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7
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8 |
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10
= Highest Rating |
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Guest
Review by Troy
Howarth |
Years
after being committed to an insane asylum for
practicing cannibalism, a married couple (Rupert
Davies and Sheila Keith) are let back into society...
Of all
the grisly horrors directed by Pete Walker, Britain's
chief specialist in shock cinema, Frightmare
is perhaps his best known work. Much of this has
to do with the memorably lurid ad campaign, not
to mention the indelible image of elderly Sheila
Keith advancing towards the camera, wide-eyed
and brandishing a power drill. Typical of Walker's
films, Frightmare
abandons subtlety in favor of outright jabs at
the establishment while embracing graphic gore
and mayhem in a manner that makes the Hammer films
of the period look positively quaint in comparison.
Surprisingly,
given his reputation as a purveyor of gory thrillers,
Walker's horrors tend to come from a conservative
point of view. Frightmare
is very much an attack on the leniency of the
British legal system
it is the director's position that the mentally
ill should not be given the opportunity to rejoin
society after being incarcerated for violent acts,
a position that will surely raise the eyebrows
of some liberal-minded viewers. Frightmare
explicates this thesis by presenting a seemingly
harmless old couple let loose upon an unsuspecting
populace who are still driven by urges they cannot
control Walker
doesn't suggest that they should be vilified for
their urges, but rather that the government is
irresponsible for taking a chance on their good
behavior seeing as how they are under the influence
of an impulse they neither comprehend or can contain.
A parade of psychiatrists offer trite advice,
the implication being that they are part of the
problem rather than the solution, and the blood-letting
continues unfettered. While one may choose to
disagree with Walker's assertion that second chances
are not an option with those who commit violent
crimes, it is nevertheless his privilege to hold
such a point of view and to share it with the
audience in the guise of a gory horror movie.
Though Frightmare
remains Walker's best known work, it is arguably
not his finest. The pacing is uneven; while the
scenes dealing with the main thrust of the narrative
are handled with confidence and conviction, there
is some padding along the way that detracts from
the overall effect. True, the central image of
bloodthirsty Sheila Keith is unstoppable, yet
the film never manages to be as disturbing as
his later The Confessional.
The impression is very much of a director still
finding his way, gleefully shocking the polite
sensibilities of his countrymen but not yet fully
confident as a storyteller. The shock sequences,
however, point to his special gift as a filmmaker
the makeup effects are well done for the budget,
and there is something of a charnel house sensibility
in the way he tends to linger on these images.
In making the 'monster' of the piece a schizophrenic
old lady all sweetness and apple pie one moment,
icy cold and seeing red the next Walker avoids
the clichιs of similar thrillers, as well.
The film's impact is helped
considerably by the central performances. Keith
sadly neglected for years, she is now rightfully
in the canon of great horror film stars has
the role of her genre career. She manages to play
the extremes of her character without camping
it up, yet somehow managing to tap into a vein
of dark humor that adds to the gallows quality
of the picture. Rupert Davies (Dracula
Has Risen From The Grave, The
Spy Who Came In From The Cold) is equally
effective as her husband, still desperately trying
to avoid his urges and attempting to keep his
wife in check. A fine character actor, perhaps
best known in the U.K. for his performance as
Inspector Maigret on TV, Davies has a rare leading
role in this film and he makes the most of the
opportunity. The interplay between him and Keith
gives the film much of its potency, since much
of the supporting cast ranges from the adequate
to the amateurish. Deborah Fairfax, as their 'normal'
daughter, makes for a spunky and extremely photogenic
heroine, however, and there's an amusing cameo
from the great Leo Genn (an Oscar nominee for
Quo Vadis?, in one
of his many genre appearances during this time
frame, including A
Lizard in A Woman's Skin) as a befuddled psychiatrist.
Andrew Sachs, who later found fame as Manuel on
the John Cleese comedy series Fawlty Towers,
cameos at the beginning.
With
its dreary photography by Peter Jessop and moody
score by Stanley Meyers (The
Deer Hunter), Frightmare
manages to create an appropriately oppressive
atmosphere. Though not entirely successful, the
film offers a distinctive slant on its subject
matter and has retained much of its impact.
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Shriek Show's release of
Frightmare, as part
of their ongoing Pete Walker Collection,
is very good. Once again, the DVD is essentially
identical to the Anchor Bay U.K. R2 release. Framed
at 1.85 and enhanced for widescreen TVs, the image
is crisper and more colorful than had been the
case with The Confessional
and The Comeback. The
image still suffers a bit in comparison to the
R2 release, but it's certainly an improvement
on the previous R1 release by Image. The print
is completely uncut and damage is minimal. Audio
options include the original mono track and a
pointless 5.1 remix. The mono track is clean and
clear; the 5.1 may come in handy for viewers desperate
to squeeze every penny's worth out of their sound
systems, but it otherwise serves no purpose. Extras
include a commentary track with Walker and Jessop,
moderated by Walker biographer Steven Chibnall,
as well as a still gallery and assorted Walker
trailers. The commentary is very good
Walker has no pretensions about his work and recalls
working with the cast and crew with tremendous
affection, while Jessop sheds some light on the
technical difficulties encompassed by making low
budget features.
5/15/06
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