It’s an ingenious move on Gordon’s part to flesh out the story with this, and is why the film ultimately succeeds. In both cases, the endless pursuit of pleasure and feeling transforms the character while simultaneously desensitizing them, which further fuels the self-destructive pursuit. As we watch Pretorious and Tillinghast turn into (literal) pleasure-seeking monsters, we also watch Barbara Crampton’s psychologist character turn from a shy, demure, quiet character, into a full-blown dominatrix, decked head to toe in leather, straddling men while they sleep and standing up to the strong, Foree character. As the characters in the film become more addicting to pushing the limits of human experience, it’s mirrored by a similar pull towards Pretorious’ sex dungeon and an exploration of the kinkier side of sex. Despite having read most of Lovecraft’s work, I can’t even remember a female character, yet alone anything even beginning to approach being sexual. It sounds like an odd pairing, Lovecraft and BDSM. Side note: there is no way to write that sentence without it sounding like the resonator is a giant vibrator. From there, they discover Pretorious’ sex dungeon and replicate the effects of the first experiment (without the decapitation) but begin to notice strange sexual side effects from exposure to the resonator. Tillinghast is then released on bond to a psychologist who, together with a detective (played by Ken Foree), go back to the house to investigate Tillinghast’s story. Where this is where the novel ends, this is how the film begins. Pretorious, prompting Tillinghast to be institutionalized. Much like in the novel, one of these creatures kills Dr. The real problem? That those same creatures can see them. Turns out that they were correct, however this third eye is able to see all sorts of things you’d rather not know exist, namely, the dozens of nameless, faceless, eldritch horrors that float around in the ether between dimensions. Together, the two create a resonator that stimulates the pineal gland, which they believe to be key to unlocking the entirety of human experience. Pretorious, an unhinged scientist obsessed with unlocking the secrets of the third eye. Combs plays Crawford Tillinghast, the assistant to Dr. “ From Beyond” is based upon the short story by the same name and, for the most part, follows the plot pretty closely to begin with. I’m happy I’ve finally remedied that problem. In short, I’ve been burned by so many terrible Lovecraft films that I had erroneously been avoiding one of the best. Now if I would have looked closely, I would have noticed that “From Beyond” was made in 1986 and not during the Lovecraft cash-in craze of the past decade, and that the director’s name was Stuart Gordon, who successfully directed Jeffery Combs in one of the few Lovecraft films worth a damn, “Re-Animator”. The box art looked like a straight-to-DVD cash grab, it had Jeffrey Combs in it (and really, outside of “Re-Animator”, what else has he been in that’s worth watching) and HP Lovecraft’s name was larger than the directors, signaling some obvious fan service. I’ve walked past the DVD box for “From Beyond” dozens of times in my life and have always passed on it for the same reasons I pass on so many Lovecraft adaptations. Sure, every now and then something like “Re-Animator” or “The Dunwich Horror” comes along that manages to be a solid, watchable movie, but far more often than not Lovecraft adaptations are painful messes. I’ve watched enough film adaptations of HP Lovecraft’s work to know not to expect much from them.
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