13 Ghosts (1960)

One of the favorite films of my childhood, _13 Ghosts_is another of producer William Castle's horror films of the late 50's and early 60's, following the success of his House on Haunted Hill and The Tingler. This time a different gimmick, Illusion-O, is employed, requiring the use of special glasses that were handed out at the theater, complete with on-screen messages alerting the viewer when to put them on. (Be advised that w/o the glasses the ghosts are hard to see.) From the IMDb:

Cyrus Zorba and his family learn they have inherited the house of his late uncle Plato. This couldn't come at a better time for the Zorba family, as they are struggling with financial problems. However, once they move in they discover the house is haunted by ghosts that dear old uncle Plato had collected from all over the world. Uh-oh.

This is a fun movie with no pretensions about doing anything other than entertaining you for eighty minutes. It has everything: ghosts, spooky little people, screaming women, weird special affects, and people who are more than they seem. Margaret Hamilton has fun with her Wicked Witch reputation here. The direction is solid, the music very nice, and the special effects are fun. Okay, they are relatively simple effects but still fun. Maybe it's not that scary but it sure is enjoyable. Way more entertaining than the gory CGI remake.

I have to concur, having seen the remake. But if you want a 'horror' film that you can watch with the kids, this is the one. YouTube has the complete film and it is embedded below. Be sure to catch the sign on the door at the end.


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