User reviews

Stuart Gordon, the man behind that classic named "Re-Animator", returns to his Lovecraftian roots with "Castle Freak", a movie that has not received the recognition it deserves; which some may consider a crime, since this was one of the very few good horror movies that came out in the 90's.

Horror Icon Jeffrey Combs(also from "Re-Animator") stars in this Gothic tale of a man, John Reilly, who inherits an Italian castle, only to find that there is a secret lurking deep inside of it. Gordon takes this simple plot(slightly based in "The Outsider") and adds depth to Combs character and his family: he killed his 6 years old son in a car accident while driving drunk. This event has marked his family, destroying his relationship with his wife Susan(Barbara Crampton) and his daughter Rebecca(Jessica Dollarhide), who was blinded in the accident.

All this conflicts explode in the castle when a prostitute brought by John appears brutally killed in a savage way, and all the clues point to John; who now not only must prove himself innocent, but also must save his family from the mysterious being who lurks in the castle.

Jeffrey Combs and Barbara Crampton give one of their best performances. Crampton's Susan Reilly is truly believable as a mother who has lost a child and blames his former lover of everything that goes wrong in her life; while Combs shines as the man overwhelmed by guilt who must face his own demons to gain the strength to save his family.

Gordon's direction is remarkable, as he manages to keep a Gothic atmosphere while making the film shocking by including a few extremely graphic gory scenes. Makes a nice contrast that many have attempted but very few manage to achieve.

The make-up is outstanding and very realistic, there was a lot of heart in the production of the horrifying scenes. A true love for the horror genre.

The movie does not disappoint and flows smoothly from the beginning to the end, it never gets boring and the script is really well constructed. While the movie may not be exactly Lovecraft's story, it still has that spirit mixed with that visual style of Gordon that has given us jewels such as the previously mentioned "Re-Animator", and the awesome "Dagon".

While this is not as good as those 2 movies, it still stands as one of the best horror movies of the 90's, keeping that soul that 70's & 80's horror films used to have.

Very recommended for fans of the genre. 8/10

I really didn't expect much when I picked this movie up, considering its pedigree (a Full Moon low-budget picture shot in Italy). What a pleasure then that this turned out much better than expected. Good use is made of the Italian locations, especially the castle, and Stuart Gordon uses many cool angles to keep things interesting. Reputation has him as an over-the-top-gore director, but this doesn't do him full justice. He is also good in building atmosphere, and this is "Castle Freak"'s biggest asset. The gore is relatively minimal, and instead of indulging us with gore, he goes for a dark and tragic atmosphere, convincingly combining a traumatized family and a mistreated, misunderstood monster in the "Frankenstein"-tradition. This means that despite reuniting the Gordon-Combs-Crampton triumvirate "Re-Animator"-Fans should beware: this one is played strictly as drama/tragedy with not a single laugh in sight. The screenplay is well-developed with convincing characters and reasonably good dialogue. Nothing that is Academy Award-material, but who'd expect that from a movie called "Castle Freak"? Acting is also spot on, especially Jeffrey Combs in a straight man role (for once). While it would go to far to call this a lost genre classic, it deserves to be seen by more people than probably did. If you're a genre fan, give "Castle Freak" a chance. It might just win you over, like it did with me.

Stuart Gordon's "Castle Freak" of 1995 is a creepy, gory, sad and quite original little horror flick and yet another proof that the man is a more than gifted director. It is certainly not Gordon's best movie (his absolute masterpiece is "Re-Animator", with "From Beyond" as a close second), but it nevertheless is a highly atmospheric and unusual Horror film, and especially worth watching as the 1990s were a more than poor decade for Horror in which good horror films, such as this one, were rare.

The film takes place in the homeland of great Horror, namely Bella Italia, where it is excellently set in an eerie old castle. John and Susan Reilly, a troubled married couple, have inherited the castle, and come to Italy with their blind daughter in order to take a look at their inheritance. The Reillys soon have to realize that their marital disputes are not their only trouble in their creepy new home... Gordon's regular star, the great Jeffrey Combs who is without doubt one of the greatest Horror actors of his generation, stars as John Reilly, the family father, and he is great in the role. His fellow "Re-Animator" cast member, the beautiful Barbara Crampton is very good as the wife. Jonathan Fuller is also very good. The film is creepy and highly atmospheric throughout and has many highly intense moments. Castles are always a great setting for Horror films, in my opinion, and this one is particularly eerie. This certainly isn't one of Stuart Gordon's best, but there is no doubt that it outshines most other Horror productions from the mid 90s. As far as I am concerned, "Castle Freak" doesn't reach the brilliance of "Re-Animator", but it is definitely a creepy, highly atmospheric and original, above average example of good 90s Horror. Recommended!

