Every Amicus horror anthology fan must have their own favorite segment from all of the movies in the series. Well my favorite segment of them all comes in the very middle of this film of five horror stories. 'Poetic Justice' tells of an elderly man called Grimsdyke who is a widower who is still heavily devoted to his late wife. He is a rubbish collector who salvages old dolls and toys so that he can repair and recycle them as gifts to the local children. He becomes the victim of a smear campaign from a rich neighbor's son who lives in a big house on the posh side of the road opposite. Grimsdyke dresses in old shabby clothes and keeps several dogs to stave off the loneliness of his widowerhood. When Grimsdyke is alone in the house he talks to a photo of his late wife and surrounds himself with fortune-telling and spirit communication apparatus. Grimsdyke is played to perfection by Peter Cushing who wanted to play this character so much he had it revamped to suit him as well as taking a cut in pay to do this film. Cushing himself had become a widower the year before and missed his wife Helen so much that he naturally became Grimsdyke. I reckon his quietly-spoken portrayal in this is the very best of his career from what I've seen. I feel that so much more detail and incident could have been added to the 'Poetic Justice' story that I wish someone had expanded it into a standalone full feature.
Review of Tales from the Crypt
