Film Review
Tyburn Films' third and final grim offering in the horror genre is
ostensibly a remake of the classic British horror film
The
Ghoul (1933) but it feels more like a pretty ham-fisted
remake of Hitchcock's
Psycho
(1960). The borrowed storyline offers not one element of surprise
(apart from a silly car chase that seems to go on forever) and the
whole thing lumbers along its predictable, well-trodden path with as
much excitement as a stray sheep ambling down a country lane. The
gruesome slayings that punctuate the tedious narrative look more like
the spasms of a dying patient than anything else and do nothing to
salvage this creaking thrill-less time-waster. Freddie Francis, a
veteran of low budget horror, fails to make anything of the derivative
script that someone dropped in his in-tray, and even acting giants of
the calibre of Peter Cushing and John Hurt appear totally at sea in
this one. The production design isn't bad (in fact most of it is
surprisingly good), but with a total lack of commitment in just about
every other department
The Ghoul
cannot help but be consigned to the bargain basement of cheap horror
flicks.
© James Travers 2014
The above content is owned by frenchfilms.org and must not be copied.
Next Freddie Francis film:
Golden Rendezvous (1977)
Film Synopsis
In England in the 1920s, two upper class couples decide to compete in a
car race to Lands End. Billy and Daphne are soon in the lead,
leaving Geoffrey and Angela trailing behind. When their car runs out
of petrol in a foggy stretch of barren countryside, Billy heads for the
nearest garage whilst Daphne explores the locality. After a nasty
encounter with a wild-looking young gardener named Tom, Daphne
discovers a solitary mansion owned by the reclusive Dr Lawrence.
The latter reveals that he has recently returned to England after
living most of his life in India, a country that claimed the lives of
both his wife and his son after they were converted to a dangerous
religion. Dr Lawrence insists that Daphne should stay the night
and instructs Tom to look for her boyfriend. Tom kills Billy by
pushing his car into a ravine, but an even worse fate awaits Daphne...
© James Travers
The above content is owned by frenchfilms.org and must not be copied.
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Film Credits
- Director: Freddie Francis
- Script: Anthony Hinds
- Cinematographer: John Wilcox
- Music: Harry Robertson
- Cast: Peter Cushing (Dr. Lawrence),
John Hurt (Tom Rawlings),
Alexandra Bastedo (Angela),
Gwen Watford (Ayah),
Veronica Carlson (Daphne Welles Hunter),
Don Henderson (The Ghoul),
Ian McCulloch (Geoffrey),
Stewart Bevan (Billy),
John D. Collins (Young Man),
Dan Meaden (Police Sergeant)
- Country: UK
- Language: English
- Support: Color
- Runtime: 80 min
- Aka: Night of the Ghoul