Category Archives: retrospective

Retrospective – Ringu (1998): 25th Anniversary

30 Monday Jan 2023

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By the time Ringu had hit UK cinemas, a full two years had passed since Hideo Nakata’s vision based on the novel by Koji Suzuki was realised in front of a Japanese audience, becoming the highest grossing horror film for the country.

When I finally sat down to watch the film to shelter from a wet summer in London, at one of my regular haunts, The Curzon Soho, I was unaware of the significant impact it would have on my own journey through the realms of horror cinephilia. It would mark the rise of J-Horror alongside Pulse (Kairo) and The Grudge and in its wake, would revolutionise the genre, and push numerous Western remakes and similarly styled movies for the best part of a decade.

Part of its appeal would be generated through the grainy film effect, with a slowly drawn out, tension building threat to generate a new style of scare. It came at a peak time during the transition of old and new technology, thrusting the fears of ancient beliefs and rituals with a growing anxiety over the future of mankind. By infusing these two elements, it confronted its audience, daring them to awaken their agitation and curse them, fueling this further and forcing the characters we follow to an early grave.

For me though Suzuki and Nakata’s brilliance comes through bringing the onryō, otherwise known as a vengeful spirit, before a modern audience. With the character of Sadako, the creatives found a host to enact her wrath and fury upon any who encountered her spirit. With all this pent up aggression tied in with her supernatural abilities; a visually striking and haunting look, namely the long black hair cast over the female face, hiding the true horror from the unwitting recipient, whilst clothed in a full white dress; a symbol itself a juxtaposition of innocence and purity, would thrust her front and centre into cinematic history.

It’s now been 25 years since its official release and yet its resonance is still felt. When watching it again, I am instantly transported back to my first viewing in a darkened auditorium, and the thrills and scares that were evoked. It’s why Ringu always makes its way towards the top of my all time favourite horror film list. It’s iconic and translates across time and culture.

  • Saul Muerte

Check out more thoughts from the Surgeons team in our podcast episode about the Ring franchise.

The Ring Franchise (1998 -)

Movie review: Rings (2017)

Retrospective: The Thing That Couldn’t Die (1958)

14 Saturday Jan 2023

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Admittedly my only entry into this feature for my retrospective journey into Universal Horror movies of the 1950s, would be through the comedy review series, Mystery Science Theater 3000. The fact that the object of said show is to ridicule the subject under scrutiny didn’t bode well for my viewing experience, but I tried to do so with an open mind.

The Thing That Couldn’t Die would be helmed by Will Cowan for what would be his last feature film as a director. Based on an original screenplay by David Duncan (The Monster on the Campus) entitled The Water Witch, where a young psychic woman, Jessica (Carolyn Kearney) discovers a mysterious box from the 16th century. The contents of which contain the head of Gideon Drew (Robin Hughes), a man executed for sorcery 400 years ago and begins to use telepathy in order to control people. This far-fetched tale is hard to connect with, much like Drew’s plan to reunite his head with his body. Even if you are willing to bow to the whims with a suspension of disbelief, there is little substance beneath the melodramatic telling on show.

 It is inevitable that an achilles heel be placed to set up Drew’s downfall, and this comes in the guise of an amulet that Jessica is in possession of. The mold may have been set but it’s a struggle to find any glowing elements to give it praise for. It doesn’t help that upon its release, TTTCD was billed alongside Hammer’s The Horror of Dracula, a film marking significant changes on the celluloid screen. The years have not been kind and with little availability out there, most cinephiles have to resort to the comical observations that MST3000 as its only source to survey with.

  • Saul Muerte

Retrospective: Monster on the Campus (1958)

14 Saturday Jan 2023

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As we close in on the end of the 50s and my introspective look back at Universal Pictures shift away from the horror genre in contrast to the rise of Britain’s Hammer Film Production, I cast my gaze upon the 1958 feature, Monster On The Campus. The focus of the American film distribution was to scrutinize the subject of evolution and devolution from the perspective of University Professor, Dr. Donald Blake (Athur Franz). Written by novelist David Duncan, MOTC would be directed by alumni Jack Arnold (Creature From The Black Lagoon, The Incredible Shrinking Man) who would go on record to state that this wasn’t his finest work; an opinion which I’m inclined to agree with.

