"Tormented" (1960) - Better Than I Expected
Old thrillers don’t usually date well, coming off corny, campy, or at worse depressing. “Tormented,” from 1960, directed by Bert I. Gordon, checks off all these boxes. But it does so in a controlled manner resulting in an entertaining watch. With Halloween around the corner let’s look at “Tormented” (1960) – better than I expected.
Thapson
When watching a Bert I. Gordon movie, one needs to prepare for something outlandish, fantasy, sci-fi, scary with a helping of old-style special effects thrown in for good measure. His movies have a style that borders on weirdness. While “Tormented” is also one of such offerings, but I actually ended up enjoying it.
Synopsis
Unfortunate Death
We find Tom Stewart, a jazz pianist, being confronted by his past girlfriend, Vi, as he’s preparing to marry his latest love, Meg Hubbard. They’re meeting in the privacy of a lighthouse on an island off the California coast. Vi hasn’t accepted that Tom has left her for someone else and insists he marry her instead or she’ll spoil the wedding. During the argument, and ensuing struggle, Vi falls off the lighthouse ledge to her death among the choppy waters below.
Tom has the opportunity to save her, but lets her die anyway. He doesn’t want anything getting in the way of his upcoming marriage. This triggers his torments.
The Torments Start
Unfortunately for Tom, Vi’s death is only the beginning of the nightmare for him. Accidental death is a big deal. Especially if it was avoidable. Understandably Tom’s pretty shaken up after Vi’s death, but decides to do the wrong thing and act like it never happened. Unfortunately for him, Vi returns in spirit form to torment him at every opportunity. These torments include ethereal voices and strange sightings. The wedding’s just a week away and Tom’s edgy. The others are noticing. Especially his considerably younger sister-in-law, Sandy. Her childlike curiosity is piqued when Tom’s behavior changes and he acts like he’s “seeing things” – which he is. Other unusual incidents occur that take things up a notch further. Some others are also drawn into the situation.
The Plot Thickens
It’s said blind people’s sixth sense makes up for their lack of sight. One such person is Tom’s housekeeper, Ellis, who knows something’s not right. Tom confides to her about Vi leaving out her death. Ellis is convinced a living Vi is trying to sabotage the wedding. Thinking she’s hiding there, she visits the lighthouse to see if she can talk her into leaving.
Suspicious objects connected with Vi start appearing adding to Sandy’s suspicion.
Meanwhile Nick, the boatman who brought Vi over to the island comes looking for the money owed to him and to take her back as arranged. Despite being paid by Tom, Nick’s also drawn into the mystery of Vi’s disappearance. Upon discovering a likely crime, Nick decides to blackmail Tom. Tom draws him to the lighthouse where, upon Vi’s encouragement, he murders Nick.
Shocking Conclusion
The Hubbard clan starts gathering on the island for the wedding preparations. Tom’s torments are nowhere near complete. His erratic behavior further ticks off his reluctant father-in-law to be.
Despite getting rid of Nick, Tom’s not happy as bizarre reminders of Vi keep resurfacing with increasing frequency. With the upcoming happy occasion, there’s a shadow of gloom over everything. Finally during the wedding ceremony, all hell breaks lose as we come to the shocking conclusion of the movie.
What occurs during the wedding? Does everybody live happily ever after? You would need to watch the movie for the answers.
Main Cast
Richard Carlson as Tom Stewart
Despite an interesting repertoire of roles, Richard Carlson is most remembered for the many sci-fi movies he starred in, in the 1950s. His first break came in the 1950 King Solomon’s Mines. From the 1950s on, he became a regular on TV. Richard died relatively young soon after retirement in 1975.
Juli Reding as Vi Mason
Glamorous looking Texas-born Juli Reding was more popular on TV shows than movies. She won some beauty contests and had appearances as a pin-up girl in magazines. We lost her recently on September 16th 2021.
Susan Gordon as Sandy Hubbard
The late Susan Gordon was director Bert I. Gordon’s daughter. She played primarily child roles until the late 1960s. Her name appears on many popular TV shows of the 60s. The most famous of these for me is the Twilight Zone episode “The Fugitive” from 1962.
Lillian Adams as Mrs. Ellis
Chicago born Lillian Adams has a wide range of TV character roles. From 1950s, it’s surprising at the variety of TV shows she shows up on, over the decades – reflecting a very hard-working professional.
Joe Turkel as Nick (Boatman/Blackmailer)
If Joe Turkel looks familiar, he should be. He’s done a wide range of roles over almost five decades from 1949 through 1998. Despite some movies, most of his work was on TV. His most iconic role is the bartender in the 1980 movie “The Shining” where he refuses to accept payment for a drink served to Jack Nicholson’s character (who earlier refers to him as “Jeevesy old boy”).
My Take
Tormented is as corny as they come. But despite this, I enjoyed it. Any horror/thriller movie aficionado should watch it. Its black and white photography gives it an authentic somber feel. Some movies and TV shows are best seen in this format for better impact as is the case here. The idyllic island environment and the lighthouse are in contrast to each other giving it the right ingredient of dread.
The special effects are interestingly convincing given the genre. In fact, I kind of prefer these over the obvious computerized CGI we have these days. And they manage to lend the movie an ominous creepy feel.
latenitevideo / YouTube.com
A Few Final Words
What particularly endeared me to the movie was the topic of accidental death and subsequent effect on those directly impacted. Especially if the death was preventable and traumatic as the one in Tormented. Does one suffer a psychological damage as is likely the case with Tom Stewart in the movie? Or is there a supernatural side to it? Does the soul of the departed actually come back to haunt the one who caused their death? In all popular cultures the answer the last question is yes. But it has never been scientifically proven. Which is what makes Tormented one of my favorites as it touches on this question in a way some might find weird. For me, just this intrigue makes this a great watch.
We’ll check out another movie soon. Feel free to comment using the form below.
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