Two Evil Eyes

"The Facts in the Case of Mr. Valdemar" • Adrienne Barbeau as Jessica Valdemar • Ramy Zada as Dr. Robert Hoffman • Jeff Howell as Policeman • E.G. Marshall as Steven Pike • Chuck Aber as Mr. Pratt • Tom Atkins as Detective Grogan • Mitchell Baseman as Boy at Zoo • Barbara Byrne as Martha • Larry John Meyers as Old Man • Christina Romero as Mother at Zoo • Anthony Dileo Jr. as Taxi Driver • Christine Forrest as Nurse "The Black Cat" • Cinzentinha as The Cat • Harvey Keitel as Rod Usher • Madeleine Potter as Annabel • John Amos as Detective LeGrand • Sally Kirkland as Eleonora • Kim Hunter as Gloria Pym • Holter Graham as Christian • Martin Balsam as Mr. Pym • Jonathan Adams as Hammer • Julie Benz as Betty • Lanene Charters as Bonnie • Bill Dalzell III as Detective • J. R. Hall as 2nd Policeman • Scott House as 3rd Policeman • James G. MacDonald as Luke • Peggy Sanders as Young Policewoman • Lou Valenzi as Editor • Jeffrey Wild as Delivery Man • Ted Worsley as Desk Editor • Tom Savini as the Monomaniac ==Production==

George A. Romero and Dario Argento first worked together on Dawn of the Dead back in 1978 where the collaboration led to the two developing a mutual respect for each other. John Carpenter, Clive Barker, and Stephen King were considered to direct two of the segments, but Carpenter had scheduling issues, and King was uninterested in serving as a director again after his experience directing the 1986 film Maximum Overdrive. Savini also appears briefly in "The Black Cat" episode as The Monomaniac, a killer who rips out his victim's teeth. Two Evil Eyes was Julie Benz's first acting role and the first feature film she starred in. Benz appears as teenage violin student Betty in a few scenes of "The Black Cat" segment. Benz's voice was dubbed in the Italian-language version of the film by Dario Argento's daughter, Asia. ==Reception==

Two Evil Eyes holds a rating of 63% on Rotten Tomatoes based on 19 reviews, with an average rating of 5.7/10. Metacritic, which uses a weighted average, assigned the film a score of 61 out of 100, based on 4 critics, indicating "generally favorable reviews". In the book Art of Darkness: The Cinema of Dario Argento, a reviewer wrote of the film that, "Romero was a bizarre choice of director for an adaptation of Poe," and that Romero's segment lacked "any of the director's own trademarks: his striking use of space and editing, the moments of bleak surrealism and dark irony." Though he commended Tom Savini's effects work, Gallant concluded that "the twin halves of Two Evil Eyes make utterly inappropriate bedfellows, coming from two directors whose styles, even at their best, would make an incongruous combination." ==References==