Vincent’s next big screen appearance of
1965 was the underwater adventure film, WAR
GODS OF THE DEEP.
One gloomy evening on a rocky coastline in
England a body washes ashore.
It is discovered by a group of fishermen,
and we learn it is the body of Mr. Penrose,
a lawyer who’s been advising Miss Jill Tregillis
(Susan Hart), an American staying at the local
hotel.
Ben Harris (Tab Hunter) is a fellow American
Engineer studying the mines around the area.
He goes to the hotel to inform Miss Tregillis
of the man’s death.
Once there he finds Jill with one of the guests
named Harold Tufnell-Jones (David Tomlinson),
an eccentric painter who carries a pet chicken
named Herbert everywhere he goes in a wicker
basket.
Before Ben can inform her of Mr. Penrose’s
death there is a ruckus from his study.
Ben rushes in to find the lights out and a
strange creature moving around in the dark.
It escapes through a hidden doorway in the
darkness.
One of the fishermen tells a story about a
city called Lyonesse (LEEoness) the lost city
in the sea.
Supposedly thousands of years ago the city
was mysteriously swallowed up by the sea,
and strange bells are heard from time to time,
heralding death.
Meanwhile back in the hotel they discover
the study has been ransacked, and a book stolen,
along with a sketch of Jill that Harold did,
a preliminary sketch for a painting he was
planning.
Ben camps out in the room in case the intruder
returns.
Sure enough, it does in the middle of the
night, and kidnaps Jill.
They follow it through a secret door into
hidden passageways leading into a series of
caves.
They follow their tracks through the caves
to a room with a swirling whirlpool.
The rocks at the edge of the pool give way
and Ben, Harold and his pet chicken Herbert
find themselves pulled underwater.
They awaken in an underground room of some
sort, safe and sound, though a bit soaked.
They wander through the caves and eventually
end up in the underground city of Lyonesse.
There they meet the Captain, Sir Hugh (Vincent
Price), and his men.
He keeps them prisoner, insisting that Ben,
as an engineer, help them devise a solution
for the neighboring volcano that is threating
to explode any day now and destroy their underwater
city.
The Captain is also the one who kidnapped
Jill, with the assistance of the gillmen,
an underwater race of beings ages old.
This all occurs within the first 30 minutes
of the movie – the remainder of the film
involves ben and Harold – along with Herbert,
of course – trying to free Jill and escape
the city of Lyonesse.
WAR GODS OF THE DEEP was made by AIP Pictures
and directed by Jacques Tourneur, who Price
had worked with two years prior in THE COMEDY
OF TERRORS.
It is known by the alternate title THE CITY
IN THE SEA, and is based loosely on the Edgar
Allan Poe poem of the same name.
This was done in an attempt to tie the film
in with Price’s recent successful series
of Poe films by director Roger Corman.
The film opens and closes on stanzas of the
Poe poem, read by Price.
Interestingly there is an Edgar Allan Poe
tie-in within the movie itself, as Harold
and Ben find an English first-edition 1847
collection of Poe works within the underwater
city.
During this section of the film an excerpt
of THE CITY IN THE SEA is read with voice
over by Price as well.
There is a brief section shoehorned into the
story explaining Jill’s kidnapping.
The Captain pines away for his dead wife,
and keeps a portrait on his wall that is the
spitting image of Jill.
This comes off as a cheap Corman knockoff,
however, and bears little relevance to the
storyline other than to explain her kidnapping.
The entire film feels awkward and clumsy,
with a corny sense of humor throughout that
is painful to watch.
Apparently the script was originally written
by Charles Bennett, but re-written in England
– where the film was shot – by Louis Heyward,
who added the film’s humor (including the
character of the chicken).
Price would be reunited with both of his leading
costars in this film later this same year.
Price and Tab Hunter would work together again
in 1956 in the PLAYHOUSE 90 TV episode entitled
FORBIDDEN AREA (along with Charleton Heston).
He and Susan Hart would work together in Dr.
Goldfoot and the Bikini Machine.
Susan Hart, incidentally, married AIP co-founder
James Nicholson in 1964, the year before this
film was released.
Nicholson passed away in 1972, and she now
owns the rights to several AIP classics, including
IT CONQUERED THE WORLD, I WAS A TEENAGE WEREWOLF,
and THE AMAZING COLOSSAL MAN, among others,
but refuses to release them on DVD, to the
annoyance of fans worldwide.
Overall WAR GODS OF THE DEEP looks pretty,
with interesting sets and period costumes,
but ultimately falls flat with very little
actual onscreen action.
The characters unfortunately spend most of
the movie standing around talking, often to
a chicken, or wandering through caves.
Price does a fine job with what little he’s
given to do in this one, and once again meets
his demise onscreen as he escapes the city
but is unable to breathe the air above, and
dies, aging rapidly.
Though not a horrible film, this one is recommended
mainly for Price completists.
Next up is more corny humor in the 1965 spy
spoof DR.
GOLDFOOT AND THE BIKINI MACHINE.
