The movie's neither hopeful in contrived ways, nor hopeless in different contrived ways. Somehow it manages to be wonderful

Great movie. Not sure what people expected but I found it highly entertaining.

Story: It's very simple but honestly that is fine.

Strong acting helps the film overcome an uncertain premise and create characters that hold our attention absolutely.

The style of "Spirits of the Dead" was not very unusual for the 1960s in Europe. Several other films consisted of top directors doing short films as part of an anthology movie, such as "Boccaccio 70". In the case of "Spirits of the Dead", the films are all adaptations of Edgar Allen Poe stories--and in some cases they stray quite a bit from the original source material."Metzengerstein" is directed by Roger Vadim and is a film about a sadistic sybaritic noblewoman (Jane Fonda--Vadim's wife at the time). She regularly indulges in all sorts of sexual excesses with her friends, torments her vassals for kicks and is a thoroughly despicable wretch. One day, she sees a distant cousin whose family and hers are rivals. She becomes obsessed by the man (which is interesting, as it's played by Jane's real life brother, Peter) and eventually she does something very evil and spiteful because he will not come to her twisted parties. What's next? See for yourself.I must warn you that this first film is very dull, slow-paced and is pretty silly and forgettable. The worst part about it for me was seeing Jane's silly costumes. While the film appears set in about the year 1500, her costumes appear to be straight from the Vadim space epic, "Barbarella" and this is utterly ridiculous. And, I noticed that most reviewers disliked this short. As for me, I didn't see a whole lot to like about it other than a rare chance to see the two Fondas working together."William Wilson" is directed by Louis Malle, stars Alain Delon. The film begins with Wilson running into a confessional and loudly demanding that the priest listen to him--even though he acknowledges he is not a Catholic. He admits to a murder and then begins a long story of why he did this dastardly act. During this story, Wilson admits to being a complete sadist and is a man who has no remorse or feeling about others. He is a predatory creature--and why he goes to confess is just something you'll need to see for yourself. What's next? See for yourself.In addition to Delon, this film stars Brigitte Bardot sporting a black wig. She is, as usual, gorgeous. However, you should be forewarned about this film. It is pretty sadistic and nasty in places--and is definitely for adults only. The story is mildly interesting (like a "Twilight Zone" episode) and worth seeing...just don't watch it with your mom or Pastor Jenkins."Toby Dammit" is by Federico Fellini. This segment is a treat for die-hard Fellini fans, as it has so much that they will probably love. Much of the film seems like it was inspired by "8 1/2" as well as "La Dulce Vita" as it consists of a very much adored celebrity having sycophants falling at his feet as well as a long procession of weird looking extras. It is 100% style...and not a lot of substance. Terrance Stamp plays this celebrity and he plays it as if he's a boorish jerk strung out on heroin--which you assume the character is. I have noticed that critically speaking, it's the most loved of the three films, though I thought the plot itself was very, very weak. It's more like watching a freak show (again, not unusual for many Fellini films) but without a lot of payoff in the end.My overall verdict is that despite the ultra-famous directors, the film lacks substance and, believe it or not, the very cheap Poe films directed by Roger Corman are significantly better. The bottom line is that Malle and Fellini have done so much better work than this and it's a film only for completists who want to see everything they've made. A big disappointment for me.

There's not much Poe here, except his name. Roger Corman did a better job of sticking to the original stories than this trio of "stellar" directors: Vadim, Malle, and Fellini.In the spirit of the indulgent 60s, these three auteurs twisted Poe into the shape of their own imagination, rewriting and "sexing up" the stories to appeal to the pompous art-house crowd. There are some beautiful locations and striking visuals, to be sure...plus long, long stretches of boredom (Jane Fonda playing with a horse, Terence Stamp driving drunk). The music is also dated and laughable, especially Nino Rota's pop dreck under the Fellini segment.Trivia: be on the lookout for Andreas Voutsinas as a bearded courtier in the Vadim segment. He was Jane Fonda's acting coach, but best-known to American audiences as the creepy Carmen Ghia in Mel Brooks's original "The Producers" (released the same year as this film).

Three Poe stories; three directors; three failures.Simply put, this movie is not entertaining. Using Poe's name, and labeling the stories as interpretations by famous directors does not cover the poor performance and overall boring conclusion.The viewer, very possibly a fan of Poe, keeps hoping for something to develop, but it never does. Jane Fonda never removes her clothes. Peter Fonda is a again outperformed by a bird. The beautiful scenery and castles are fantastic. Hells bells ring loud and clear. But the movie never turns into an entertaining event.The Night Gallery TV series had many good stories and many duds. The adaptations of Poe stories in the film Spirits of the Dead would never have been used in the most desperate space-filler needs of television.There are several good film adaptations of Poe stories, but Spirits of the Dead is not worth watching.

"Metzengerstein": the bored and corrupt medieval countess Frederica (Jane Fonda) spends her futile life in orgies and cruelties. When she moves with her friends to one of her castles nearby the lands of her poor cousin Baron Wilhelm (Peter Fonda), she desires him but is not corresponded. When one of her minions burns the stable, Wilhelm dies trying to rescues his stallion and Federica is haunted by her lost cousin.This erotic female version of Caligula shows the delicious Jane Fonda, who was married to Roger Vadim at that time, wearing sexy costumes very similar to "Barbarella" (of the same year). But the story is weak. My vote is five."William Wilson": the sadistic and cruel soldier of the Austrian army William Wilson (Alain Delon) confesses to a priest the cruelties he committed along his sinful life and the participation of his double also called William Wilson in specific moments of his dreadful life.This short directed by Louis Malle is the certainly the best segment of these adaptations, showing the fight between the dark side and the human part of the same character. Brigitte Bardot is very different with black hair. My vote is six."Toby Dammit": the cynical alcoholic and decadent English actor Toby Dammit (Terence Stamp) travels to Rome to make a Catholic Western, but only interested in receiving the Ferrari promised by the production.This messy segment directed by Federico Fellini uses stylish images and a great performance of Terence Stamp, but the story is confused and the boring conclusion is too long. My vote is four.My global vote for these adaptations is five.Title (Brazil): "Histórias Extraordinárias" ("Extraordinaries Stories")