Review of Tower of London

Roger Corman directs his vision of the William Shakespeare story about the humpbacked evil conniving brother Richard III to dying King of England Edward IV with a unique spin. Vincent Price(quite animated) plays the mad Richard to the hilt with theatricality(I could also use the description, hammy, but he's still a joy to watch)as he murders those who stand in his way to the throne. Whether it's to whip and stretch the limbs of Mistress Shore(Sandra Knight), merely a handmaiden to the young princes of the throne, the suffocation of dead Edward's young sons, the accidental choking of his wife believing she was the ghost of Shore, placing a hungry rat in a head cage holding the Earl of Buckingham(Bruce Gordon), or stabbing his brother in the back..we see in Corman's surprisingly violent way(..hardly holding back..we see Richard, and his right-hand man, smother the children in the Tower as one drops a puppet). But, the difference Corman brings to the story is the ghosts who haunt Richard's guilty conscience. Most of the story's layout remains. He will gain his crown, but run into a battle unprepared against an enemy whose smarter and more levelheaded since it's clear Richard should've never been King to start with. He gains the crown, but doesn't have the brains or know-how to fight a battle against a superior enemy.

I loved the angle Corman adds to the story regarding the ghosts haunting Richard as it adds a flavor to the picture..a ghoulish, entertaining element played with such macabre relish by a director with grand style in spite of limited budget and means. And, Corman's camera-work is stunning.

However, I do feel purists will be turned off by this version of Corman's towards the story by Shakespeare..the dialogue is dumbed down to where it can be easily digestible.