shows influences from everything from PHANTOM OF THE OPERA to Dracula to THE MAN THAT LAUGHED, concerns a grotesquely disfigured man who uses his wife to lure a noted specialist to his castle in the wilds of "Gorslavia"--and who then proceeds to make every one's life as miserable as possible, and that's throwing roses at it. Young women are molested, hung from the ceiling, nibbled on by leeches, and threatened with surgery designed to make them look as hideous as Sardonicus himself.

The cast is quite good, with Oskar Homolka a standout as Krull, Sardonicus' equally depraved servant. The lovely Audrey Dalton is also memorable as Sardonicus' unwilling wife. But the real star of the film is the make-up, which was quite famous in its day and is still capable of giving you a jolt. And along the way we're treated to a number of campy Castle flourishes that add to the fun. But MR. SARDONICUS is surprisingly cohesive for a Castle movie, and it moves along at a smart pace and has an interestingly atmospheric look. Most Castle films appeal almost exclusively to fans of cult and B-movies, but just about every one will find this one entertaining. Lots of silly Gothic fun! Gary F. Taylor, aka GFT, Amazon Reviewer

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8/10

Surprsingly literate and effective shocker

lrrap13 April 2009

Of the William Castle films with which I'm familiar, "Sardonicus" is definitely the best. If you strip away some of the schlocky "padding" (the maid with the leeches, the "beauty contest" in the cellar, etc) you have a remarkably effective and entertaining film. Ray Russell's plotting and dialog are pretty high quality stuff, and some of the conversations have an almost poetic quality, especially in the scenes between Guy Rolfe and Ronald Lewis.

Of course, the dialog is all the more effective when delivered by a fine cast, and the stately, urbane Rolfe, the amiable and stalwart Lewis and the delightfully quirky and sinister Oscar Holmolka elevate this film FAR above its low-budget liabilities. Castle's direction is more than competent, my only complaint being the overly bright lighting throughout the castle interior, which robs many scenes of their creepy potential.

THEN THERE IS THE GRAVEYARD SCENE----a masterpiece of its type in the annals of horror films. Acting, direction, cinematography, etc ALL rise to the occasion, with the shocking revelation within the coffin and the psychological dimension of its effect on Marek/Sardonicus producing a scene which is as horrifying and disturbing as it is memorable; it's impossible to describe--you simply have to see it yourself. And the trauma continues as Guy Rolfe stumbles home in the dark, sobbing pathetically, where his wife (and we the viewer) first discovers his hideous deformity. I initially saw this film on TV when I was 20 years old and it STILL scared the crap out of me! Thank God I didn't see it when it was first released.

HERE'S A THOUGHT--- the shot of Sardonicus' father's corpse is so profoundly upsetting (to US as viewers as well as Guy Rolfe in the film)that I don't believe it was designed and created by Castle and his team; I bet anything that they "FARMED OUT" this shot to an effects team in Mexico--where the horror effects artists were FAR better at creating visuals of this sort. Or perhaps the coffin opening was a shot LIFTED from some earlier, obscure Mexican film, which Columbia might have purchased for this crucial shot in "Sardonicus" (?)

The final shot of the coffin lid opening (all the more creepy since it appears to open BY ITSELF)is interesting; if you look closely, you will notice that this is a DIFFERENT coffin lid than the one in the previous shots; the pattern of dirt and mold is different, as are the seams between the wooden planks. When the father's remains turn up later in the shocking padlocked-room scene, it's clear that the quality of workmanship is nowhere near as good as the coffin figure, instead appearing to be the sort of effect that Castle's production team would have created from their modest budget. I imagine that it's impossible to ever know whether or not my idea is correct, since too much time has passed since the film was made.

Many people make a big deal about the "Punishment Poll" gimmick for the film, but it's really just a distraction for any serious viewer; too bad that Castle's 11th-hour on-screen appearance breaks the mood just prior to the classically understated irony of the final scene.

