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U.K.
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1973
Directed
by Peter Sasdy
Starring
Christopher
Lee
Peter
Cushing
Diana
Dors
Color
| 90
Minutes | PG
Format: DVD (R1 - NTSC)
Scorpion Releasing
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Review
by
Troy Howarth
Film:6
:
DVD:6
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| Retired
policeman Colonel Bingham (Christopher Lee) springs back into
action when a series of bizarre murders connected to a Scottish
orphanage hits a little too close to home. Enlisting the aid of
his friend, pathologist Sir Mark Ashley (Peter Cushing), Bingham
uncovers a grisly plot involving the children at the orphanage... |
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By
the 1970s, Christopher Lee was becoming increasingly weary — and
vocal — about the state of the horror genre as he saw it. No doubt
emboldened by being cast in higher profile mainstream fare like
Hannie Caulder (1970) and The
Private Life of Sherlock Holmes (1970), Lee became outspoken
about the quality of the genre fare he was being offered. The
actor soon decided to put his money where his mouth was, establishing
Charlemagne Productions as a possible competitor to Hammer Films.
The company was named after Lee's most illustrious ancestor, the
famed emperor Charlemagne, and was supposed to offer more intelligent
thrills compared to Hammer's increasingly exploitative product
of the period. All the best intentions in the world, however,
didn't save the company from becoming a resounding flop. Lee used
his connections to purchase the rights to a number of occult thrillers
by Dennis Wheatley, but for their maiden voyage, the actor and
his partner — producer Anthony Nelson Keys, another refugee from
the Hammer machinery — selected the comparatively obscure thriller
Nothing But the Night, by John Blackburn. Blackburn was
fairly prolific through the 1950s, '60s and '70s, but his books
seldom attracted major league attention outside of Britain. Lee
and Keys therefore set themselves to a difficult task in trying
to market a relatively unknown property by a relatively obscure
author as their attempt to outdo the horrors of Hammer. |
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It
would seem the production itself was beset by difficult and compromise.
Lee had hoped to get his friend Don Sharp (Kiss
of the Vampire) to direct, but was forced to make do with
relative newcomer Peter Sasdy, who had already directed the actor
in Taste
the Blood of Dracula (1969). The shoot involved a great
deal of location work, and the weather did not cooperate one bit.
By the time the film was in the can, Lee was no doubt beginning
to rethink his urge to produce — and things continued to deteriorate
when the time came to market the picture. A deal was cut with
Rank Film Organisation in the U.K., but worldwide buyers proved
difficult to come by. The film languished for years before finding
a U.S. release under the bizarre title The
Resurrection Syndicate in 1975; it died a quick death then,
as well. Even in the U.K., Lee fumed as the film was dumped unceremoniously,
with scant advertising to help sell it. The whole process put
the kabosh on Lee's business venture... But what of the only film
it produced? Was Nothing But the Night
really such a bad idea to start with? Or might it emerge as something
of a lost treasure among the many horror titles starring Lee and
Peter Cushing? The answer to both questions, funnily enough, is
'no'... |
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Taken
on its own terms, Nothing But the Night
is a decent, if unduly stately, mystery with horror overtones.
Lee and Cushing carry the film with straight-faced aplomb, even
if the dialogue occasionally reeks of cliché (when pressed
on why he's so interested in the mystery, Lee is forced to utter
that hoary chestnut, "This isn't just a police matter — this
is personal."). Fans of the two actors will enjoy it for their
performances alone. Like the same year's Horror
Express, it offers a rare instance of the horror icons
being paired on the side of good — but unlike that Spanish
import, it doesn't really give them a lot of fun things to do.
Bingham and Ashley are a sort of Holmes and Watson duo, but they
don't have much in the way of chemistry. Bingham is pushy and
no-nonsense, but the heart of his investigation (his friendship
with one of the victims) is never expanded upon, making it all
seem rather arbitrary; Ashley is pushy and short-tempered, making
the normally charming Cushing come off as a bit of a bore here.
