He’s A Perfectly Normal Boy! Hooptober XI
22/32 - Italy 3/4 / 60s

I do love an anthology. Add Malle and Fellini into the stories of Edgar Allen Poe and I would expect this to be an all time favorite. Vadim? Not so much. In fact, his story is the weakest.

A take on Poe's "Metzengerstein", Vadim flips the lead in favor of Jane Fonda, which is not a bad idea. The story follows a young countess in her inheritance takes everything she wants, but can not have Wilhelm (played by Jane's brother) because of a long-standing family feud. In short order, Wilhem dies and comes back in the spirit of a horse to get his family's revenge on the Metzengersteins. The short plays more like a an elaborate perfume commercial in desperate need of a new name. But they've got Jane Fonda sorta nude on a horse.

"William Wilson" may be the worst person in any of Poe's stories. A real sadistic f*ck who tries to gain forgiveness for taking the life of his own doppelgänger. Malle executes the story with a steely performance from Alain Delon who can turns his signature charm and coolness into a quiet monster.

Fellini's "Toby Dammit" is the master in full late-60s mode. Terrance Stamp's fever dream of a flagging actor going to Rome to make a religious epic. "Toby Dammit" is Megalopolis in 45 minutes and a bit of "Rick Dalton goes to Italy" on mescaline.

THAT FREAKING FERARRI - one of the greatest cars in cinema history.

Like most anthologies, Spirits of the Dead is uneven, but gives us the opportunity to see accomplished filmmakers go out to the edges of experience and show us something we'd otherwise never see. Like Stephen King's shorts when adapted, often Poe's short stories feel like student films when realized on the big screen. I'll have to think on how this ranks in horror anthologies for me, but having 2/3 of the stories really go for it, makes it a winner.