Shot in 1982, HOUSE OF THE LONG SHADOWS was the last film by British cult director Pete Walker (before turning his attentions on property investments) and it’s the only one he didn’t produce himself. Producers Menahem Golan and Yoram Globus (otherwise known as Cannon Films) desired a scare film using the genre’s remaining superstars, and that’s certainly what they got. With a screenplay by Michael Armstrong (director of HORROR HOUSE and MARK OF THE DEVIL), the film was based or rather suggested by the novel Seven Keys to Baldpate, which had actually been filmed five times before, most recently in 1947. MGM, who shamefully hasn’t put out any unreleased classic horror or sci-fi on DVD in almost three years, takes a giant leap backwards by issuing this star-studded favorite as a vastly inferior MOD (manufactured-on-demand) disc available exclusively at Amazon.com.

Young American writer Kenneth Magee (Desi Arnaz, Jr.), who is living in England, makes a bet with his publisher (Richard Todd, ASYLUM) for $20,000 that he could churn out a novel in 24 hours. It’s set up so that Kenneth can stay in an empty, dilapidated manor house in Wales to bang away at his typewriter in uninterrupted seclusion. But peace and quiet is not in the cards, as Kenneth unexpectedly stumbles upon an elderly man (John Carradine) and his daughter (Sheila Keith) purporting to be the caretakers of the manor. Another unexpected visitor, Mary Norton (Julie Peasgood), is introduced wearing an old lady mask, but actually turns out to be his publisher’s secretary, sent to the place to keep an eye on him (and he can’t keep his eyes off of her).

During that stormy (and exceedingly long night), two more older distinguished-looking gentlemen (Vincent Price and Peter Cushing) make their entrance, and it is soon revealed that they, along with the elderly fellow and his daughter, are part of the peculiar Grisbane family. The Grisbanes are reuniting for the first time since the late 1930s, and they are hiding a dark secret about their youngest sibling. After seeing lights on from outside, a cantankerous property manager (Christopher Lee) storms in, threatening to toss the whole lot of them out, but he ultimately agrees to stay on as a dinner guest, just in time for a series of grisly murders that will ensue before the night is over. Has the Grisbane clan’s sorted past come back to finish them off for good?

HOUSE OF THE LONG SHADOWS is more or less a traditional “Old Dark House” type yarn that mixes horror and black comedy elements and never attempts to break any new ground (even with its multiple twist endings). What it does do is provide a respectable, pleasurable vehicle for the genre legends to appear in, all who have memorable parts and a good amount of screen time (with Carradine and his painfully arthritic hands having the least to do). Director Walker, probably England’s most recognized exploitation filmmaker, delivers his most toned-down picture in terms of pure sensationalism and onscreen gore (though the film does deliver several gruesome – albeit PG level – moments) but his style properly fits the ghastly candlelit uncoverings of decades-old betrayal, homicide and perversion within the shadowy walls of Bllydpaetwr Manor. Walker attempted (and mostly succeeded) to reinvent the British horror film in the 1970s with such intense works as HOUSE OF WHIPCORD, FRIGHTMARE and THE HOUSE OF MORTAL SIN, so it’s ironic and at the same time fitting that he would conclude his impressive career with this retro style chiller, made at a time when English gothic had been obsolete for nearly a decade.

Although Price, Lee, Cushing and Carradine had all been paired off with each other in various past projects together, this film marked the first and last time the quartet appeared together, and it’s also the final union of Horror’s dynamic duo of Lee and Cushing (which is a shame since Cushing still had a few more good years left in him). Sheila Keith, the unsettling villainous from Walker’s best films, is fittingly matched up with the four gentlemen, as she is pretty much the female equivalent of a Peter Cushing (and well cast as his sister when you see the two in frame together). The role was originally intended for Elsa Lanchester, who was too ill to make the trip to England. Desi Arnaz Jr. has gotten some criticism in the past for his performance here, but he actually does a decent job as the likable lead, and his character serves as an amicable mediator amongst a sea of eccentrics. In smaller roles are Norm Rossington (A HARD DAY’S NIGHT, RAW MEAT) who is almost unrecognizable as a train station manager, and Louise English (one of Benny Hill’s sexiest “Hills Angels” in the latter years of his TV series) as an inebriated, loud-mouthed manor guest.

Given a shoddy U.S. theatrical release by Cannon, HOUSE OF THE LONG SHADOWS quickly made its way to VHS in 1984 via MGM/UA and has not been heard of since. Bootlegged repeatedly in recent years, MGM now does us no favors with this MOD DVD-R release, as it’s probably the worst looking product ever to bear their logo, with a far inferior transfer than the one used for the old VHS release! First off, the film is presented full screen so not only is its original 1.85:1 aspect ratio neglected, but there’s no anamorphic enhancement. The soft, inky looking old tape master is horrible to begin with, but it’s so dark that in many scenes, it’s hard to make out such simple activity as an actor’s mouth movements! Fleshtones (if you can call them that) are hopelessly orange and colors are DOA overall. At the 21:01 mark, a subliminal card interrupts the film and reads, “MTI Empty Frame”, proving there was absolutely no quality control. The mono audio comes off much better than the picture, but let’s face it, if you have the old MGM/UA tape or a copy of it, you have gold compared to this mess. There’s no menu, and the movie just begins when you insert it in your player.