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8/10

Classic William Castle

mr. sardonicus5 September 2000

Many consider William Castle to be a sort of used car salesman turned film-maker. Admittedly, he relies heavily on hype, and admittedly his hype has worn a little thin over the years, but Bill Castle has been involved with some memorable movies over the years. The Tingler, Rosemary's Baby, Strait Jacket, and Mr. Sardonicus are his most entertaining ventures. No doubt, Mr. Sardonicus will seem awfully tame to younger audiences seeking shock value and graphic gore, but to those who enjoy a more old fashioned style of horror film, Sardonicus has a definite appeal. The story line is very unique, the acting is good (especially by Guy Rolfe playing the title character), and the ending is great. Rolfe is great as the kindly, respectful peasant turned nasty, unfeeling aristocrat. Sure, the special effects are a little long in the tooth, but sit a young child down in front of this movie and watch his/her reaction when Sardonicus reveals his condition. I remember being scared witless watching this as a youth. Actually, I wouldn't recommend this movie for the very young, but it's a lot of fun for the young at heart. If you enjoy 1950s horror films, check out this little-known gem.

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a "ghoulish delight"

laffinsal12 October 2000

Of the great William Castle's classic gimmick films, this is generally regarded as one of the lesser ones. It should be seen for the amusing period piece that it is, and for the hilarious concept of the "Punishment Poll" with which it was originally exhibited. Upon its original release, viewers were allowed to vote "thumbs up" or "thumbs down" for the fate of the title character. In actuality, there is only one ending, but it's a pretty good one. The actors in this film are all good, with Oscar Homolka being the highlight as the sinister assistant. There is good atmosphere, with plenty of fog and shadows, and the story is intriguing, if not entertaining. The music by Von Dexter, who worked on several other Castle films, is also notable. Definitely a fun film for those who like the old-time horror films which sacrifice gore for suspense, and a must-see for fans of William Castle.

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7/10

The Lottery Ticket

claudio_carvalho9 August 2017

In the Nineteenth Century, in London, the prominent medical doctor Sir Robert Cargrave (Ronald Lewis) receives a letter from his former sweetheart Baroness Maude Sardonicus (Audrey Dalton) with the invitation to visit her husband Baron Sardonicus (Guy Rolfe) and her at his castle in Gorslava. Soon Sir Robert learns that the notorious Baron is an appalling man that frightens the local population. On the arrival in the castle Sir Roberts sees Sardonicus's servant Krull (Oscar Homolka) torturing a maid with leeches in a weird experiment. He meets Maude and her husband that wears a mask covering his face. Sir Robert has a private conversation with Sardonicus and he learns that the Baron was the peasant Marek Toleslawski that lived in a poor house with his wife Elenka Toleslawski (Erika Peters) and his father Henryk Toleslawski (Vladimir Sokoloff), who gives a lottery ticket as a gift to Elenka and dies. Months later, Marek and Elenka learn that they have won the lottery; however the ticket was buried with Henryk. Marek decides to retrieve the ticket in his father's grave and when he sees the face of Henryk, he freezes his face with a horrible grimace. Sardonicus wants Robert to recover his face; otherwise he will destroy Maude's face. Will Sir Robert succeed?

"Mr. Sardonicus" is a creepy horror film directed by William Castle. The story is a sort of combination of the story lines of "Nosferatu" (or "Dracula"), "The Man Who Laughs" and "Les Yeux Sans Visage" among others. William Castle plays with the audiences asking for the fate of Sardonicus. The make-up of Sardonicus is impressive. My vote is seven.

Title (Brazil): "A Máscara do Horror" ("The Mask of the Horror")

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6/10

Disturbing but memorable!

moonchildiva-128 June 2005

I saw this in the "show" when I was about 10, and seriously, I have never forgotten it. About 20 years ago, I noticed that it was on a station out of Toledo in the middle of the night, and even though I had to get up in the morning, and they had commercials every 10 minutes, I stayed up (after setting the alarm to GET UP) and watched the whole movie... I guess I am a William Castle fan, I have to admit it. (One other that still kills me is Homicidal, and woo hoo Richard Rust is in it, too, my favorite!) I play the lottery every day now, too, and that storyline about the ticket in the grave just GETS ME!! This is one odd film, like everything Castle does, but ya gotta love it!! It sticks with you, once you've seen it, you are hooked forever.

