Five travelers find themselves on a tour of some strange catacombs with a mysterious monk awaiting them in one section and it seems this man has the uncanny ability to forsee the futures of these five guests.  Now for a closer look at each story.....

All Through the House......

Joanne Clayton (Joan Collins) chooses Christmas Eve to murder her wealthy husband and carries out the deed as their young daughter Carol lay in her bed awaiting the arrival of Father Christmas.  Soon after Joanne murders her husband and is doing her best to clean up the mess and make it appear as an accident, an announcement on the radio warns of an escaped homicidal maniac and his escape from an asylum....dressed as Father Christmas.  Joanne is terrified to see the man standing outside their home and quickly begins to barricade the home from any enterance by the lunatic.  The question is, will she succeed or will Father Christmas gain entry through an unlikely source......

Reflection of Death......

 After Carl Maitland (Ian Hendry) makes the decision to desert his family for his mistress, Susan Blake (Angie Grant), they leave one night, heading for a new city and start to their lives together.  Driving along the highway, they are involved in an accident and Carl escapes from the car wandering around in a dazed state.  Wandering through the darkness, he asks several people for assistance, only to have them scream at the sight of him and leave.  His wanderings eventually take him back to Susan's apartment where he discovers Susan at home, but she's confused when he identifies himself and explains that she was blinded in an accident months ago....the same accident in which he was killed.  Maitland catches a glimpse of himself and sees  a decomposing corpse....as he screams at the sight, he suddenly awakens from a dream and finds he's in the car with Susan and she's at the wheel.  Suddenly, they crash and the nightmare begins, again.....

 Poetic Justice.......

 James (Robin Phillips) and Edward (David Markham) Elliott are well-to-do homeowners who live across from Arthur Grimsdyke (Peter Cushing), the local garbage man.  The younger Elliott feels that Grimsdyke's home is an eyesore and resents the fact that Grimsdyke brings the neighborhood children into his home distributing toys that he has repaired, found during his garbage collecting.  The elder Elliott explains that he has made numerous offers to buy Grimsdyke out, but the old man refuses, explaining that he and his wife lived their during their entire marriage and now that she's passed away, he wants to live his remianing days, in the home.  Upon hearing this, James sets out to force Grimsdyke into relinquishing his home.  His campaign smears the poor man's reputation and ends with Grimsdyke receiving hundreds of Valentine cards with nasty rhymes that appear to come from friends and neighbors.  The distraught Grimsdyke hangs himself and is buried.  One year later, the rotting corpse of Grimsdyke rises from his grave to deliver his own Valentine's card......

Wish You Were Here.......

 Ralph (Richard Greene) and Enid (Barbara Murray) Jason learn that they are now in debt and in order to break even, they are forced to sell off their prized collection of valuables gained through their many travels over the years.  Enid had purchased a strange curio in Hong Kong and upon reading small print on the back of the curio, it appears that this curio has the ability to grant the owner three wishes.....a "Monkey's Paw".  Enid immediately wishes for money and Ralph receives a call from their solicitor (Roy Dotrice) requesting he return to the office...something about money.  Ralph takes off, but is followed by a motorcyclist and as the cyclist comes closer, Ralph looks in his rear view mirror and sees a skull face staring back at him.  Ralph is killed and Enid sets out to use the remaining two wishes...... 

Blind Alley.......

 Major William Rogers (Nigel Patrick) becomes the superintendent at a home for blind men and quickly proves he cares nothing for the men he's in charge of, he's more concerned with his own comfort and that of his dog.  When one of the men in his charge dies as a result of his neglect, the men decide to exact their own revenge involving the Major's starving dog and a darkened tunnel of razor blades.                                   

Tales From the Crypt is a film based on the E.C. Comics of the 1950s and what a job Amicus did with this effort!  Directed by Freddie Francis and starring some of the biggest names in British cinema, this film is non-stop thrills from beginning to end.  All five stories are well done and performances are strong in each, but my personal favorites are; "All Through the House" and "Poetic Justice".  Joan Collins fighting off a maniac Father Christmas is a scene not soon forgotten and Peter Cushing as poor Grimsdyke in "Poetic Justice" is a role that pulls at the heart....made even more remarkable by the fact that this was Cushing's first role in a film following the death of his wife, Helen and the mourning of that loss makes the character of Grimsdyke that much more real.  Amicus hit the mark right on with this 1972 film and in my opinion, it's the anthology that all others can only be compared to.