… reflects an American critique of British colonial power, making it a rare horror film that does reflect on political and historical questions...Price and Lee give juicy performances, and it’s a thinking man’s thriller for genre connoisseurs for sure…

The killings, with their fake stage blood (actors simply drag a blood-soaked stage-blade across flesh and leave a red mark) are laughable. It's ultimately more of a costume pic than a chiller.

Too many scenes are protracted beyond the breaking point.

Less thrilling than it seems roundly determined to remain obsessively complicated since its narrative hobbles any chance of mystery in its first act, the film is about as unnecessary as Poe's titular euphemism for a coffin.