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6/10

While not a particularly great film, like so many of Castle's films it's a lot of fun

planktonrules1 November 2008

This film never had a chance of winning any awards or high praise from the critics and this is no surprise. Like many of William Castle's films, this isn't high art and it was meant to be very broad horror that would appeal to the common man and woman in the audience. In many places the plot seemed silly and tough to believe but because of Castle's style, it was still a lot of fun to watch--particularly the silly voting segment and subsequent evil ending of the film.

As for the unbelievable plot, a famous doctor is called by an old sweetheart to travel across Europe to help her. However, when he arrives, she behaves like there is nothing the matter! However, it soon becomes obvious that her husband is having major issues, as he walks everywhere with a mask over his face. It turns out that a great scare years earlier permanently contorted his face into a silly and unrealistic looking grimace and the doctor is threatened into treating the crazy afflicted man.

Throughout all this, there are tons of unnecessary but cool torture and mayhem--such as seeing the maid hung by her thumbs and having leeches pasted all over her face. Sardonicus is a jerk in this film and it's really hard to care about his facial anomaly.

By the way, IMDb doesn't mention this, but the mask that Sardonicus wears looks an awful lot like William Castle's face and I am sure that with the director's quirky sense of humor that this was intentional.

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7/10

Ghoulish fun.

Hey_Sweden8 October 2015

Warning: Spoilers

Ronald Lewis stars as Sir Robert Cargrave, a highly esteemed doctor / surgeon sought out by the Baron Sardonicus (Guy Rolfe). The Baron had, once upon a time, given in to greed and robbed a grave, and he therefore met a nasty fate: his face froze into a hideous, toothy grin. Usually keeping his visage hidden under a mask, The Baron indulges in some cruel practices that upset the good doctor. He's prepared to follow through on various threats that he makes, should Cargrave refuse to come to his aid or not succeed in the attempt.

The legendary schlockmeister William Castle was a man who truly understood the value of showmanship. Here he once again utilizes a gimmick, albeit one that he saves for the final few minutes of the picture. This one is called the "punishment poll", wherein audience members could vote on whether our villain had received enough payback for his misdeeds. As one can see, the gimmick is nothing more than a joke.

Another good thing that could be said about Castle was his penchant for giving his fright flicks a respectable fun factor. "Mr. Sardonicus" is heavy on story (and back story) for a while, but it kicks into another gear whenever The Baron is at his cruelest and most sadistic. One unfortunate servant girl must endure leeches on her face for no good reason.

Rolfe is delicious in the title role, and is a good sport considering that he must wear the mask most of the time. (The reveal of his affliction is a memorable one indeed.) Lewis is passable as our protagonist, as is the beautiful Audrey Dalton as Maude, the woman Cargrave loves who had married The Baron to appease her father. Oscar Homolka is great as the one eyed henchman Krull, who tries to be loyal to The Baron but is taken aback at one point by what he's being asked to do.

Lovers of more contemporary horror may scoff at the makeup, but the effects do have an irresistible old fashioned, low budget charm to them.

Seven out of 10.

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10/10

Best ever of the genre; an absolute delight.

eeq16 January 1999

No less a writer than Stephen King has called the novella "Sardonicus" perhaps "finest example of modern gothic horror ever written." I have delighted and relished the novella and the movie all my life, and I saw and read these when they first came out (1961). YES, the movie is "hokie". Yes, the movie is directed at the juvenile set, as all of William Castle's pictures were. But for those of us who were around in the William Castle era, the entertainment provided by his movies was supreme (consider the homage, "Matinee"), Everything anyone could want in a 19th century gothic horror appears in Sardonicus--including villains, heroes, beautiful virtuous maidens, Transylvania, leeches, hypo-dermic needles (my hyphen), and even a deformed Igor-type (herein called Krull), played to PERFECTION, PERFECTION, PERFECTION by the late great Oscar Homolka. This movie was thought of so highly by the writers of "Wiseguy" the TV series, that they used it as a sub-plot for a multi-episode "mini-series" within the series.

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6/10

Okay when I was young I saw this movie

smidget284 November 2000

And it scared the hell out of me.

The face is just too smiley for even the cheeriest of folks.

I was scared out of my wits by this black and white movie...most adults would probably find funny. So, decide for yourself.

