Ranking William Castle

[Jigsaw]

So a couple of days ago, I saw Macabre (1958), William Castle first horror-ish movie, for the second time, and it got me thinking about ranking his stuff.

There are a fair amount of his lesser films that I've not seen, among them The Spirit is Willing (1967), The Night Walker (1964), I Saw What You Did (1965), and Let's Kill Uncle (1966), but I thought I might try to rank what I've seen, especially with both Homicidal (I watched this one for the second or third time for a Fight Evil podcast a month or so ago) and Macabre fresh in my mine.

From best to worst

1) House on Haunted Hill (1959)
2) Mr. Sardonicus (1961)
3) Homicidal (1961)
4) Strait-Jacket (1964)
5) Macabre (1958)
6) 13 Ghosts (1960)
7) The Tingler (1959)
8) The Old Dark House (1963)

This ranking isn't perfect - I need to rewatch some of these again, and it's possible that both Strait-Jacket and Mr. Sardonicus would move around a bit, but in general, it seems fair. I know some would rate The Tingler higher, and maybe I'll enjoy it more when I next see it, but it just doesn't have the oompft I like. House on Haunted Hill, though, has long been a favorite, as far as classic horror goes, and I doubt any other movie of his could top that one.

Not sure how many fans Castle has here, but I'm in a talkative mood, and thought I'd give the topic a shot.

[JustChuck]

William Castle is a favorite of mine. Not what I would call a 'great' director, but he can be very entertaining and rarely wastes my time.


1. The Tingler
2. Hollywood Story
3. Strait-Jacket
4. Homicidal
5. Johnny Stool Pigeon
6. When Strangers Marry
7. I Saw What You Did
8. The Mark of The Whistler
9. Voice of The Whistler
10. The Houston Story
11. The Whistler
12. Macabre
13. House on Haunted Hill
14. The Night Walker
15. Undertow
16. The Fat Man
17. Just Before Dawn
18. Mysterious Intruder
19. The Old Dark House
20. Shanks
21. 13 Ghosts
22. Crime Doctor's Man Hunt
23. Mr. Sardonicus
24. The Spirit is Willing
24. Let's Kill Uncle

[Jigsaw]

Sort of surprised both Mr. Sardonicus and House on Haunted Hill are so low, but I can dig it.

[JustChuck]

With Sardonicus Castle trades the fun for a slow, gothic folktale with uncharismatic actors and a terrible gimmick. House on Haunted Hill is one of the most popular choices and I've watched it 3 times, but it's overrated. That by itself isn't a good excuse, but combined with his much less discussed gems Strait-Jacket and I Saw What You Did, combined with a number of no-frills Noirs I've enjoyed from Castle...