I've been holding this DVD now for about a month and a half, and I kept putting it off. For the sole reason, I hear so much "It sucks", and "It's great" talk. Well, I'm going with the latter. I didn't think it was great...but I did find it to be pretty damn good.

Movie is about a family that inherits a castle that has a secret. That secret being a Castle Freak. A Castle Freak you say? Yup. After his "caretaker" sh!ts the bed, poor ole C.F. is left alone. Luckily for him, Jeffrey Coombs and his family (hot mom and hot blind daughter, by the way, say no more) inherit this mammoth castle. Eventually C.F. gets loose and unfortunately he doesn't know how to control himself. You tend to feel bad for C.F. in the movie, so when he does kill (spoiler maybe?....shut up!) you really don't care. But I connected and cared for him most was when he had trouble with members of the opposite sex. Definitely the top scenes of this flick. The acting was surprisingly efficient. You have B movie actor extrodinaire Jeffrey Coombs play the dad in a really great role. I was expecting his trademark expressions, but instead of the close ups, they focused more on his tone of voice and the scene. Which really helped the film and acting. The others all played the roles very well, no complaints. If you're complaining about this movie's acting you need your head checked....it's a Direct-to-Video film. It was definitely a surprise to me....and most likely it'll be a surprise to you....the horror fan.

I give it around a 7 1/2.....like I said it wasn't great. But damn, the movie was unique, fun, sometimes creepy and overall a welcome edition to the land of HORROR! AAAAHHHHHHHHHHHH!!!!!!!!!!!!!

A family of three (Jeffrey Combs, Barbara Crampton and Jessica Dollarhide) have inherited a castle, but have no plans to stay on. So they take inventory in order to sell off the property. But they aren't the only living relatives -- in the basement is the "castle freak", a deformed cannibal chained to the dungeon. If he gets loose, the family's heritage may become one of pure carnage.

Stuart Gordon ("Re-Animator") directs this film with a cast consisting of Jeffrey Combs ("Re-Animator") and Barbra Crampton ("Re-Animator"), produced by Charles Band ("Re-Animator"). Maybe you've caught on, but this is something of a "Re-Animator" reunion... with a few people missing. And a much lower production value (the film quality looks like 1970s issue or something from PBS during British comedy hour). For the most part, this is pretty solid film.

Combs is quite good, and one wonders why he's not given leading roles more often. Crampton is also good, and the blind girl (Jessica Dollarhide, in her only feature film) was remarkable. The freak? I have to say the makeup, effects and even the mannerisms were impressive. There's a scene where a prostitute meets her end... and they really went out of their way to show how horrific the freak could be.

The story isn't fast-paced or action-packed, so if you need to be constantly entertained, this may not be for you. But if you like a good development in your plot, I think you'd appreciate this lost treasure (definitely one of the lesser-seen Gordon horror films). I wasn't paying as close attention as I should have been, because I was half in the bag from drinking Scoresby Scotch (it's the connoisseur's Scotch)... but it kept me feeling pretty good. Thanks, Full Moon Features, for one of your better offerings.

Ok this movie is good don't pay attention to the 4.8 rating or any of that this is a good movie. It is scary, disturbing, violent and horrific with a great performance from Jeffery Combs. The end was a very suspenseful scene one of the few that literally had me on the edge of my seat and the prostitute scene Well lets just say when I watch this again I'm going to fast forward through that part.

It is about a man and his wife and blind daughter who inherit a house but unbeknownst to them a relative is still living in the basement.

Stuart Gordon outdoes himself gone is the campy comedy of Re-Animator this time Gordon is out to scare the Living Sh*t out of you and I say he succeeded.

This is raw horror at its best!!

