The Tell-Tale Heart

1953 0h 8m EN

👍

7.2

SOLID

★7.2TMDB · 91

AnimationHorrorCrime

Synopsis

Spoiler shield

A man's sanity is a point of contention as he confesses to murdering an elderly man, driven by the victim's pale blue 'vulture eye', culminating in guilt-induced auditory hallucinations of the victim's beating heart.

“Some stories are better left unspoiled.”

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Cast

James Mason
Narrator
Jack Mather
Old Man / Policeman

Credits

Behind the camera

Director: Ted Parmelee
Writers: Bill Scott, Edgar Allan Poe, Fred Grable
Languages: English
Countries: United States of America

Want more? Switch to Cinephile mode in the header for DP, composer, budget, box office, production companies, keywords, and release history.

Did you know?

Fun facts 🍿

1 / 6

RUNTIME

Did you know

Tight 8-minute runtime — shorter than most television pilots.

MoodPlayr · trivia#01

2 / 6

ERA

Did you know

73 years old — a genuine piece of film history.

MoodPlayr · trivia#02

3 / 6

RUNTIME

Did you know

Lean credit list — fewer than 30 people officially credited.

MoodPlayr · trivia#03

4 / 6

CAST

Did you know

James Mason and Jack Mather carry the top of the cast.

MoodPlayr · trivia#04

5 / 6

WILD

Did you know

IMDB entry: tt0046408 — still the authoritative cross-reference for credits and trivia.

MoodPlayr · trivia#05

6 / 6

WILD

Did you know

Only 91 TMDB ratings — you're getting ahead of the curve on this one.

MoodPlayr · trivia#06

Cinephile deep dive

The take

Ted Parmelee directs. Runs lean at under 100 minutes. Produced in United States of America. Dialogue in English.

Trivia

Things worth knowing

1Tight 8-minute runtime — shorter than most television pilots.
273 years old — a genuine piece of film history.
3Lean credit list — fewer than 30 people officially credited.
4James Mason and Jack Mather carry the top of the cast.
5IMDB entry: tt0046408 — still the authoritative cross-reference for credits and trivia.
6Only 91 TMDB ratings — you're getting ahead of the curve on this one.

The technical file

Runtime: 8 min · 0h 8m
Status: Released
Original language: EN
IMDB: The Tell-Tale Heart (1953)

Also by

Ted Parmelee

Trailers & featurettes

Watch the pieces

Community reviews

What people are saying

CinemaSerf2025-07-10
★ 7/10
I loved this. It’s a dark and eerily menacing story of a man, an eye, a murder and some great vocal characterisation from James Mason. Like many mad men, this one believed himself perfectly sane as he began to have issues with one is his elderly neighbours. This old fellow never troubled him, nor was probably even aware of his existence but gradually this obsession assumed dominating proportions. As this anxiety accumulated, his mind turned to more drastic action - but is there any way at all he can remove this psychological stain from his mind? It’s the kind of detailed and threatening animation that might have inspired a Roger Corman or Tim Burton film, and with the Kremenliev score adding loads to the increasingly frenzied atmosphere here it’s very far removed from any mainstream cartoon you’re ever likely to have seen before. Poe knew how to set a scene allowing our own imagination to take charge, and with the effective use of colour - especially the harlequin shaping towards the end, has created something that must have been quite shocking in 1953.

Production companies