[Demdike@Cult Labs]

Catacombs (1964)

Superior Hitchcockian chiller from director Gordon Hessler about a man who plots to murder his wife so he can become sole heir to her fortune and seduce her young niece.

This largely forgotten British thriller with supernatural overtones is a little gem. The acting is excellent, especially from Gary Merrill and Georgina Cookson as the husband and wife, although i wasn't that convinced by Jane Merrow as the femme fatale niece.

Whilst the first half introduces characters and gives them motives, the second half ramps up the mystery with the plot taking a turn for the ghostly and the final denouement was something i didn't see coming.