Tormented (1960 film)
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| Tormented | |
|---|---|
 A promotional film poster for "Tormented." |
|
| Directed by | Bert I. Gordon |
| Produced by | Bert I. Gordon Joe Steinberg |
| Written by | Bert I. Gordon George Worthing Yates |
| Starring | Richard Carlson Susan Gordon Lugene Sanders |
| Music by | Albert Glasser Calvin Jackson |
| Cinematography | Ernest Laszlo |
| Editing by | John Bushelman |
| Distributed by | Allied Artists Pictures Corporation |
| Release date(s) | 22 September 1960 |
| Running time | 75 min |
| Country |  United States |
| Language | English |
| IMDb profile | |
Tormented is a 1960 horror movie starring Richard Carlson and was directed and produced by Bert I. Gordon for Allied Artists Pictures Corporation.
[edit] Plot
Tom Stewart could very well be considered the luckiest Jazz musician there is. He's got a gig at Carnegie Hall coming up, and he's marrying a beautiful young woman named Meg, on a lovely offshore island where her family and friends live.
However, Tom's bliss is soon interrupted when his old flame, a singer named Vi, drops by unexpectedly. Discussing matter at the top of the island's lighthouse, Vi is willing to resort to underhanded measures if possible to get Tom back. However, her perch on the lighthouse railing gives way, and Vi falls to her death below.
The next day, Tom scans the beach, and seems to find Vi's body floating on the water. But after rescuing it, the body suddenly turns to seaweed! Tom tries to forget what he's seen, but over the next several days, all manner of strange occurrences happen. Vi's watch washes up on the beach, mysterious footprints appear in the sand.
Later in the day, Meg's little sister Sandy shows up, and asks Tom if she can see the engagement ring. As Tom shows it to Sandy, he's spooked by a disembodied hand that soon makes off with the ring.
Of course, Vi's hand is just the turning point. Her disembodied head makes a small appearance in a photo of Tom's, and when alone, Vi taunts Tom that she'll now use her voice to tell the world how Tom Stewart killed her.
To add to Tom's dilemma, a ferry-driving beatnik comes looking for Tom, intent on collecting the $5 Vi owes him for her trip to the island. Tom's haste to pay the fellow off causes the shifty 'boatnik' to stick around, where his attempts to blackmail Tom lead to the ferryman being killed by Tom (after some whispering by Vi). Too bad Sandy was nearby and saw the whole thing.
At the wedding, Sandy keeps quiet about what she's seen, but almost says something at the point in the sermon where it asks if anyone "can give reason why these two should not be joined in matrimony." But Sandy's stuttering isn't needed as the church's front doors burst open, and the flowers all begin to wilt, as the candles die out. Needless to say, the wedding is postponed.
Later that night, Tom goes to the lighthouse, telling Vi that he's leaving the island. Soon after, Sandy listens in to what Tom says. When Tom finds her, he realizes that he's now trapped: Sandy knows too much, and he'll get the gas chamber for sure. Now at the end of his rope, Tom leads Sandy up to the broken lighthouse railing, with the intent to push her over. But just then, Vi's ghost swoops down on Tom, causing him to go over the edge as Sandy watches.
Soon afterward, the islanders go searching for Tom's body. However, the first one they find is Vi's. Shortly afterward, Tom's body is found and placed next to Vi's body, which somehow manages to turn and lay it's arm across his body. And on Vi's dead hand, is the engagement ring that was supposed to be Meg's, signaling that Tom is now stuck forever with Vi.