The story would find Blake becoming infected with a partially-thawed coelacanth. This produces a transformation in his cells into an ape-like creature that causes havoc through the campus, drawing inspiration from Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde. It takes the player involved some time to work out the cause of this mayhem however, allowing for anarchy to reign until the inevitable dramatic conclusion and the reveal of the cause to the effect. The tragedy however is a little bereft of any real impact and the viewer never really grips or raises the tension out of the scenes as it unfolds.

The film itself would be somewhat dwarfed by the more colourful British feature, Blood of the Vampire, which it shared billing with on the cinema circuit. It does boast solid supporting roles in the mix, with Joanna Moore cast as the women in peril figure Madeline; Judson Pratt as Lt. Mike Stevens; and Troy Donahue in one of his earlier performances, here playing local boy Jimmy Flanders.
From a modern perspective it is hard to shift away from the make up effects that are a little less than desired, especially compared with today’s standards, but stuntman Eddie Parker does a convincing job of portraying the ape creature when in its fits of rage. Some scholars have also used this feature as a subject on conformity, and the need to fit into society when one feels constantly on the periphery. For this, it is a bold story and deserves your attention. It does fall foul to the more impressive and grand features that were rising up at the time in contrast and suffers as a result across the ages.

  • Saul Muerte

Retrospective: The Snorkel (1958)

13 Sunday Nov 2022

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1958 would prove to be an eventful year for Hammer Film Productions. Having hit the early half of the year with the iconic Dracula aka The Horror of Dracula starring Christopher Lee in the titular role, and then releasing the sequel to The Curse of Frankenstein, equally projecting their franchise with Peter Cushing returning as Baron Frankenstein having escaped the guillotine in The Revenge of Frankenstein. To round out their trilogy of cinematic releases, Hammer would work with Columbia Pictures to distribute the feature as part of a double bill contract with wartime feature The Camp On Blood Island.

The Snorkel plays out like an Alfred Hitchcock feature with its elaborate murder and macabre dealings by the murderer himself, twisting and turning to achieve his goal in financial gain. There is an element of gaslighting at play too as Paul Decker (Peter Van Eyck) who is masterful in his manipulation, wields his power over his step-daughter Candy (Mandy Miller). Candy continuously questions Paul, convinced that he is responsible for the death of her mother. The issue is that all the evidence points to suicide, not homicide.

The writing by Hammer staple Jimmy Sangster and Paul Myers from a story by Anthony Dawson (Dial M For Murder – another Hitchcock connection) is cleverly played out for melodramatic purposes but lacks in dialogue in places.

It has some choice moments and hesitantly dangles the idea of a questionably dark ending before tying up loose ends. It also had a higher budget than Hammer had dealt with but this was primarily due to shooting on location in an Italian villa. This actually plays in the films favour and grounds the narrative. 

The Snorkel has been a little forgotten over the years, masked by the Gothic features that Hammer released at the time, but warrants further attention as it’s a fun little tale of murder and suspense.

– Saul Muerte

Retrospective: The Revenge of Frankenstein (1958)

13 Sunday Nov 2022

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Hot off the tails of Hammer’s iconic release of Dracula aka Horror of Dracula, the British Film production company would look to follow up on the success of their other Gothic feature, The Curse of Frankenstein. That film as noted at the time had the titular Baron played by Peter Cushing (returning once more here) heading for the guillotine. His resurrection would be a simple enough with Frankenstein paying off his executioner and escaping to form an alternate identity as Dr. Victor Stein set up his own successful practice in Carlsbruck. His alias is soon uncovered however by fellow doctor and admirer of Frankenstein’s work, Hans Kleve (Francis Matthews). Hans teams up with Frankenstein, eager to learn his methods and the two set work in picking up where he last left off, with the creation of life.

As part of these scientific methods, Frankenstein is accompanied by a hunchback, Karl (Oscar Quitak) who volunteers his brain in the promise of a new body (Michael Gwynne). It wouldn’t be a Hammer film without its share of drama and conflict which comes at the hand of Karl being beaten by a janitor damaging his brain and transforming his personality into a cannibalistic, decaying frame. From here, Frankenstein’s demise is on the cards and the town will awaken to his dark deeds.

Despite having a rushed script, the final cut would do well for Hammer, pulling in enough income at the box office and would be commended for a well handled screenplay ably supported by Jack Asher’s cinematography along with Terence Fisher’s directing. This is Cushing’s film though and his poise and acidic portrayal is one that lifts The Revenge of Frankenstein marking a successful franchise return and arguably one that is seen by some as better than its predecessor.