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5/10

" In a loveless marriage, few would ever blame her if she left him "

thinker169122 October 2009

Warning: Spoilers

Back in the 1960's, monster movies were all the rage. There were good ones, like the ones created by the Hammer group. Here is an unusual one which was created by gimmick King William castle. The movie is called " Mr. Sardonicus. " It is the quaint story of a man who's father wins a lottery and the family stands to become very rich. Unfortunately the son (Guy Rolfe), Baron Sardonicus allows his father to be buried with the winning ticket. Soon realizing he must retrieve the ticket, he exhumes the body as the ticket is in his father's vest pocket. Urged on by his greedy wife to recover the ticket, the young man digs up the coffin and looks inside. Viewing the ghastly face of his father, the young baron's own face is stricken with the same hideous features. From then on he must wear a mask, is shunned by villagers and taken care of by his manservant, Krull (Oscar Homolka). Sir Robert Cargraves (Ronald Lewis) a famous doctor arrives at the bidding of Maude Sardonicus (Audrey Dalton) the baron's wife. Together they must find a cure for the evil baron or face death. For its day, this was a frightening film with an elaborate gag at the end. Today, you'll find it in the pages of horror magazines. ***

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10/10

I'm surprised there aren't ...

JoeB13115 June 2009

more comments on this film.

I recall this film from my early youth on WGN's Creature Features. Sardonicus' father reminded me of my own grandfather (a German immigrant) and his evilness was unique. When I got older, I saw this again and got some of the more subtle character interactions.

This was, of course, the product of William Castle, the Gimmick King. His gimmick this time was that he allegedly shot two endings, and gave audiences the option of voting on which ending they wanted by holding up a glow-in-the-dark ballot. (The Creature Features version skipped the polling part.) Most movie sources say that there was only one ending ever shot, but modern versions have the "polling" scene anyway.

Personally, I think the film works better without the gimmick. Of course, Sardonicus is evil, ungrateful and cruel and he deserves the betrayal at the end of the film he gets.

In some ways, it was getting around the Hayes code, since the wife wants to cheat on her husband her loveless marriage. Overall, it's quite the Gothic horror film and is highly underrated.

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6/10

Very watchable creepy B-movie horror

SnoopyStyle27 June 2014

It's 1880 London. The movie starts with director William Castle introducing this story of a ghoul or evil being who robs graves and feeds on corpses. Sir Robert Cargrave (Ronald Lewis) is a teacher doctor at the Queens College Hospital. He's in love with Maude (Audrey Dalton) but she was forbidden to marry such a lowly man. She married Baron Sardonicus (Guy Rolfe) and Krull (Oskar Homolka) is the baron's man servant. He receives a pleading letter from the baroness, and immediately goes to Gorslava in central Europe. There he finds the mysterious creepy baron with a face mask experimenting on the maid Anna with leeches. There's a locked room which the servants call 'The Chamber of Horrors'.

This is a black and white B-horror. For what it is, this is quite watchable. The section where Baron Sardonicus recounts his story as Marek goes relatively slowly. The face is cheesy but I kind of like it. The mask is weirdly compelling. This old fashion horror isn't scary in the modern sense but it does have a good creepy factor. The story is interesting and compelling all the way til the end. The gimmick of the audience voting is just that, a gimmick. It's really only an afterthought in a pretty good old fashion horror.

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5/10

Minor classic from William Castle

burkhart-311 October 2003

This film, for me, marks the beginning of the decline for the great director/promoter William Castle. It is still among his better works overall. After this movie, however, his output becomes less and less interesting, in my opinion. He was the producer for "Rosemary's Baby" but I'm speaking specifically about his work as a director.

The film itself deals with a disfigured man who attempted to retrieve something (a lottery ticket) from a grave. The definition of a "ghoul" is given at the beginning and throughout the film as "one who opens graves and feeds on corpses." It features the typical young couple in distress and the evil henchman, played here by Oskar Homolka, who also appeared notably in the early Hitchcock film "Sabotage" with Sylvia Sidney. All Castle films have a sideshow sort of gimmick to hook the audience into paying attention. In this one, it is a "choice" of endings. I won't spoil the end by discussing the choice or the outcome, but it is obviously a promotional attempt by Castle and not the most inventive. He did much better with the shock effects in "The Tingler" and the glasses in the original "13 Ghosts." Those were truly classic examples of Castle's showmanship and use of gimmickry. Here, the ruse doesn't work quite as well.