First excuse, I was reading a book watching this which I picked up very quickly after first ten minutes of awful acting, cinematography, plot (possibly my error by picking up book) but this film is not very good quality. Yes I know the overall intention was DTV so budget was wafer thin. Maybe I should give the film credit for producing a whole film. But it was hard to follow basically because the opening was so bad I just lost interest. Genuinely good talent like Jeffery Combs and Barbara Crampton may have joined due to the good experience with Stuart Gordon in the 80's. Their potential is not really used at all. Re-Animator ( except for one scene which crossed the line even for me even with a VERY high threshold because it was not shocking or amusing) and From Beyond are stand out relatively small budget still producing classics. This? Maybe my fault for not paying more attention was plotless. But the lack of attention goes two ways. Make me interested and I will pay more intention. This is why I suspect no one has added a synopsis on IMDB. No one delighted enough to sum up a whole film. So when we come to some of the shock moments with poor material effect and make up they just looked more than a little distasteful. Or gross. Only a few times but if you have viewed you will know.

All unfortunate really as a movie. Stuart Gordon wrote a potential disaster in the 90s of a remake of Invasion of the Body Snatchers too. He is rembered with great regard for his talent to me. This is just not one of his greatest achievements.

If you have not seen this and you come across the chance too...well your decision. But within the first ten minutes you will know the standards applied here.

Thinking about it, if you haven't seen his, for which he wrote the screenplay and was directed by Abel Ferrara, Body Snatchers then you will find one of his classic underrated 90s movie.

This film was direct to video and it had a rating of 5.9/10 prior to my viewing experience. So I was obviously prepared for some cheesy shlock and maybe a bit of frontal nudity. However, I was pleasantly surprised at how good the film turned out to be.

It's definitely not intended to be a major blockbuster. The limited scenes and few characters would not have spiked enough interest in a big creature feature released in a theater. I can understand that. The film makes up for that by diffusing in a very slow build up of atmosphere. There is really not so much gore as there is a sense of a general haunting in the castle. There are ghosts not just physically embodied in the titular castle freak but also in the memories of events that transpired in the castle. There is definitely a focus on the psychological element of horror with parental abuse and negligence being a key motif . And all the horror scenes , even the few gory ones, help to propagate this specific theme.

Jeferry Combs and the ever beautiful Barbara Crampton, under the direction of Stuart Gordon, really have managed to make the perfect Lovecraftian horror movie. Jeffery Combs in particular really does give a fine performance in general. I wish he were given more recognition in Hollywood .

So yes,please see this movie if you love atmosphere and watching scenes and dialogue that help to carry across a specific theme.

Plot: A guy is kept hidden away in a dungeon by his mother and she beats him to a bloody pulp every night. A family of three (mother, father and daughter) inherits the castle. They come to look at it and shocking acts start to unravel themselves in and around the castle..

Acting: Jeffrey Combs star as the father and plays out the role like he would Hamlet or something. He is excellent. Never dull for a second. The guy playing "the Freak" also delivers solid work in portraying the hideously deformed and tragically lonely monster as he childly limpers around the cold castle in search of someone.

Form: It is a truly frightening experience this film. It contains some of the most violent scenes in cinema. But still it manages to let the emotions be dominant in most scenes including the scenes containing hard violence. It is a deeply tragic film in many ways and Stuart Gordon(director) plays with your feelings throughout the film. Many critics and others have used this against Gordon and his movies. I don`t think that is fear at all. I mean, do we ever ask an extreme painter why he is toying with our emotions?

Who is it for?: Well, as I mentioned before this is a pretty violent piece of film. It is not for kids and not for adults who don`t feel good about seeing killings and torture up close and personal. If you are, on the other hand, a fan of movies that do contain realistic violence as well as realistic emotions, camerawork and acting see it now.

Don`t hesitate. Oh, and if you are a fan of Stuart Gordon you simply have to see it!

Grade: 8 out of 10

I just had the opportunity to sit down and revisit the 1995 "Castle Freak" movie; a movie that I have seen three or four times since it was originally released.

This 1995 movie titled "Castle Freak" is still a very enjoyable movie, even now in 2021. And that is also applicable even with the 2020 remake that they put out there. But truth be told Stuart Gordon's 1995 movie is just a tad better than the remake. Plus, the 1995 version has both Jeffrey Combs and Barbara Crampton on the cast list, so what is there not to like?

The storyline, which is based on a H. P. Lovecraft story, is entertaining and enjoyable, despite of it being somewhat clichéd for a mid-1990s horror movie. But writers Stuart Gordon and Dennis Paoli did good jobs with constructing the storyline for "Castle Freak".

"Castle Freak" has good special effects, and they still hold up even now in 2021, 26 years after the movie was released.