– Saul Muerte

Retrospective: Dracula (1958)

06 Sunday Nov 2022

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It’s 1958 and Hammer Films has slowly been making its mark on the horror celluloid scene, but they are about to cement their place forever with their iconic take on Bram Stoker’s Dracula as part of a deal between Seven Arts and Universal International. Iconic in that they would produce one of the most infamous images of the titular character thanks to the commanding presence of Christopher Lee. It would also see Lee don the fangs a total of seven times for Hammer, the last being The Satanic Rites of Dracula in 1973. His blood red eyes and performance as a sexual predator would set the image of modern Dracula up for life, but it would also be one that would irk Lee over time, becoming tiresome of the watered down versions he would ultimately play.

To add weight to the original feature (entitled The Horror of Dracula in the US as Universal wanted to distinguish the British version from their own 1931 feature starring Bela Lugosi), Hammer would cast Peter Cushing to play Dracula’s foe Van Helsing. A worthy and notable performance once again which would see Cushing insisting on performing his own stunts throughout.

It would once again herald Jimmy Sangster on writing duties, and the ever-dependable Terence Fisher in the directors chair following his success with The Curse of Frankenstein.

Upon review, the film still holds up well with solid performances throughout and the sexual undertone lays heavy with palettes of red, producing some well-handled effects. It’s also of note, the omission of key character Renfield from the novel, and the amalgamation of Jonathan Harker (John Van Eyssen) and Arthur Holmwood’s (Michael Gough) role in the storyline too.  

Upon release, the film did well despite heavy criticism from certain avenues of the media, dubbing the X certificate a pale option and cries for a new classification to be ordered. Either way it didn’t stop the punters from going to see it, and paved the bloody path for Hammer to walk along for another two decades.

– Saul Muerte

Retrospective: Monolith Monsters (1957)

16 Sunday Oct 2022

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As 1957 drew to a close, so did Universal’s stories around monsters, giant creatures, and supernatural events in the science fiction realm.

It wasn’t that the production company was short on ideas, and Monolith Monsters is a testament to this, pushing the envelope away from the known and into the unknown. When a meteorite crashes and its material then grows to epic proportions once exposed to water and turns anyone that crosses its path to ash.

Grant Williams who had already starred in the successful The Incredible Shrinking Man would star as the everyman turned hero, Dave Miller. Dave happens to be the head of San Antonio’s geological office, so he’s a man with smarts and just might have the answer to saving humanity from these monumental blocks of stone.

Joining Millar is his girlfriend and teacher Cathy played by American singer Lola Albright who supported Frank Sinatra and Debbie Reynolds in The Tender Trap and was only a few years away from acting opposite Elvis Presley in Kid Galahad. For Monolith Monsters though the lead characters Dave and Cathy would use their combined knowledge along with college professor Arthur Flanders (Trevor Bardette) to find a solution to stop the threat expanding into their town.

A particular highlight is the cameo performance from William Schallert as a benign meteorologist, happily carrying out his day without the slightest notion of the impending danger that is facing humankind. Also keen viewers will note a young Troy Donahue in one of his earlier roles playing a dynamite expert.

Whilst noted for its production design and special effects plus some noteworthy performances Monolith Monsters suffers with execution. It presents a unique story but fails to manifest or produce anything out of this grain of salt idea. As such the sands of time have been unkind over the years, left as a forgotten relic from a decade of dwindling success.

– Saul Muerte

Monolith Monsters is currently available as part of a double feature blu-ray with The Deadly Mantis at Umbrella Entertainment.

Retrospective: The Land Unknown (1957)

02 Sunday Oct 2022

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As Hammer Films were reinventing Gothic horror with The Curse of Frankenstein and awakening old myths with The Abominable Snowman, Universal Pictures were still venturing into humanity striving against gigantic creatures in the sci-fi adventure films. This time around, the exploration would take them into the heart of Antarctica to unleash the fears upon our central characters. 

The Land Unknown, directed by Virgil W. Vogel from a screenplay by László Görög would suffer immensely from its low budget, putting men in  dinosaur suits or shots of monitor lizards to subject our audience with fear. The result would have a poor effect and the film struggles to lift out of the realms of quality, shifting our ability to connect with it. Even retrospectively speaking, there is little substance here of worth.