Subsequent Castle films, which used the ultimate modern-day gimmick of putting a star in the movie, weren't as effective. Interestingly, today's films seem to be promoted entirely based on who is involved in the film, as actor, director, etc. So in that sense Castle would continue to point us toward the future of filmmaking. Perhaps with the advent of interactive moviemaking, this film will one day also be considered waay ahead of it's time. For now, however, it remains a good but not great entry from a most memorable director and promoter.

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Sardonicus - still remembered 40 years later!

sue-payne28 March 2006

My younger sister and I saw this film when we were children and it terrified us - we still mention Sardonicus all these years later when looking for a word to describe a shocked reaction. My sister has just sent me a jokey text message in response to an insult I sent her, saying that she's so shocked that her mouth is in a "fixed Sardonicus grimace of shock" - this made me laugh so much I decided to look up info on the film and here I am!

The film would seem tame to my own teenage son now, but it has obviously had a lasting affect on my sister and me and it would be great to see it again on TV.

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6/10

One repulsive baron

bkoganbing11 October 2015

Guy Rolfe in the title role and Oscar Homolka as his Igor like assistant highlight the film Mr. Sardonicus. A search for a lottery ticket in the grave of his father turned out to be a frightening experience causing Rolfe's face to freeze in a smiling grimace. As he was already one nasty dude as the local nobility this causes the people of his fiefdom to have as little to do with the castle as possible.

Ronald Lewis is a visiting British physician conducting experiments with various exotic plants that are poisonous. Some of them might have healing properties. Will they work for the man now known as Mr. Sardonicus. Even Rolfe's wife Audrey Dalton won't kanoodle with him as he's that repulsive.

Guy Rolfe played many a cruel villain, some well known examples are in Ivanhoe as Prince John and King Of The Khyber Rifles. In this one however the man truly has had nature affix his loathsomeness on his face. As for Oscar Homolka that deep voice and the bushiest eyebrows on cinema with the possible rival of Donald Wolfit for that title gave him a lock on all kinds of ethnic European types. Good thing Mr. Sardonicus came late in his career or he might have been typecast in horror films and not as good as Mr. Sardonicus.

William Castle who always liked gimmicks in his film, the better for people tear themselves away from the little screen in their homes had the audience allegedly 'vote' for Rolfe's fate. I like it fine the way it was, we're not sure just how much good doctor Lewis played in him winding up the way he was and that's as it should be.

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6/10

"My name was not always Sardonicus and I did not always wear a mask."

utgard1417 June 2014

An English surgeon is summoned to a European village by a former love, who is now married to a mask-wearing baron. Turns out the baron's face is horribly disfigured and he wishes the surgeon to try and fix it. If he refuses...well, he doesn't want to tick off Baron Sardonicus! A fun Gothic horror film from William Castle. The last of his gimmick films. The gimmick here is that the audience was given cards with a thumbs up or down. When prompted, they would hold them up to decide the fate of the title character. In truth, there was only one ending but Castle knew his audience -- they would only have wanted this to end one way. This is not one of Castle's best movies, though it is enjoyable. The cast is good but the movie lacks a standout presence. I can't help but wonder if Vincent Price in the title role, with his distinct voice and manner, might have helped some. Still, it's a good watch that fans of Castle or classic horror films in general should enjoy.

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7/10

Watching this put a smile on my face, thankfully not a Sardonicus smile!

Stevieboy66624 October 2022

It is 1880 and a distinguished British surgeon is tricked into treating a central European Baron of his hideously fixed smile (which was caused by a spot of grave robbing). Director and producer William Castle introduces the Edgar Alan Poe style story from a foggy London, and being the king of movie gimmicks just before the end he announces a "Mr Sardonicus Punnishment Poll", no prize for guessing which way it goes! Set in the fictional location of Gorslava the movie oozes Gothic Horror, a European castle, some grave robbing, a Medieval torture chamber and a fog machine on overdrive makes this very easy on the eye. The acting is very good, with the exception of a few minor characters who spout phoney sounding "English" accents. The cruel and heartless Baron Sardonicus spends most of his screen time wearing a mask, making him look very creepy, but unmasked his fixed hideous smile is truly shocking, the make-up is superb and very memorable. Despite being a horror movie fan for over 40 years this was my first viewing of Mr Sardonicus and I really enjoyed, it's no classic but it certainly is fun.