Neither actor is really tested or given anything especially memorable
to do, though Lee does get to cut loose somewhat during the climax
of the picture. These actors are pros of the old school —
they're compulsively watchable no matter what — but Nothing
But the Night doesn't emerge as one of their top pairings,
largely because neither of them are allowed to really make much
of an impression. |
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None
of this is to say that it's a bad film, however. Despite some
awkward moments — why is it that overhead helicopters have
such a hard time spotting a murder suspect... in a largely barren
landscape... while the person in question is wearing a bright
red jacket? — and a surprisingly bland visual aesthetic,
the film is engaging enough in an undemanding kind of way. The
story has some novel ideas, and even if they are hindered by one
dimensional characterizations, there's something inherently special
about seeing Lee and Cushing together again. The supporting cast
includes Diana Dors (overacting like mad as an ex-hooker turned
murder suspect) and a youthful Michael Gambon, but the real standout
is young Gwyneth Strong, who handles the key role of the child
somehow linked to the murders with surprising flair. Strong holds
her own against her distinguished cast-mates and manages to make
her character sympathetic and believable. |
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Director
Sasdy made a splash at Hammer with the aforementioned Taste
the Blood of Dracula (regarded by many as the best of the
series after Terence Fisher's 1958 original), but he had already
racked up some impressive credentials on the BBC (where he had
directed Cushing in an adaptation of Asimov's The Caves of
Steel). The Hungarian-born director seemed poised to take
over Fisher's mantle as Hammer's premiere director of gothic fare,
but following an impressive trilogy of films for the studio (rounded
out by 1970's Countess
Dracula and 1971's Hands of the
Ripper), he left the fold in search of other opportunities.
As previously indicated, he was more or less forced upon Lee for
this picture, though the actor appeared appreciative of his efforts
in later interviews. Sasdy does a competent job with the material
at hand, but the end result pales in comparison to his best work.
The film is also burdened with a cheap look, which would appear
to be attributable to cinematographer Kenneth Talbot. Curiously,
Talbot had photographed Sasdy's last two pictures for Hammer —
and impressive looking they were, to boot — but here he
appears to have been having an off day (or three). Barring the
occasionally stylish set-piece (a hypnosis session, the final
confrontation) much of Nothing But the Night
is dispensed with in an offhanded fashion. |
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And
yet, for all its missteps, Nothing But the
Night is far from an unmitigated disaster. That may sound
like a backhanded compliment — and, I suppose, in a way,
it is — but truthfully, fans of British horror of the period
are used to making do with less than ideal screenplays and occasionally
compromised production values. The key ingredients here —
Lee and Cushing — are enjoyable enough on their own terms,
and there is indeed enough novelty in some of the concepts to
provoke a thought or two. It may not rank among the very finest
of the Lee/Cushing horror pairings, but it's still a decent time
filler in its own right. |
|
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| Scorpion
has provided Stateside Lee/Cushing fans with their first 'legit'
taste of Nothing But the Night on
DVD. The 1.78/16x9 transfer is very nice on the whole. Colors
are accurately rendered, and the image is markedly less murky
and dingy than the old, out-of-print VHS release from Monterey
(under the nonsensical, and misspelled, title The Devils Undead).
The film never got a lot of exposure in America, and for years
would remain one of the harder collaborations between the two
actors for us Yanks to see, but this DVD release will rectify
that. |
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The
film is presented as part of Scorpion's series of horror titles
hosted by former WWE Diva (or "Dvia", as the back of
the slipcase would have her; it's not easy being a spelling Nazi!)
Katarina Leigh Waters, under the banner Katarina's Nightmare
Theater. The idea is clearly to replicate the good old days
of TV horror hosts, with the admittedly photogenic Katarina serving
as hostess at the start and finish of the feature. Scorpion have
set it up that her presence can be minimized, however; the reversible
cover art (which is really rather atrocious) has one side without
the Katarina banner, and it's also possible to watch the film
without her intro and outro. The mono English soundtrack is in
decent shape, and is free of hiss and distortion. Extras are limited
to a theatrical trailer, liner notes (viewable as onscreen text)
by Cushing biographer Chris Gullo, and trailers for other Katarina-hosted
titles (including Sasdy's even more disappointing The
Devil Within Her, with Joan Collins and Donald Pleasence).
11/04/11 |
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