andnowthescreamingstarts

AC/N 1973 90m Eng N/A
RP/V

CAST: Peter Cushing, Herbert Lom, Patrick Magee, Stephanie Beecham, Ian Ogilvy & Geoffrey Whitehead

CREDITS: Director: Roy Ward Baker; Screenwriters: Roy Ward Baker/David Case; Producers: Gustav Berne/Max J. Rosenberg/Milton J. Subotsky; Director Of Photography: Denys Coop; Production Designer: Tony Curtis; Editor: Peter Tanner; Music: Douglas Gamely

THE SYNOPSIS

England, 1795. Young aristocrat Charles Fengriffen (Ogilvy) and his lovely, new bride Catherine (Beecham) move into the Fengriffen Estate to begin their lives together. On their wedding night, poor Catherine is attacked by a malevolent spirit and a ghastly, disembodied hand.

Something weird is going on at Fengriffen Estate and Catherine inquires about the strange occurrences. When the head maid tries to talk, she takes a nasty tumble down the stairs and dies. When the family lawyer comes to see the couple, he too is axed to death in the forest. Speaking of axes and forests, the answer may lie with the enigmatic woodsman, Silas (Whitehead)—who bears a red mark on his face and a hatred for the Fengriffen line.

Catherine is soon pregnant and begins to hallucinate about dead spirits and malevolent hands. The family physician, Dr. Whittle (Magee) brings in a psychologist associate from London by the name of Dr. Pope (Cushing)—who tries to use science as a rational explanation for the strange occurrences around them.

Dr. Whittle is soon murdered and Charles must divulge his family’s horrible secret to Dr. Pope: 50 years’ earlier, his grandfather Henry Fengriffen (Lom)—who was a despotic and sadistic aristocrat—raped Silas’s grandmother on her wedding night and chopped off Silas Senior’s right hand. The injured woodsman spat out a curse on Fengriffen and his progeny.

Catherine eventually gives birth to a baby boy. Charles and Dr. Pope are shocked to see a red birth mark on the baby’s face…

THE CRITIQUE

AND NOW THE SCREAMING STARTS! is an entertaining little genre movie from horror company Amicus Productions (headed by American producers Max J. Rosenberg & Milton Subotsky)—which was a direct competitor to the reigning British horror picture firm, Hammer Films.

As directed by horror veteran Roy Ward Baker (Asylum/The Vault Of Horror/Scars Of Dracula), ANTSS! exhibits elegant & atmospheric—albeit high-key cinematography, courtesy of the late British DP Denys Coop (Asylum/The Vault Of Horror), terrific production design, lovely costuming and a lavish musical score by the late, Aussie composer Douglas Gamely (Asylum/The Vault Of Horror).

The script, by Roger Marshall (TV’s The Avengers) and David Case (based on his novel Fengriffen), is mediocre—yet still has some interesting concepts between its sheets. Most intriguing is the concept that the sins of the father passes down his bloodline for generations & generations.

In the thespian department, no one did it like the late, great Peter Cushing! He’s always a pleasure to watch, usually when saving the day. The real main attraction here is the lovely Stephanie Beacham, who is basically the heart & soul of the movie. I also liked the great Herbert Lom as the wicked Henry Ferngriffen in the 5 minutes he actually appears. However, to me, he’ll always be the kooky Inspector Dreyfus in the Pink Panther series!

In regard to location shooting, ANTSS! was shot entirely in England, partially at a large estate called Oakley Court (where Hammer Films also shot many of their movies) and partially at the famed Shepperton Studios near London.

THE BOTTOM LINE

A decent horror movie that neither truly frightens nor bores its viewer to death. Nicely produced, and well-acted—this one’s a hoot to watch! While not on par with competitor Hammer Films’ best, AND NOW THE SCREAMING STARTS! is hands down (pun intended) a minor gem.