H. P. Lovecraft (played by Jeffrey Combs) goes to a library of the occult to read the Necronomicon (book of the laws of the dead). But it is safely guarded and he must sneak past the monks. After he succeeds, he reads three stories from the book (each very loosely based off a Lovecraft tale) and we are treated to them from three different directors.

This film shouldn't fail. Combs and Yuzna know Lovecraft... along with Stuart Gordon they're like the masters of the Lovecraft. And the anthology format has been done successfully before ("Creepshow"). But yet, this just seems like more of a mess than anything. I think this is because the three stories have nothing in common with each other (that didn't matter in "Creepshow" but it seems like it should here). And the fact it's a different director each time makes the transitions a little stranger. Maybe this could have been a short-lived television series with directors adapting various Lovecraft tales each week. As one feature film, it just doesn't slide.

The first tale ("The Drowned") was awful beginning to end. I won't name names, because the actors and director don't need this on their record. Seriously, just plain bad.

Shusuke Kaneko (known for his Godzilla films) gives us the second part, based on "Cool Air". Of the three, this is the only really good one, and the only thing redeeming this movie (besides Combs). We get the story of a woman who meets a doctor and falls in love with him, and gets impregnated. But the doctor has a secret -- he is ancient, and must be kept alive by using spinal fluid and avoiding all heat and light.

David Warner (veteran horror actor and also the professor from "Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles II: Secret of the Ooze") plays Dr. Madden, and his presence is always welcome. Bess Meyer, whom I don't know, plays a great Emily Osterman. If all three sequences were this good, this film would have been much more memorable (and maybe available on DVD by now). Obba Babatunde (best known to me as the "Dawson's Creek" principal) shows up, also. The only good part of part three (besides the gore, which part two does better).

The road to filming this movie was paved with good intentions, but I'm not convinced. If you do watch it, watch all the way through -- it gets better as it goes, I promise. But unless you're as much of a lover of Combs or Lovecraft as I am, this really can wait until the DVD edition arrives... and even then, take your time.

Usually I don't like movies that have three stories with a wrapper around them but here it works fine. The first story is pretty good, the second is pretty dull and the last is awesome. The wraparound is one of the best in this type of movie. The first story was good with a great amount of creepy monster effects and scary moments. The second story left me cold. The third story was great with like demons and stuff. The wraparound would have been better as a separate story but it is very entertaining with a great ending (just like the first and third stories). Four stories in one film and three of them are great! This is a gritty classic.

The movie is a Anthology movie based around H.P.Lovecrafts short-stories. Although based seems like the wrong word in this case, but more about that later...

The movie some bad acting, mostly bad dialogue, bad story, bad characters (they don't even have any personalities whatsoever and for the most part I don't even understand their reactions/actions) and often terrible editing that simply confuses you, especially in the second story are some weird cuts. The whole concept of the movie doesn't even make sense, the stories are read from the necronomicon, which doesn't make sense since its a spell-book and none of these stories are written by anyone involved, at least we are never told so. BUT it also has its redeeming qualities, most of all the practical special effects are awesome! They actually are some of my most favourite practical gore effects ever and there are a lot of them! Also the set and sound design are quite alright.

Now more about Lovecraft compared to this movie. The style is in no way comparable to Lovecrafts. There is no build-up, no subtlety (creatures EVERYWHERE),little explanation as to why all this happens (which is usually the scary part in a Lovecraft story),there is no feeling of the insignificance of humans compared to what exists out there (maybe). It feels much more like silly campfire stories.

To sum it up I would recommend watching this either if you are a big fan of practical special effects (especially gore) or you like the Cthulhu universe. In my case both of these things apply which is why I enjoyed this movie despite its crap-factor.