A lot of thought goes into certain pranks, yet more often than not, the pranksters are thoughtless. Namely in regards to the victim’s reaction. Such is the case in the darkly humored Tales from the Crypt episode Abra Cadaver. Here we witness two brothers, both doctors, becoming entangled for most of their adult lives after one of them acted foolishly in his youth. Years later, the remorse is there, but what of the forgiveness? How this tit-for-tat story plays out is predictable, or should be in retrospect. However, that road to achieving the ultimate gotcha is one paved with real horror.
Abra Cadaver, based on “Dead Right” from the EC Comics line, preys on a baseless but somehow still plausible fear: experiencing my own autopsy. Stephen King dished out his own terrifying take on this phobia in the short story “Autopsy Room Four” (the basis for a Nightmares and Dreamscapes episode). Tales from the Crypt plays up the same universal dread while also imbuing a sense of karmic retribution. A pre-Scandal Tony Goldwyn plays Carl, the younger brother to Beau Bridges‘ Martin. In the black-and-white flashback, we learn the source of Carl’s guilt: his birthday prank caused Martin to not only have a stroke, but also ruined his future as a surgeon. Carl has since gone on to become a prosperous doctor, but his own self-imposed acts of penance have evidently undermined that success. He still feels terrible about what happened to Martin.
This episode depends on your anticipation. Your waiting for the other shoe to finally drop. We know something sinister is clearly afoot as Martin mentions his recent business trip to Haiti (one on Carl’s dime) and shows his little brother the fruit of his secret research: the ability to keep a person’s brain alive after death. What could have become another Frankenstein-inspired story of reanimation quickly turns into something far nastier.
Watching Carl squirm is never easy because you see everything from his perspective. Director Stephen Hopkins (Predator 2) forces you to identify with Carl, whether or not you’re on his side in this dragged-out sibling conflict. The torture which Goldwyn’s helpless character is put through is arduous and not remotely amusing. Yours and my mind are too busy thinking what it would be like to be trapped in this situation. Carl’s conscious agony is horrifying to hear, even when some of the lines and deliveries are a bit overcooked.
Abra Cadaver sticks to a dreary clinical setting. The sterile backdrop heightens the coldness of Martin’s revenge as well as Carl’s relatable sense of panic. Once the big reveal does come along, though, the chance for relaxation is short-lived; the story comes full circle as the older brother realizes own severe case of recklessness. Tales from the Crypt never quite scared me with most of its offerings, despite their great entertainment value. Yet, Abra Cadaver still sends a chill up my spine because of how it captures a genuine, if not unlikely fear of mine.
Watch Abra Cadaver:
So the Story Goes spotlights notable anthology tales from both television and film, with an emphasis on the horror genre.
Tales from the Paulside 
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