Showing posts with label victorian. Show all posts
Showing posts with label victorian. Show all posts

Monday 6 April 2020

PCASUK WATCH PARTY TIGON CUSHING CLASSIC NOW LIVE!


#WATCHWITHCUSHING! 'The Blood Beast Terror' (1968) NOW LIVE at the FACEBOOK PCASUK FANPAGE WATCH PARTY! This is a film that for a long time had the sad reputation of being known as '#PeterCushing's least favourite film'! A rep that was probably misunderstood, as time has gone on to inform us, it was Cushing's 'on set' experience that scored the 'no brownie points'. Like with a lot of tight budget movies from this time, today we watch them with an 'understanding' maybe. Yup the effects could be better, but I've seen much worse in films that were produced with monster budgets, and no excuse! No one looks good in a costume that is supposed to represent a 'real creature' that is actually an inch to two inches in size, and every director should have a note to themselves that reminds them, 'save some money for the big finish' 😉Director, Vernon Sewell sadly did not


BUT HE DID invest in a good cast, Robert Flemyng, replacing an ill #BasilRathbone gives a great turn, Wanda Ventham is quite convincing and committed, but I bet you she drew the line about wearing that costume, and Peter Cushing as ever, gives good value with a cracking performance, relaxed, charming and with some nice 'business' as Inspector Quennell. There's a nod to #Frankenstein and body-snatches '#BukeandHare' and the late Roy Hudd gets to make his first movie, with some well timed black humour as the morgue attendant showing a knack that even both #DonaldPleasence's Dr Seward in 'Dracula' and Cushing's Catflangue, in Legend of the Werewolf, would have been proud of!


 

Tuesday 19 February 2019

THE MAKING OF A VERY MODERN GENERAL : HOW TO WEAR A COSTUME WITH STYLE


#TOOCOOLTUESDAY! MANY OF YOU have often mentioned Cushing's wonderful ability to ware costumes, like they were his every day wear and wear them SO WELL! The role of General von Spielsdorf in Roy Ward Baker's 'The Vampire Lovers' for Hammer in 1970, gave Cushing the opportunity to play another Vampire Hunter, but unlike his Van Helsing, here Cushing notonly plays the role, he also actually WEARS it! Silk dressing gown, general unforms, high collars and hunting cloaks, few actors wore a costume like Cushing in Hammer movie. Indeed, Christopher Lee looked every inch the Count in his cloaks, but look at both actors in Amicus productions, 'I, Monster'.... Here are few rare colour images of Peter looking his best. Without saying a line, as soon as he appeared on the screen in this movie, you knew Ingrid Pitt's Carmilla had met her match . . in supernaturally and style . . .


PETER CUSHING WAS ONE of those very lucky actors, who could wear a Victorian horses nose-fed bag, and still look very much fitting into the period and quite amazing! This uniform so suits him, and unlike the Tarkin 'slipper-episode' these boots fit him, like a glove


PETER CUSHING and actress Pippa Steel. Pippa would also go on to appear in Hammer films, 'Lust For A Vampire' in 1971. A film that Cushing was also set to appear in. Sadly Helen Cushing's health and passing, prevented him from appearing, and Ralph Bates played a re-written version of the role of Giles Barton . .


A DRAMATIC SHOT in colour transparency of Peter Cushing as General von Spielsdorf on set at Elstree film studios, then called Associated British Picture Studios . .the studio photographer probably spotted Peter, waiting during blocking of a shot, and slipped in to take this shot. It's an amazing pic!







Sunday 29 October 2017

THE TEN THINGS I NOW LOVE ABOUT . . . THE BLOOD BEAST TERROR! CALLUM MCKELVIE FESSES UP!



THIS HALLOWEEN I’ve decided to give what many would consider a real ‘horror’ a second chance. Few films are as openly lambasted within the Cushing-Canon as The Blood Beast Terror, Peter himself even went as far as to label it his worst….ever. Only the fledgling Tigon productions second Horror film, after the remarkable The Sorcerers from 1967 the debut of director Michael Reeves, The Blood Beast Terror seems something like a step backwards. Whereas The Sorcerers concerned contemporary social and youth movements, Blood Beast is a period piece, featuring a dogged Victorian policeman hunting down a fearsome monster created by a mad-scientist.




It’s pretty trope-filled stuff. Not only that, but The Blood Beast Terror is directed by veteran director Vernon Sewell, who at this stage was reaching the twilight of his career. When viewed in this light and compared to the other films Tigon was putting out (Witchfinder General, Blood On Satan's Claw even lesser films such as The Beast in the Cellar show slightly more inventiveness) it’s easy to see why Blood Beast Terror gets the wrap it gets. Also….it’s pretty bad in places. However with that said, I for one DON’T think its Cushing’s worse and so compiled here is a little list of ten things I like about The Blood Beast Terror.



1: It’s pure Victorian pulp . . .
So if The Curse of Frankenstein and Dracula / Horror of Dracula are adaptations of classics of Gothic literature, then Blood Beast is the closest thing the 60’s brit-horror boom got to bringing a cheap, lurid penny dreadful, that’s been lost to time to the screen. Ok so its trope filled. Ok so the character stereotypes are out-dated and over used, but who doesn’t love a mad scientist, sinister butler and femme-fatale monster? The film utilises a number of gothic horror tropes but revels in them, whilst certainly not new or exciting, it’s a fun little escape into that lurid Gothic world . .