In essence we join an expedition crew consisting of Commander Harold Roberts (Jock Mahoney), helicopter pilot Lt. Jack Carmen (William Reynolds), machinist Steve Miller (Phil Harvey) and reporter Maggie (Shirley Patterson). Maggie is the token female in the movie and is symbolic of the times playing the reporter, as it gave women a hard-boiled, intelligent edge whilst still needing to be sexually alluring, something that doesn’t go amiss among the male members of the crew, particularly the Commander. Often, there are comments in the script about the differences in the gender of each species they encounter, where each plays a significant role in the survival of their terrain. When the helicopter is forced to make an emergency landing this is put to the test when they find themselves in mysterious volcanic land beneath the icy surface and one that is rich in jungle life, including the aforementioned jungle.

Not only do they have to manage this unknown topography, but they soon discover another living soul who has adapted to life there since they crashed there. Dr. Carl Hunter was the sole survivor and has been used to life on his own, making him a gruff and unapproachable man, His intimidating demeanour softening only towards Maggie.

The rest of the film centres more on these conflicts, along with the volatile land and its inhabitants to play through to the conclusion. One that is a neatly tied bow and as such fails to flicker with the audience. Looking through the retrospective lens, this is definitely one of the lesser films that Universal produced at the time and much like the land in which it is set, has been forgotten over time.

  • Saul Muerte

Retrospective: The Abominable Snowman (1957)

25 Sunday Sep 2022

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Hammer Films trio of features to be released in 1957 would be complete with The Abominable Snowman. The heightened success of The Curse of Frankenstein and Quatermass 2 had made people sit up and take notice of this British film production company. TAS would see Director Val Guest team up again with one of his lead stars Peter Cushing, a formula that would be successful for this fictionalised expedition in search of the snow dwelling yeti. 

Nigel Kneale would once again take on writing duties that would pen Cushing as botanist John Rollason who agrees to join the party led by Tom Friend (Forrest Tucker), only to discover that the true intentions behind the enterprise is to capture the ape-like creature for commercial gain. 

The group are attacked by a yeti one night but one of the trappers is able to kill it, and in turn they try to use the creature to lure others of its kind to them. All of this goes against Rollasons’ moral integrity and he soon comes to believe that the yeti may indeed be of vastly greater intelligence to humankind. It is possible that they are hibernating in the mountains, waiting for humanity to reach its natural decline, before taking over as our planet’s chief primate.
The narrative will now see a turn of the tables, and the expedition must try to survive their ordeal before the terrain or the yeti’s bring about their ruin.

For a feature set in the vast open spaces through sets created by Bernard Robinson based on existing photos of shots taken in the French Pyrenees and built in the now famous Pinewood Studios, there is enough eeriness conveyed. This despite the lack of fear from the little seen yetis. It’s a strong movie with a decent plot that deserves more attention and a chance to rise out of the shadows left by The Curse of Frankenstein. The next horror feature to be released would forever cement Hammer Films’ place in the genre movie scene…

  • Saul Muerte

Retrospective: Quatermass 2 (1957)

24 Saturday Sep 2022

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Hammer Films swift follow up feature to The Curse of Frankenstein released in the same month of 1957 would be a sequel to the previously successful The Quatermass Xperiment. Continuing with the exploits and investigations of Professor Bernard Quatermass, this time around would see the brash scientist look into the strange goings on at Winnerden Flats following a high amount of meteorite falls. What he uncovers though is a lethal toxin being experimented on and an alien infiltration that could lead to disastrous consequences for the human race.

Based on the BBC production, this time around screenwriter Nigel Kneale would oversee writing duties for the feature but much to his chagrin would see American actor Brian Donlevy take on the lead role for the second time. Kneale was much aggrieved that Quatermass was portrayed by an American, a man very much considered to be British, but also by a man that he would describe as…

a bully whose emotional range ran from annoyance to fury

Marcus Hearn & Alan Barnes – The Hammer Story: The Authorised  of Hammer Films.

It doesn’t help that Donlevy was allegedly on the sauce throughout filming and apparently read off what is commonly known as idiot boards to recite his lines.

The film itself feels remarkably different from its predecessor, tapping into a more action, thriller style of exposition and one that in my opinion, goes against the grain of my high-held expectations. In this instance, I identify with Kneale’s plight about the casting of Quatermass, and find little to connect to, but admittedly I may be being biassed, as I much prefer Andrew Keir’s take in follow up Hammer film, Quatermass and the Pit.

Val Guest however does cut a fine take as director to the government, alien conspiracy flick, tying into the paranoia surrounding a post-war paranoia. It’s the beating heart of the feature and one that led some to believe that it was ahead of its time.

  • Saul Muerte