Line #22 Film/CurseOfTheCrimsonAltar


1	[[quoteright:350:https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/curse_of_the_crimson_altar.jpg]]
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3	''Curse of the Crimson Altar'' (a.k.a. ''The Crimson Cult'') is a 1968 British horror film directed by Vernon Sewell and starring Creator/ChristopherLee, Creator/BorisKarloff, Barbara Steele and Mark Eden.
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5	When his brother disappears, Robert Manning pays a visit to the remote country house he was last heard from. While his host is outwardly welcoming - and his niece more demonstrably so - Manning detects a feeling of menace in the air with the legend of Lavinia Morley, Black Witch of Greymarsh, hanging over everything.
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7	Based on ''Literature/TheDreamsInTheWitchHouse'' by Creator/HPLovecraft.
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9	!!''Curse of the Crimson Altar'' contains examples of:
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11	* AmazingTechnicolorPopulation: Lavinia has green skin.
12	* AttackOfTheTownFestival: All the events of the film take place around Witch's Festival: a local village festival that commemorates [[BurnTheWitch the burning of local witch]] Lavinia Grey.
13	* BlastingItOutOfTheirHands: At the end of the movie, Professor Walsh shoots Morley in the hand to force him to drop the poniard.
14	* BloodOath: Peter signs Lavinia's book in blood. According to Professor Walsh, this is a step there is no coming back from.
15	* BookcasePassage: One of the secret tunnels to the witch room is concealed behind a bookcase in the library.
16	* BurnTheWitch: Lavinia Morley was burned for witchcraft, and this event is recreated in Greymarsh every Witch's Night, with Lavinia being burned in effigy.
17	* CatapultNightmare: Robert sits bolt upright when he wakes from a dream that ended with him being stabbed in the chest by Lavinia.
18	* CelebrityParadox: Robert is being shown around the lodge by Eve, and remarks that it feels like something out of a horror film, and that he almost expects to run into Creator/BorisKarloff. Not long afterwards, he is introduced to Professor Walsh, who is played by Creator/BorisKarloff. Strangely, Robert makes no comment on the Professor's resemblance to the actor.
19	* ClimbingClimax: [[spoiler:Morley]] climbs on to the roof of the Lodge as the building burns. He is last seen screaming defiance at the heavens as an [[MaybeMagicMaybeMundane image of Lavina appears above him]], before the roof gives in and he [[DisneyVillainDeath plunges into the burning building]].
20	* CouldntFindAPen: Peter signs Lavinia's book in blood. According to Professor Walsh, [[BloodOath this is a step there is no coming back from]].
21	* CrustyCaretaker: Elder is the stuttering, seemingly mentally deficient, majordomo of Craxted Lodge; shuffling around the place, and appearing unnervingly behind people.
22	* DisneyVillainDeath: [[spoiler:Morley]] perishes falling through the roof of the burning Craxted Lodge.
23	* GodivaHair: The naked VirginSacrifice strapped to the altar has her modesty protected by her long blonde hair covering her breasts.
24	* HumanSacrifice: Peter is forced to commit human sacrifice at the end of the bizarre InitiationCeremony that opens the movie.
25	* InitiationCeremony: Peter is forced to commit HumanSacrifice at the end of the bizarre initiation ceremony that opens the movie.
26	* JackBauerInterrogationTechnique: Robert attempts to choke answers out of Basil, only for Professor Walsh to inform him that Basil would not be capable of answering him even if he were not being strangled as he is [[TheSpeechless mute]].
27	* JokerJury: In one of his dreams, Robert finds himself put on trial by Lavinia's cult. The jury consists of MalevolentMaskedMen in creepy animal masks.
28	* MalevolentMaskedMen: In one of his dreams, Robert finds himself being tried by a JokerJury of cultists wearing creepy animal masks.
29	* MarketBasedTitle: Was released in the US as ''The Crimson Cult''.
30	* MaybeMagicMaybeMundane: Just before [[spoiler:Morley]] perishes falling through the roof of the burning Craxted Lodge, an image of Lavinia Morley appears laughing above him. It vanishes as he falls, leaving the three characters who saw it wondering if it was real.
31	* APartyAlsoKnownAsAnOrgy: The party that is raging at Craxted Lodge when Robert arrives seems to be fast devolving into an orgy. Oddly, all of the partygoers are gone the next morning, and the event is never mentioned again.
32	* SecretCircleOfSecrets: The film centres a witchcraft cult established by Lavinia Morley, a woman executed for witchcraft in the 17th Century, which still operates in the present day. The cult practices HumanSacrifice, but it is unclear what its actual goals are.
33	* SlaveBrand: After Peter completes his initiation (however unwillingly) into Lavinia's cult and signs his name in blood in her book, Lavinia has him branded to mark him as now belonging to her.
34	* {{Sleepwalking}}: Under the effects of hypnosis, Robert almost sleepwalks into a lake, but is saved by a passing policeman.
35	* TheSpeechless: Basil, Professor Walsh's sinister chauffeur/manservant, is a mute. Robert discovers this when he attempts to choke answers out of him, only for Professor Walsh to inform him that Basil would not be capable of answering him even if he were not being strangled.
36	* SunglassesAtNight: Basil, Professor Walsh's sinister and silent chauffeur, never removes his sunglasses (save one brief moment when they are knocked off by Robert during a struggle). This includes while driving at night.
37	* TheVicar: Eve rouses the local vicar in the middle of the night to comb through parish records. The very pleasant vicar helps her do this and turns up the information she needs, breaking the mystery wide open. He later unknowingly saves the day by making a phone call to Professor Walsh.
38	* VirginSacrifice: The women sacrificed by the cult are apparently virgins, although this is never explicitly stated in the film. However, they are identified as "Virgin sacrifice #1" and Virgin sacrifice #2" in the credits.
39	* YouJustRuinedTheShot: Robert arrives at Craxted Lodge and sees an almost naked woman screaming and being chased by a pair of cars. He intervenes, only to discover this is a consensual game being played by a group of partygoers from the Lodge.
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Context Film / CurseOfTheCrimsonAltar