User Reviews

This episode of "Tales from the Darkside" is a truly unsettling affair with a disturbing conclusion. The competitive nature of tarot card reading and the use of the "magic of the cards" for purely financial reasons are the downfall of Catherine (Dorothy Lyman, "Mama's Family") whose "happy deck" is switched while she isn't looking by a disgruntled reader disguised as an old, wide-smiling suburbanite. Catherine uses the cards as a means to tell her customers what they want to hear, "happy readings", and has thrived because of it. The "deck of doom", however, condemns her customers and when they start to die, Catherine wants to get rid of them, to destroy them, but no matter what she does this tarot deck will not leave her, with tragic results. Catherine is told she will have to swap her deck with a "disbeliever", in order to escape a fate always being linked to the cards, but her mistake is still accepting a reading not leaving immediately after getting rid of the "deck of doom" while she had a chance. I think this is a good one, with little silliness or comedy, only a "sound of the sword" truly depleting some of the tension away from the episode (the sound of the sword slicing through something accompanies a bad reading). The idea that you cannot escape from a tarot deck that gives readings to clients always resulting in tragic death is certainly a creepy one and "In the Cards" milks this premise for all its worth.

Tales from the Darkside: In the Cards starts as fortune teller Catherine (Dorothy Lyman), or to give her her professional name Madam Caterina, is visited by a new client named Marlene (Carmen Mathews). While there Marlene switches Catherine's current pack of tarot cards which bring good luck to her clients for some evil ones which bring nothing but bad. Catherine's other clients start to die at an alarming rate as the evil tarot cards predict & bring nothing but death & disaster, can she find a way turn her fortunes around?

Episode 12 from season 1 this Tales from the Darkside story originally in the US during January 1985, the first of three Tales from the Darkside episodes to be directed by Theodore Gershuny who also wrote the script I though In the Cards was yet another average story from this generally average series. At 20 minutes it doesn't last long, it has a reasonable central premise revolving around the sinister world of tarot card reading although it has a rather predictable twist ending which doesn't help. I don't know what else to say really, this is just an average horror themed story which isn't particularly entertaining & at even 20 minutes long it's a bit boring.

This one looks alright & is well made, there's little in the way of horror & I'd imagine the makers of this one wanted a creepy story rather than a horrific one. There's no humour here in this either. The acting is fine but nothing special.

In the Cards is just a forgettable Tales from the Darkside episode, I'll probably have completely forgotten about it by tomorrow.

Cynical tarot card reader Catherine (a sharp performance by Dorothy Lyman) makes a living telling people their good fortunes, but only does this for financial reasons and has no real respect for the magic of the cards. Catherine's life goes awry when she gets a cursed deck of cards that predicts dire fates for all of her customers. Writer/director Theodore Gershuny relates the absorbing story at a brisk pace, does an expert job of creating and sustaining a dark sinister atmosphere, and makes neat use of sound effects to heighten the eerie mood. The sound acting by the capable cast holds everything together: Lyman brings a bracing intensity to her role, plus there's sturdy support from Carmen Mathews as cunning rival Madame Marlena, Teri Keane as loyal friend Esther, Wood Romoff as wise gentleman Isaac, and Johann Carlo as the concerned Iris. Moreover, this episode makes a strong point about the importance of respecting the power of the cards. The surprise grim ending packs a pretty startling punch. A nifty show.

This episode kept me away from Tarot cards forever. I don't get into fortune telling, but Tarot Cards just creep me out. This is one episode that sent chills up my spine. A story about a fake fortune teller who gets some real Tarot cards she doesn't know what to do with. These cards do predict what will happen next. When she finds out her cards were switched on her, she goes to another fortune teller and asks how she can get rid of them. The only way is to pawn them off on someone else. So she goes to get her fortune told. When she leave she takes the back alley and runs into a mugger who stabs and kills her. This is another eerie episode that makes this series one of the best classic horror series of the 80's. This episode is one that will give you the wee bee jeebees.

Carolina (Dorothy Lyman, Naomi from Mama's Family) does Tarot card readings and is popular with her customers, as she always brings them the best of news. Once her competitor - Madame Marlena (Carmen Matthews) - switches out her deck, the fortune change to be filled with death. The cards can't be destroyed, but can Carolina change her fortune?

The one good thing I can say is that this episode sticks to being horror and doesn't veer into the silly side of the darkside. I'm such a grump, I realize, but the more jokey these episodes get, the cringier they become.

Based on a story by Carole Lucia Satrina (who wrote three of the Cannon Movie Tales Beauty and the Beast, Red Riding Hood and Puss In Boots), this was directed and written by Theodore Gershuny, who directed and wrote Silent Night, Bloody Night (and was once married to Mary Woronov).