Freddie Francis (15), 92 mins 4 stars
This classic British horror anthology from 1972, based on the grisly Fifties comic books of the same name, has five stories stitched together by Ralph Richardson’s “crypt keeper”, who tells poor saps trapped in Highgate cemetery in North London how they will die.
In a surprisingly poignant story, Peter Cushing plays a kindly old man accused of foul deeds, leading to tragedy. There is a memorably nasty tale set in a home for the blind, another with Joan Collins attacked by Santa, and any film that features a skeleton in black leathers riding a motorcycle surely deserves your attention. Said biker appears in the creepiest segment, Wish You Were Here, a variation on The Monkey’s Paw: it is the very definition of skin-crawling, as a woman tries to bring her husband back from the dead. Trust me, you really don’t want to do that.
Extras None