Needless to say that it is because of Jeffrey Combs that I initially watched "Castle Freak" back in 1995, and it is still a treat to sit down and watch it this many years after.

My rating of "Castle Freak" lands on a six out of ten stars.

I didn't have high expectations for this movie and it started off slow, but this turned into a pretty messed up movie. Not messed up in a Deliverance or Vulgar type of homosexual rape way but messed up as far as how the creature in the film is created, how come the creature is created, and how the creature kills others. Some pretty gory scenes featuring nudity with gore, dismemberment and mutilation for those who are into that sort of thing.

The movie had a low budget feel to it, which many horror/gore fans are into, but regardless, the creature looked pretty realistic and disfigured. My complaint with the creature is that when you are disfigured, handicapped and starved nearly to death, that would weaken you. It seemed to make this a superhuman disfigured person who can jump out of second story windows and still run to catch up to it's victim. He wouldn't be so quiet either, at least in his case.

It took nearly an hour for the movie to fully get going with the horror after the build up, but it turned into a pretty decent effort. I didn't even rent this movie, it came as a special feature to Deathbed on the DVD, and felt this movie was far better than the one they actually featured. I give this movie 7 of 10 stars.

John (Jeffrey Combs) and Susan Reilly (Barbara Crampton) are a married couple going through some very dark times. She blames him for the fatal car crash that blinded their teen aged daughter Rebecca (Jessica Dollarhide) and killed their younger child J.J. (Alessandro Sebastian Satta). Now, years later, John learns that he has inherited a 12th century Italian castle. They come to do some inventory (John really just wants to sell the place) and do a little exploring. What they discover is that the castle also comes with a secret: a monster, Giorgio (Jonathan Fuller) residing in the lower levels.

What gives "Castle Freak" an edge over similar horror product is the overwhelming feeling of tragedy. A pall hangs over this whole film; one has to wonder if this family is ever going to be happy again. Giorgio, too, comes with his own desperately unhappy back story. As is the case with many a movie monster, he's quite pitiable as well as hideous. Fuller is excellent in the role. As often as he creeps you out, he earns your sympathies.

While Combs does tend to get his due as a truly talented actor, this viewer would have to point to "Castle Freak" as a solid example of just how good Crampton is as an actress. She's more than just a pretty face. The dramatic tension between John and Susan is palpable. Dollarhide, too, is very good, delivering a sensitive and vulnerable performance. It's somewhat wearying that Susan keeps automatically dismissing Rebeccas' insistence of the other presence in the castle. Stubborn characters can be hard to deal with in this or any other genre.

Director Stuart Gordon and his largely Italian crew create vivid atmosphere. They mostly try to avoid bright colours. In fact, this is one of those instances where it feels like the filmmakers tried to create a slightly colourized version of a black & white movie. The makeup effects by Optic Nerve are impressive, and Richard Bands' music is excellent.

"Castle Freak" definitely deserves a wider audience. It's a serious, somber story where one does get emotionally invested in these characters.

Inspired by, rather than officially based on, the H.P. Lovecraft tale "The Outsider".

Seven out of 10.

This is another example of solid B-horror that we have come to expect from Staurt Gordon (of Reanimator and Dagon fame).

An unhappy family moves to a castle in Italy that the husband has inherited. What they don't know is that they have also inherited the castle's secret prisoner, the CASTLE FREAK! Held captive in secret his entire life, the Freak escapes from his forgotten cell and starts to lurk around the castle. He is timid at first, never having had contact with people. Slowly he grows confident and angry, soon running amok. To prevail against the hideous CASTLE FREAK, the Reilly family must discover the ugly secrets of their own past, and learn to trust one another again.

Obscene gore ensues.

This cheap film is better than most B-horror for a few reasons. For one thing, the acting is generally good (except for the blind daughter, who can't act a whit). The story is original. The script is unpolished, but it has enough going on to keep you interested, without introducing needless complications. The monster is really scary, right up there with Frankenstein's monster. The gore is over-the-top and satisfying. There was too much emphasis on sexual assault for my tastes, but who ever said that B-horror was going to be tasteful? What I really liked about this movie is that it preserves all of the sensibilities of trashy horror, while actually focusing on the Reilly family and their troubles (which did not start with the CASTLE FREAK). The film actually has a *recurring theme*: family loyalty. Breach of family loyalty created the CASTLE FREAK, and only family loyalty can defeat him.

