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Horror demigod George Romero returns back to his Creepshow - style anthologizing with this 1990 feature adaptation of the (briefly) popular television series. It goes without saying that any horror anthology will be a ‘mixed bag’ at best, but this one’s just a bit too tepid to keep hardcore gorehounds happy for very long.

Boasting inspiration from the likes of Stephen King and Sir Arthur Conan Doyle, Tales from the Darkside offers a silly wrap-around story about a young boy who tries to stave off a witch by distracting her with three horrific tales:

-- Lot 247 offers a killer mummy in a college setting

-- The Cat from Hell covers precisely what you’d expect (with one kicker of a finale)

-- Lover’s Vow is a piece of goopy silliness about a man who may or may not have just slept with a gargoyle/changeling gal.

If, like me, you find yourself generally entertained by short-story-style horror nuggets, odds are you’ll find a little something to like in this one.

Skip the third section entirely, and be sure to keep an eye out for early appearances by Christian Slater, Steve Buscemi, David Johnsen, and Deborah Harry.

Better yet, see if you can track down some of the better episodes from the original series.

link directly to this review at http://www.efilmcritic.com/review.php?movie=6855&reviewer=128
originally posted: 01/15/03 03:04:03
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