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6/10

Sardonicus, His Libido, & His Disgusting Eating Habits! (Shlurp! Shlurp!)

strong-122-47888528 March 2014

Warning: Spoilers

Favorite Movie-Quote - "No! Not the leeches again!"

In this sweet'n'sour (and very sinister) little horror movie about leech-facials, guilt-ridden ghouls, and leering-lockjaw to the extreme, I'd say that it was actor Oscar Homolka, as Krull, the baron's viciously cruel servant (with the cob-webbed eye), who put in the most complex and memorable performance of all.

Set in the year 1880, almost all of this horror film's evil action takes place at Baron Sardonicus' dark & gloomy (and mirror-less) castle that was located just outside the town of Gorslava (which, by the looks of it, was probably situated in, or around, the region of good, old Transylvania).

And, you can be sure that what regularly went on behind closed and locked doors in this creepy, fog-enshrouded environment of the baron's made just having a mere skeleton in one's closet seem quite tame by comparison.

For the most part (as far as B-Horror movies go) Mr. Sardonicus (shouldn't this film have been titled "Baron" not "Mr." Sardonicus?) actually held up quite well and turned out to be a fairly effective little tale of woe, rotten corpses and severe facial afflictions.

But, unfortunately, at the last 5 minutes of the story writer/director William Castle made an unexpected (and very unwelcome) appearance on screen in order to gleefully promote his worthless "Punishment Poll".

Castle's interruption to deliver his "audience participation" nonsense nearly sabotaged the entire picture. It came pretty close to successfully ruining the whole period atmosphere of the story.

To me, Castle may have been something of a notable B-Movie director, but, when it came to his "gimmicks" and being a comedian wannabe, he was Z-Grade, all the way.

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8/10

Something else money can't buy you; a nice face!

The_Void20 April 2006

William Castle had cemented his reputation as a director of fun, gimmicky horror films by 1961, but for this one he's (almost!) dropped the fun feel and replaced it with a more serious tone; and in doing so has gone and created his best film! The film opens with an introduction from the director (I said he'd ALMOST dropped the fun feel), and from there we move onto a macabre tale of greed, curses, grave robbing and disfigurement. Based on a novella by Ray Russell, the film takes obvious influence from George Franju's masterpiece 'Eyes without a Face' in that it follows the horrifying idea of someone having their face scarred beyond belief. The tale puts greed at its centre, and it is that deadly sin which is to blame for the title character's affliction. We follow a prominent English doctor who is called to Europe on the request of his ex-lover. While there, he meets the cruel and sinister Baron Sardonicus; a man who is forced to wear a mask as his face is too hideous to look at. It's not long thereafter that we learn the reason for this facial deformity, as the man retells the tale of how he robbed his father's grave for a winning lottery ticket.

William Castle may not be the greatest director of all time, but here he creates just the right tone for the story to flourish in. The Gothic locations, sinister score and foreboding mood combine to ensure that the story is both gripping and as hideous as its central protagonist. This is helped along by the fact that the central characters are well fleshed out, and all of their motives make sense. Mr Sardonicus himself verges on comic book villainy at times, and as the plot is fairly ludicrous, this isn't always the easiest film to swallow. However, Castle ensures that the action always makes sense, and it has to be said that the tale has been given as good handling as it could afford. Castle's love for showboating shows through towards the end, however, when he tries one of his 'interactive cinema' tricks regarding the fate of Mr Sardonicus. It is these sort of things that make William Castle films what they are, and it fits films like The Tingler; but here Castle's segment feels out of place, given that the tone of the movie is largely serious. However, it's not enough to spoil what is a great Gothic horror story and overall I highly recommend this film to horror fanatics!