2: It knows what it’s doing and has fun with it . . .
Building on point one, the film apparently has fun with these tropes. In one memorable sequence there is an amateur dramatic performance of a horror play, spoofing some Frankenstein films. Now I’m not saying the film is in anyway being Meta in a particularly clever way, but it seems somewhat self-referential, a slight wink and joke to an audience that are watching a film based on the more lurid aspects of penny-dreadfuls and the Grande Guignol




3: Robert Flemying . . .
So it’s pretty well documented now that the part of Doctor Mallinger was to be played by legendary horror actor, Basil Rathbone. Needless to say the idea of Rathbone matching wits with Cushing is certainly an appealing one but sadly shortly before shooting began, Rathbone was taken ill and died suddenly. Needing a replacement fast, Tony Tenser, the legend behind Tigon films remembered the actor Robert Flemying who had appeared in a film he had distributed, 1962’s The Horrible Dr Hitchcock. Now it’s easy to get caught up in what could have been, which is unfair as it takes away from what is actually a powerful performance. Flemying and Cushing play off each other very well, particularly towards the latter half of the film when each has a suggestion that the other knows more than he is letting on. . .



4: Wanda Ventham . . .
The Moth-Lady herself, Wanda Ventham (known for making three prominent appearances in several episodes of Doctor Who throughout the years) is given plenty of screen-time and looks striking. Her performance is a powerful one and her scenes with Flemying have a genuine level of tension and menace . . .


5: The Title . . .
Need I say more?


 


6: The Supporting Cast . . .
The Veteran actor, perhaps best known to fans of Doctor Who as two of its most memorable villains, Tobias Vaughn in The Invasion and Mavic Chen in The Daleks Masterplan is particularly creepy as Granger. Glynn Edwards Sergeant Allan has some particularly humorous moments of dry wit with Cushing leading too…


7: That last-line . . .
Edwards: ‘They’ll never believe this at the yard
Cushing: ‘They’ll never believe it anywhere’




8: The Moth . . .
Whilst certainly not going to win any awards for best monster make-up of the decade…there is something undoubtedly charming about the giant furry Moth costume. The final flying sequences are….pretty damn awful, but the Moth’s appearance is distinctive enough to be entertaining in its own right . . .


9: Roy Hudd . . .
I’ve mentioned a lot of the cast in this, but as of yet have made no mention of the best actor (aside from…well you know who) in the film. Roy Hudd as the Morgue attendant makes this whole thing worthwhile. Hudd stated that he and Cushing worked together, rejigging the sequence to make it funnier and the result is the highlight of the film equalling any of Miles Madison’s scenes in the earlier Hammer pictures  . . .



10: Peter Cushing . . .
Ok so a bit predictable maybe, but was he ever not going to be on this list? The Blood Beast may not have the meatiest of roles for him in the character of Inspector Quennell, but it does give a good example of Cushing giving his all…in a production which some would argue doesn’t deserve it. Whilst there’s plenty to enjoy in this film, the real joy is Cushing nailing it against all the odds . . .
 






IF YOU LIKE what you see here at our website, you'll  love our daily themed posts at our PCAS FACEBOOK FAN PAGE.  Just click that blue LINK and click LIKE when you get there, and help us . . Keep The Memory Alive!. The Peter Cushing Appreciation Society website, facebook fan page and youtube channel are managed, edited and written by Marcus Brooks, PCAS coordinator since 1979. PCAS is based in the UK and USA  . .  

Saturday 15 July 2017

NEWS: THE HAMMER HOUSE OF HORROR IMMERSIVE AND FRIGHTENINGLY LIVE:


NEWS: THE COMPANY BEHIND so many of Peter Cushing's and Christopher Lee GREATEST SCARES is about to embark on a IMMERSIVE THEATRICAL EXPERIENCE to CHILL YOU to your HALLOWEEN BONES! Something 'ANCIENT and EVIL' is coming to HOXTON HALL, set in deepest JACK THE RIPPER country, the EAST END of LONDON! HOXTON HALL is an ATMOSPHERIC listed VICTORIAN music hall theatre and will be the setting of a HALLOWEEN HAPPENING, Hammer says, 'You'll NEVER forget!


THE HOUSE OF HAMMER HORROR SHOW LIVE is due to run through out OCTOBER 2017, ending it's run with a SPECIAL EXTRA LATE show on Halloween. Hammer Films CEO SIMON OAKES is promising 'A TENSE and INTIMATE ENCOUNTER' adding 'NO TWO PERFORMANCES WILL BE THE SAME! Anything else, he's keeping nailed down as tight as coffin lid! 


IT SOUNDS PROMISING! The HAMMER HOUSE OF HORROR LIVE runs from OCTOBER 3rd 2017 until HALLOWEEN October 31st 2017  . .. .  We can't wait!



IF YOU LIKE what you see here at our website, you'll  love our daily themed posts at our PCAS FACEBOOK FAN PAGE.  Just click that blue LINK and click LIKE when you get there, and help us . . Keep The Memory Alive!. The Peter Cushing Appreciation Society website, facebook fan page and youtube channel are managed, edited and written by Marcus Brooks, PCAS coordinator since 1979. PCAS is based in the UK and USA
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