The Raven

The Raven is a 1963 American comedy gothic horror film produced and directed by Roger Corman. The film stars Vincent Price, Peter Lorre, and Boris Karloff as a trio of rival sorcerers. The supporting cast includes Jack Nicholson as the son of Lorre's character. It was the fifth in the so-called Corman-Poe cycle of eight films largely featuring adaptations of Edgar Allan Poe stories produced by Roger Corman and released by American International Pictures (AIP). The film was written by Richard Matheson, based on references to Poe's 1845 poem "The Raven". AIP released the film as a double feature with Night Tide. Three decades earlier, Karloff had appeared in another film with the same title, Lew Landers's 1935 horror film The Raven with Bela Lugosi. Plot In the year 1506, the sorcerer Dr. Erasmus Craven has been mourning the death of his wife Lenore for over two years, much to the dismay of his daughter, Estelle. One night he is visited by a raven, who happens to be a transformed wizard, Dr. Bedlo. Together they brew a potion that restores Bedlo to his old self. Bedlo explains that he had been transformed by the evil Dr. Scarabus in an unfair duel, and both decide to see Scarabus, Bedlo to exact revenge and Craven to look for his wife's ghost, which Bedlo reportedly saw at Scarabus' castle. After fighting off an attack by Craven's coachman, who acted under the influence of Scarabus, they are joined by Craven's daughter Estelle and Bedlo's son Rexford, and set out to the castle.