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6/10

Fine adaptation of a fine short story.

poolandrews27 May 2012

Warning: Spoilers

Mr. Sardonicus is set during 1880 & starts in London where Sir Robert Cargrave (Ronald Lewis) is a successful surgeon specialising in the field of paralysis, one morning Cargrave receives a letter written by his former lover Maude Randall (Audrey Dalton) who urges him to come to the European town of Gorslava in a matter of utmost importance. Cragrave leaves for Gorslava almost immediately & travels to the Castle of Maude's husband, the Baron Sardonicus (Guy Rolfe) who wears a mask that covers his entire face. Eventually Baron Sardonicus reveals his face to Cargrave who is shocked to see that he has a permanent horrifying grin because of paralysed facial muscles, Baron Sardonicus begs Cargrave to help cure him but when conventional massaging techniques fail to work Baron Sardonicus threatens the life of Maude if Cargrave does not use new experimental drugs on him & cure his horrible disfigurement...

Also known simply as Sardonicus this atmospheric black and white Gothic horror film was produced & directed by William Castle & was based on the short story 'Sardonicus' by Ray Russell that originally appeared in a 1961 edition of Playboy who also wrote the screenplay here & despite the IMDb describing it as a novel Russell's original story was a mere thirty odd pages long, I know because I only read it last week (those in the UK it's one of the stories in the Pan Book of Horror Stories Volume 4) & it was that reading which made me want to find & watch this film & I am glad I did because Mr. Sardonicus is a fine film in it's own right & better than I expected. There are obvious differences like the addition of the maid & her torture, Sardonicus keeping a corpse in a locked room, the nature of Maude's punishment is different as in the film Sardonicus threatens to cut her face muscles leaving her with a horrible disfigurement while in the original written story he threatens to have forcible sex with her every night despite his hideous appearance, the lack of any mirrors is new to the film, the back-story about the lottery ticket is slightly different as Sardonicus was never previously married & he does not wear a mask at any point in the story but I suppose that works quite well in the film as his unmasking & the revealing of his true appearance is nicely built-up & pretty effective. The changes, however, are not massive & the main bulk of the story remains intact. Mr. Sardonicus is am atmospheric horror thriller that has a certain amount of originality about it, I can't remember seeing a film with a similar story that balances Gothic & psychological horror like it, at 90 minutes long Mr. Sardonicus feels shorter & the time I spent watching it flew by. The character's are good & well rounded, everything makes sense to a degree & the script just about manages to make it's audience both sympathise & despise Sardonicus.

Filmed in black and white this works for Mr. Sardonicus really well with the dark dungeons, the isolated forest & it manages to hide some of the production's shortcomings. When revealed Sardonicus has a huge unnatural grin that isn't exactly scary but I don't think anyone would like to walk around permanently with it on their face so it has a certain effectiveness. The one aspect that Mr. Sardonicus could have done without is the William Castle introduction (he quotes some of the book, especially while trying to find Ghoul in the dictionary) & the silly Punishment Poll which was never a poll anyway as only one ending was ever filmed. The film would have worked fine without these unnecessary interruptions.

The production values are good & Mr. Sardonicus is well made for the period, the acting is good & Guy Rolfe does a decent job considering he is stuck behind a mask for most of the film & I am sure he was cast because of his distinctive voice which sells the part.

Mr. Sardonicus is a good film that was better than I was expecting, the short story is also pretty good & can recommend that. The William Castle bits are unnecessary but otherwise I was impressed.

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5/10

Punishment Poll

AaronCapenBanner14 October 2013

William Castle directed this gimmick thriller that stars Guy Rolfe as Baron Sardonicus, a wealthy but disfigured man who enlists the help of a surgeon(played by Ronald Lewis) to repair his damaged face. Audrey Dalton plays his beautiful wife, who hates and fears him, and falls for the doctor, and he for her. Oscar Homolka plays a loyal and hulking servant. It turns out that Sardonicus became disfigured after rifling the grave of his father, who was mistakenly buried with a winning lottery ticket, the one that made him rich. Will Sardonicus be punished by the audience vote, as instructed by director Castle? Good cast can't save misfired film that never amounts to much, though does have an effective ending, if you can make it that far!

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8/10

Ghoul: An evil being who robs graves and feeds on corpses.

hitchcockthelegend5 June 2011

Mr. Sardonicus is directed and produced by William Castle and written by Ray Russell. It stars Ronald Lewis, Oskar Homolka, Audrey Dalton, Guy Rolfe, Vladimir Sokoloff and Erika Peters. Music is by Von Dexter and Burnett Guffey is the cinematographer.