So, I give Gordon credit for making a perfect B-horror and throwing in an iota of meaning.

I really couldn't get into this movie. The plot is some old woman has been torturing someone so long that he is deformed. She dies and he is left in the basement to starve. Months must pass and a family moves in. The daughter is blind because of an accident caused by the father. Well anyway this guy in the basement, who for all rights should be long dead is still around. He eats a cat and now is superhuman. He now wants to eat people and have sex. And when a hooker dies father gets the blame. I always dislike movies where someone else is blamed for the killings because you always here the typical lines "I didn't do it", "I could never do such a thing", blah blah blah. And the family storyline could be a lifetime movie storyline.

Very gruesome horror with some genuine moments of brutality. The acting is flawless by Combs, Crampton and a hoard of Romanian locals. The story is intense though the color and editing is a bland mix of shock effects and creepy dullness. The 'freak' itself is rather unrealistic but remains frightening due to the graphic nature of its life and plight for freedom. Dollarhide makes a good debut and Richard Band's music is highly appropriate. Be warned! There is a rather unpleasantly raw sex scene and much 'freak' nudity!?! Incidentally this entire film is an easter egg on some DVD copies of director Stuart Gordon's equally surreal Death Bed. The original idea is from Charles Band and he alongside father Albert Band executive produced the film.

Stuart Gordon's "Castle Freak" was about what I expected. Of course, it's a pretty fun movie to watch, if you're into deliberately gross stuff. Or, it's a movie that you might like if you ever want to go to Italy, as a family inherits a castle in a small town in Umbria, only to find out that they're not alone there, and that it relates to the husband's family history. Ignoring the plot, the movie makes Italy look like one fine place (I've been there, so I can vouch for this).

The star is Jeffrey Combs. I had seen him in "The Frighteners", "I Still Know What You Did Last Summer" and "House on Haunted Hill", but had to read about "Castle Freak" to learn that Stuart Gordon frequently casts him. I enjoyed "Castle Freak", but I don't mind watching these sorts of movies. They're definitely not for everyone.

I first saw this on a vhs in the mid 90s. Revisited it recently. The movie hasn't aged well. The acting by Combs and Crampton is good. They are convincing as the couple breaking up. Stuart Gordon managed to create a gory and gothic horror tale. Gordon makes good use of the castle's ominous atmosphere and he also gets wonderful performances from his cast but the scare factor is missing. The gore is too much, breasts are bitten off, eyes are gouged out, thumb bitten off, vagina bitten off, body being whipped to death by iron chains, cat been devoured, etc. But the problem with the movie is its story n lack of tension n suspense. Also the body count ain't that high. The freak is one of the most frightening monsters but he is as much a victim as a villain. Sometimes u feel pity for it. Also ther r too many flaws, i mean how could the freak survive for so long after being chained n locked up. Nonetheless, a one time watch considering the director n the lead actors.

This was a surprise from Full Moon. Many of their films are gory but have a sense of humor. This one hits a homerun for fans in search of a creepy castle setting. The story is slightly predictable, but thoroughly engrossing. There are some truly horrific scenes, hard to watch. Perhaps more of Hollywood could take a lesson from this movie. Surprisingly well acted from actors who tend to be B level normally.

A cult film from the video store days, the VHS cover (not the one here at Letterboxd) was like a magnet. It wasn't quite as brutal as visually teased, but at least in sections. The real horror Gordon presumably wanted to convey were the two central dramas in Film, the one about the Reilly family, regarding a lasting tragic car accident, and the one about the fate of the castle's tortured and dehumanised creature. But to bring films to the public, you also needed the crowd pullers like splatter, gore, naked skin, disgusting tastelessness and an eerie atmosphere. Check.

Visually, it feels more like end-80s Italy than mid-90s USA.

All in all, recommended viewing for genre fans, whether it makes it into the collection will surely be decided by nuances.

Couple (Jeffrey Combs and Barbara Crampton) moves into an old castle with their blind daughter (Jessica Dollarhide), but are plagued by weird noises, unexplained visitors, and a series of murders that are taking place in the castle. In order to clear his name of the killings, Combs sets out to find out what is lurking about the house. Scary, atmospheric thriller with some good death scenes and creative make-up is a welcomed comeback by horror director Stuart Gordan.

Unrated; Graphic Violence, Sexual Situations, Nudity, and Profanity.