Brilliant doctor Sir Robert Cargrave (Lewis) is requested by an old love of his to aid a mysterious masked baron in Gorslava, central Europe. Upon his arrival he finds many strange things, not least the baron himself, who has an unbelievable story to tell. Why the mask? Why are there screams in the night? Will Cargrave ever leave this eerie place alive? Based on a short story called Sardonicus that was originally published in Playboy, Mr. Sardonicus was one of the William Castle films that came with a gimmick. Here we have "The Punishment Poll", an audience participation idea that saw patrons of the cinema asked by an on screen Castle to hold up a card with either a thumbs up or thumbs down, the result of which would determine if the ghoulish Baron Sardonicus in the films finale should suffer more distress, or not? A complete con of course, I mean what self respecting horror fan isn't going to vote for more nasty stuff? In spite of some shifty bluffs to the contrary by Castle, only one ending to the film was ever shot.

As it is, on face value, Mr. Sardonicus is one of William Castle's best movies. A genuinely Gothic flavoured horror harking back to the halcyon days of the Universal shockers of the 30's. True, there's mucho cheese in there, but peel the Edam away and film reveals a tale of torture, greed, sadism, grave robbing and of course facial disfigurement. All set splendidly in some creaky old abode in the belly of Europe. Characters are by the genre numbers; an assistant from the Igor family tree, a pretty damsel in grave danger, a stoic romantic hero type and of course the villain, here played with sly elegance by the tall and straight backed Guy Rolfe. The latter of which had to undergo numerous hours of make up treatment to achieve one of the films best shocks. There's no great depth to it, narratively or structurally, and not utilising the talents of Guffey (The Sniper/Scandal Sheet) to low light the Sardonicus mansion is nearly unforgivable. But it has a wonderful old fashioned horror value to it, some good well worked shriek moments and a fitting finale. A finale worth voting for actually! 7.5/10

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7/10

Nicely Done Little Movie

sddavis6314 September 2014

Aside from the opening narrative and the closing "punishment poll" (in which the audience, presumably at theatres, was invited to decide whether Sardonicus should be punished or shown mercy) from director William Castle - neither of which were necessary - "Mr. Sardonicus" is actually a pretty smart movie that moves along at a nice pace and is at times tense and that even manages to fit in some rather twisted sexual innuendo in such a way that it fit the story perfectly.

Sardonicus is a Central European baron who spends his life wearing a mask to hide his grotesque face, frozen by a traumatic incident years earlier. Convincing the English Dr. Cargrave to come to him, Sardonicus ensures the doctor's co-operation with threats against his beautiful wife, with whom Cargrave had a previous relationship.

The story is decent. The makeup for Sardonicus is a bit silly but workable, and it does offer the viewer a bit of a start when his appearance is first revealed, and there's even discussion of psychosomatic illness included. All things considered, it's a pretty well done movie. (7/10)

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4/10

Smile, though your face is ugly....

mark.waltz8 March 2013

Warning: Spoilers

As sardonic as that statement is, it is entirely appropriate for this Gothic thriller about a mad baron, grave robbing, a curse and revenge, William Castle style. Without the Castle touch, it is a fairly entertaining formula grand guignole, equivalent to anything Vincent Price was making over at American International and that Hammer films was producing in England. In Castle hands (including the baron's moat around his own castle), the result is a grin-fest wider than the evil aristocrat's. He's a former peasant who through nefarious means (which have to be seen to be believed) and is married to the former girlfriend of the doctor he has treating him for his hideous disorder which is actually more charmatic than medical.

The portly Oscar Homolka is the one-eyed valet to the baron who assists him with his torturous experiments (involving leeches) yet seems to secretly resent him for causing his partial blindness. When Castle comes on with the thumbs up or thumbs down cards for the Baron to get retribution (or not), you long to see him get the leeches or some other hideous torture, but the result is more "Fractured Fairy Tales" than Edgar Allan Poe. Still, there's a spooky enough early 20th Century atmosphere to please Gothic horror fans, and the result ends up being better than most of Castle's later films (the classic "Rosemary's Baby" and the spooky "The Night Walker" not included) but still only appropriate for the matinée crowd or drive-in theater customers who always expected schlock when they put those strange speaker devices on their car windows.

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